Nigel Hawthorne

English actor (1929–2001)

Sir

Nigel Hawthorne

CBE

Hawthorne as the Duke of
Clarence in the 1995 film Richard III

Born|

Nigel Barnard Hawthorne

(1929-04-05)5 April 1929

Coventry, Warwickshire, England

Died| 26 December 2001(2001-12-26) (aged 72)

Cold Christmas, Hertfordshire, England

Occupation| Actor
Years active| 1950–2001
Partner| Trevor Bentham (1979–2001)

Sir Nigel Barnard Hawthorne (5 April 1929 – 26 December 2001) was an English actor. He is known for his stage acting and his portrayal of Sir Humphrey Appleby, the permanent secretary in the 1980s sitcom Yes Minister and the Cabinet Secretary in its sequel, Yes, Prime Minister. For this role, he won four BAFTA TV Awards for Best Light Entertainment Performance.

He won the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for portraying King George III in The Madness of King George (1994), having previously won an Olivier Award for the stage version. He later won the BAFTA TV Award for Best Actor, for the 1996 series The Fragile Heart. He was also an Olivier Award and Tony Award winner for his work in theatre.

## Early life

[edit]

Hawthorne was born on 5 April 1929 in Coventry, Warwickshire (now West Midlands), the second of four children of Agnes Rosemary (née Rice) and Charles Barnard Hawthorne, a physician.[1]

When Hawthorne was 3 years old, the family moved to Cape Town, South Africa, where his father had bought a practice. Initially they lived in Gardens and then moved to a newly built house near Camps Bay.[2]

He attended St George's Grammar School, Cape Town, and, although the family was not Catholic, at a now-defunct Christian Brothers College,[3] where he played in the rugby team.[4] He described his time at the latter as not being a particularly happy experience.[2]

He enrolled at the University of Cape Town, where he met and sometimes acted in plays with Theo Aronson (later a well-known biographer), but withdrew and returned to the United Kingdom in the 1950s to pursue a career in acting.

## Career

[edit]

Hawthorne made his professional stage debut in 1950, playing Archie Fellows in a Cape Town production of The Shop at Sly Corner.[3] Unhappy in South Africa, he decided to move to London, where he performed in various small parts including a 1969 appearance in Series 3 Episode 1 of the classic TV comedy series Dad's Army before becoming recognised as a great character actor.

Finding success in London, Hawthorne decided to try his luck in New York City and eventually got a part in a 1974 production of As You Like It on Broadway. Around this time, he was persuaded by Ian McKellen and Judi Dench to join the Royal Shakespeare Company. He also supplemented his income by appearing in television advertisements, including one for Mackeson Stout, and in the early 1990s starred alongside Tom Conti in a long-running series of commercials for Vauxhall.

He returned to the New York stage in 1990 in Shadowlands and won the 1991 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play.[5]

Although Hawthorne had appeared in small roles in various British television series since the late 1950s, his most famous role was as Sir Humphrey Appleby, the Permanent Secretary of the fictional Department of Administrative Affairs in the television series Yes Minister (and Cabinet Secretary in its sequel, Yes, Prime Minister), for which he won four BAFTA awards during the 1980s. He became a household name throughout the United Kingdom, which finally opened the doors to film roles. In 1982, Hawthorne appeared in Richard Attenborough's Gandhi, alongside a distinguished international cast including Martin Sheen, John Mills, Candice Bergen, John Gielgud, Ian Charleson and Ben Kingsley. That same year, he starred opposite Clint Eastwood in the Cold War thriller Firefox, where he played a dissident Russian scientist.

Other film roles during this time included Demolition Man, which he detested for being "brainless" and a "cheap picture". This period led into his most famous role: that of King George III in Alan Bennett's stage play The Madness of George III (for which he won a Best Actor Olivier Award) and then the film adaptation titled The Madness of King George, for which he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor and won the BAFTA Film Award for Best Actor. (The title was changed lest US audiences misunderstand ‘III’.)

After this success his friend Ian McKellen asked him to play his doomed brother, Clarence, in Richard III, and Steven Spielberg asked him to play lame-duck president Martin Van Buren in Amistad. He won a sixth BAFTA for the 1996 TV mini-series The Fragile Heart. He also drew praise for his role of Georgie Pillson in the London Weekend Television series Mapp and Lucia.

Hawthorne was also a voice actor and lent his voice to two Disney films: Fflewddur Fflam in The Black Cauldron (1985) and Professor Porter in Tarzan (1999). He also voiced Captain Campion in the animated film adaptation of Watership Down (1978).

