Pete Edochie (born 7 March 1947) is a Nigerian actor. He rose to prominence for playing Okonkwo in a Nigerian Television Authority adaptation of Chinua Achebe’s novel Things Fall Apart.

Edochie has starred in over 200 films including Igodo, Egg of Life, Billionaire Club, and Lionheart. He has been honoured with an Industry Merit Award from Africa Magic and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Africa Film Academy.

Pete Edochie
Chief Dr Pete Edochie (M.O.N).
Personal Details
Name:	Chief Pete Edochie
Born:	7 March 1947 (age 79 years old)
Place of birth:	Enugu, Enugu State
Nationality:	Nigerian
Education:	School of Journalism and Television, England
Occupation:	Actor
Years active:	1980-date
Spouse:	Josephine Edochie
Children:	6

Table of Contents

Early life

Pete Edochie was born on 7 March 1947 in Enugu, Enugu State, Nigeria. He hails from Nteje in the Oyi Local Government Area of Anambra State. His father worked in the Railways. He moved with his parents to Makurdi, to several towns in the north, to Kano and from Kano to Zaria.

Education

Edochie had his primary education at St Patrick’s and St James Primary School, Zaria. He then attended St. John’s College, Kaduna, from 1960 to 1964.

Later, he travelled to England to study Journalism and Television at the School of Journalism and Television. He trained at the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) in 1980. He received an Honorary Doctorate of Arts in Excellence, Leadership, and Development from iSTM University in 2023.

Career

In early 1967, Pete relocated to Enugu and joined the Eastern Nigeria Broadcasting Corporation (ENBC). With the outbreak of the Nigerian Civil War, he moved to the Voice of Biafra.

At the end of the war, he served under the East Central State Broadcasting Service (ECSBS) and the Anambra Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). After the creation of states in 1991, he joined the Anambra State Broadcasting Service (ABS).

In 1980, he underwent formal training with the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). In 1987, he was appointed as the Pioneer Director of ABS 3 FM Stereo. He named the station’s flagship identity “Sunrise ’96”, inspired by the morning sun in the east.

Aside from being a broadcaster, Pete is a successful actor. He starred as Okonkwo in the classic adaptation of Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart. The BBC came into Nigeria to interview him for the role.

In 2014, he received the AMAA Industry Merit Award for his contribution towards the growth of the film sector in Africa. Some of his notable films include Oracle, Igodo, Evil Men, and Rituals.

Pete was honoured as a Member of the Order of the Niger (MON) by former president Olusegun Obasanjo in 2003. He has appeared in many other films including Heavy Battle, Test Your Heart, Greatest Harvest, Secret Pain, Holy Cross, Lacrima, and Living with Death, among others.

Pete received the City People Entertainment Lifetime Achievement Award in 2016. He was honoured with the African Film Legend award at the African Film Festival (TAFF) held in Dallas, the United States, in 2020.

Controversy

In 2005, Pete and other actors were placed on a one-year ban by the Actors’ Guild of Nigeria for asking producers to pay them a huge fee due to their A-list celebrity status. He was kidnapped but later released unharmed in August 2009.