Born in Bethulie, O.F.S of an Afrikaans father and an Irish mother, Patrick was educated at Bethulie School and De La Salle College in East London. He then spent three "disastrous" years at Rhodes University in Grahamstown, where he discovered that he had a flair for acting. He joined the National Theatre Organisation in 1953 as an actor and toured the country for a year and a half appearing in English and Afikaans plays.

In 1954 he left for London where he trained at the Central School of Drama. After spells of dishwashing and potato-peeling, working in a liquor store, being a barman, then a clerk and even a railway porter (No. K 1037) at Kings Cross Railway Station in London, he eventually landed his first job in a repertory company.

Six tough, busy and exciting years followed, working in various rep companies all over England and in London at the Richmond and Wimbledon theatres. Two West End plays at the Winter Garden and His Majesty's theatres followed, then the 1959 Edinburgh festival and many parts in television plays and serials for the BBC. Appeared on commercial television as well as films for the Rank Organisation, the Boulting Brothers and M.G.M.

During this period Patrick had the privilege of working with some of the world's great, famous actors and actresses the likes of Tyrone Power, Sir Donald Wolfitt, Peter Sellers, Terry Thomas, Burt Lancaster, Anthony Quinn, Richard Harris, Peter O'Toole, Sir Michael Caine and Dame Judy Dench.

He returned to South Africa at the end of 1960 for a short working holiday, has been there ever since, has no regrets and sums it up with a "If I can't be the world's greatest actor, Laurence Olivier, in London, then I would rather be Patrick Mynhardt in South Africa."

Patrick is equally at home in both English and Afrikaans and works constantly in all four mediums, radio, television, films and the theatre, trying to avoid overexposure in any one medium or language. HE has appeared in at least 150 stage plays (in South Africa and England), 100 local and international films and about 100 television plays and serials, some made here and some abroad. Apart from a satirical revue, an opera, Il Seraglio, in which he was the Pasha, there was the musical King of Diamonds.

Since 1969 he has enjoyed exceptional success and popularity with his six one man shows A Sip of Jerepigo, More Jerepigo, Just Jerepigo and Another Sip of Jerepigo.Boy From Bethulie - Mynhardt's highly acclaimed autoboigraphical entertainment opened in 1982 and is still in great demand nationawide. The Best of Bosman and Bethulie was first performed in 1990 in embasies and residencies in London, Brussels, New York, Washington and San Francisco. In 1993 14 preformances were given in Israel.

His most popular and acclaimed television performances were as Pappa (the Godfather) in the prison series Vyfster and as Hempies - "The white racist all blacks love" in Suburban Bliss. As can be seen in his gallery of roles, Patrick Mynhardt has succeeded in achieving versatility.