Simon Russell Beale

Simon Russell Beale

Birthdate
January 12, 1961 (63 years old)
Place of Birth
Penang, Malaysia
Known For
Acting

Details

Birthdate
January 12, 1961 (63 years old)
Place of Birth
Penang, Malaysia
Known For
Acting

Biography

Sir Simon Russell Beale CBE (born January 12, 1961) is an English actor. He is known for his appearances in film, television and theatre, and work on radio, on audiobooks and as a narrator. For his services to drama, he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace in 2019.

He has spent much of his theatre career working in productions for both the Royal Shakespeare Company and National Theatre. He has received ten Laurence Olivier Award nominations, winning three awards for his performances in Volpone (1996), Candide (2000), and Uncle Vanya (2003). For his work on the Broadway stage he has received a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play nomination for his performance as George in the Tom Stoppard play Jumpers in 2004. For his role as Henry Lehman in The Lehman Trilogy, he won the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play and was nominated for an Olivier Award. Beale has been described by The Independent as "the greatest stage actor of his generation".

Beale made his film debut in Sally Potter's period drama Orlando (1992). He continued acting in films such as Persuasion (1995), Hamlet (1996), My Week with Marilyn (2011), The Deep Blue Sea (2011), Into the Woods (2014), and Mary Queen of Scots (2018). In 2017, he starred in Armando Iannucci's dark comedy The Death of Stalin playing Lavrentiy Beria for which he received the British Independent Film Award for Best Supporting Actor. He has also appeared in the television projects The Young Visiters (2003), Dunkirk (2004), and as Falstaff in the BBC made-for-television films Henry IV, Part I and Part II (2012). He was part of the main cast of Showtime's Penny Dreadful.

Simon Russell Beale's LGBTQ+ Titles

Orlando
Orlando
Earl of Moray
Benediction
Benediction
Robbie Ross

Acting (70)

The Magic Faraway Tree
De Gaulle – Partie 1 : La France Libre as Winston Churchill
De Gaulle – Partie 2 as Winston Churchill
The Choral
Home! Home! as Narrator
2025
Downton Abbey 3
2024
Douglas Is Cancelled as Bently (4 episodes)
2024
Firebrand as Stephen Gardiner
2024
Mary & George as Sir George Villiers (1 episode)
2024
Home! Home! as Self (narrator)
2022
House of the Dragon as Ser Simon Strong (6 episodes)
2022
Thor: Love and Thunder as Dionysus
2022
Operation Mincemeat as Winston Churchill
2022
The Outfit as Roy Boyle
2021
Benediction as Robbie Ross
2020
A Christmas Carol as Scrooge's voice (voice)
2020
The Hour as Himself
2020
Radioactive as Professor Lippmann
2019
National Theatre Live: The Lehman Trilogy as Henry Lehman
2019
National Theatre Live: The Tragedy of King Richard the Second as Richard II
2018
Mary Queen of Scots as Robert Beale
2018
Vanity Fair as John Sedley (7 episodes)
2018
Operation Finale as David Ben-Gurion
2018
Museo as Frank Graves
2017
The Death of Stalin as Lavrenti Beria
2017
My Cousin Rachel as Couch
2017
RSC Live: The Tempest as Prospero
2016
The Legend of Tarzan as Mr. Frum
2016
Cunk on Shakespeare as Self - Actor
2016
Shakespeare Live! From the RSC as Richard II
2015
Monteverdi in Mantua - The Genius of the Vespers as presenter
2014
Into the Woods as Baker's Father
2014
The Mysterious Mr Webster as Self - Interviewee
2014
Penny Dreadful as Ferdinand Lyle (14 episodes)
2014
National Theatre Live: King Lear as Lear, King of Britain
2013
Legacy as Hookey
2013
Lava Land - Glowing Hawaii as Narrator
2013
National Theatre Live: 50 Years on Stage as Hamlet
2013
Muse of Fire as Self
2012
National Theatre Live: Timon of Athens as Timon
2012
Shakespeare's Sonnets
2012
The Hollow Crown as Falstaff (3 episodes)
2012
Simon Schama's Shakespeare (2 episodes)
2011
National Theatre Live: Collaborators as Joseph Stalin
2011
My Week with Marilyn as Cotes-Preedy
2011
Symphony (4 episodes)
2011
The Deep Blue Sea as Sir William Collyer
2011
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (Royal Ballet at the Royal Opera House) as The Duchess / Introduced by
2010
A Christmas History as Presenter
2010
National Theatre Live: London Assurance as Sir Harcourt Courtly
2010
BBC Proms: Sondheim's 80th Birthday as Himself - Performer
2008
An Easter Celebration as presenter
2006
Deep Water as Donald Crowhurst (voice)
2004
Dunkirk as Winston Churchill (3 episodes)
2003
The Young Visiters as Prince of Wales
2003
The Gathering as Luke Fraser
2002
Spooks as Home Secretary (7 episodes)
2002
Spooks as William Towers (6 episodes)
1999
An Ideal Husband as Sir Edward
1999
Blackadder: Back & Forth as Wellington
1999
Alice in Wonderland as King Cedric of Hearts
1997
A Dance to the Music of Time as Widmerpool (4 episodes)
1996
Hamlet as Second Gravedigger
1995
Persuasion as Charles Musgrove
1993
The Mushroom Picker as Anthony (3 episodes)
1992
Orlando as Earl of Moray
1988
American Experience as John Adams (voice) (1 episode)
1986
A Very Peculiar Practice as Mark Stibbs (1 episode)
1985
Time and the Conways as Party Guest
1983
Blackadder as Napoléon (1 episode)