Michael completed the acting course at the national institute of dramatic art (NIDA) in 1981. going by the stage name of Michael O'Neill, he performed in numerous productions for the state theatre companies in Melbourne, Sydney and Adelaide. from 1989-1994 he played the role of Dr Steve Harrison on ABC TV's award winning medical drama GP. In 1998 Michael settled in Warragul (Gippsland, Victoria) with his wife Tracey and their three children. He is now a drama teacher at a Christian School and directs school musical productions. In 1996 Michael acted on stage with John Howard in Michael Glow's "the incorruptible" and in 2011, appeared as Alan in Off the Leash Theatre's version of Yasmina Reza's God of Carnage