## Personal life

[edit]

An intensely private person, he was annoyed at having been outed as gay in 1995 in the publicity surrounding the Academy Awards, but he did attend the ceremony with his long-time partner, Trevor Bentham, and afterwards he spoke openly about being gay in interviews and in his autobiography, Straight Face,[6] which was published posthumously.[7]

Hawthorne met Bentham in 1968 when the latter was stage-managing the Royal Court Theatre. From 1979 until Hawthorne's death in 2001 they lived together in Radwell and then at Thundridge, both in Hertfordshire. The two of them became fund-raisers for the North Hertfordshire hospice and other local charities.[8]

## Death

[edit]

Hawthorne died from a heart attack at his home on 26 December 2001, aged 72.[8] He had recently undergone several operations for pancreatic cancer, which he was diagnosed with in mid-2000, but had been discharged from hospital for the Christmas holidays.[8] He was survived by Bentham, and his funeral service was held at St Mary's, the parish church of Thundridge near Ware, Hertfordshire, following which he was cremated at Stevenage Crematorium.[9] His funeral was attended by Derek Fowlds, who had played Bernard in Yes, Minister and Yes, Prime Minister, Maureen Lipman, Charles Dance, Loretta Swit and Frederick Forsyth along with friends and local people. The service was led by the Right Reverend Christopher Herbert, the Bishop of St Albans. The coffin had a wreath of white lilies and orchids and Bentham was one of the pallbearers.[10]

On hearing of Hawthorne's death Alan Bennett described him in his diary: "Courteous, grand, a man of the world and superb at what he did, with his technique never so obvious as to become familiar as, say, Olivier's did or Alec Guinness's."[11]

## Honours

[edit]

He was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 1987 New Years Honours List[12] and was knighted in the 1999 New Years Honours List "for services to the Theatre, Film and Television."[13][14]

## Filmography

[edit]

### Film

[edit]

Year  | Title  | Role  | Notes

|
|
|

1958  | Carve Her Name with Pride | Polish Soldier in Park  | Uncredited
1972  | Young Winston | Boer Sentry
1974  | S*P*Y*S | Croft  | Parody / Action / Comedy
1975  | The Hiding Place | Pastor De Ruiter  | Prison Drama / History
Decisions, Decisions | Unknown  | Short
1977  | Spiderweb | Lonnrot
1978  | Sweeney 2 | Dilke  | Action / Crime / Thriller
Watership Down | Captain Campion  | Voice, credited as Nigel Hawthorn
The Sailor's Return | Mr Fosse  | Drama
1981  | History of the World: Part I | Citizen Official  | (The French Revolution)
Memoirs of a Survivor | Victorian Father  | Sci-Fi
1982  | Firefox | Dr Pyotr Baranovich  | Adventure / Action / Thriller
The Plague Dogs | Dr Boycott  | Voice
Gandhi | Kinnoch  |
1983  | Dead on Time | Doctor  | Short
1983  | Monty Python's The Meaning of Life | Clerk/pirate  | The Crimson Permanent Assurance short
1984  | The Chain | Mr Thorn  |
1985  | The Black Cauldron | Fflewddur Fflam | Voice
Turtle Diary | The Publisher  |
1988  | Rarg | The Storyteller  | Short film
1989  | A Handful of Time | Ted Walker  |
1990  | King of the Wind | Achmet  |
1992  | Freddie as F.R.O.7. | Brigadier General  | Voice
1993  | Demolition Man | Dr Raymond Cocteau  |
1994  | The Madness of King George | King George III |
1995  | Richard III | Clarence |
1996  | Twelfth Night or What You Will | Malvolio |
1997  | Murder in Mind | Dr Ellis  | Also associate producer
Amistad | President Martin Van Buren |
1998  | The Object of My Affection | Rodney Fraser  |
Madeline | Lord Covington  | (segment "Lord Cucuface")
At Sachem Farm | Uncle Cullen  | Also executive producer
1999  | The Big Brass Ring | Kim  |
The Winslow Boy | Arthur Winslow  |
A Reasonable Man | Judge Wendon  |
Tarzan | Professor Porter  | Voice
The Clandestine Marriage | Lord Ogleby  | Also associate producer

### Television

[edit]

Year  | Title  | Role  | Notes

|
|
|

1956  | Cry Wolf! | PC Bray  | Television movie
television debut
1957  | The Goose Girl | Unknown  | Television movie
The Royal Astrologers | Third Thief
Bonehead | Bit Part  | Episode: "Pilot"
Huntingtower | Sinister Man  | Episode: "#1.3"
Villette | Second Footman  | Television miniseries; 2 episodes
1962  | The Last Man Out | Gestapo Man  | Episode: "The Way Out"
1963  | The Desperate People | Cliff Fletcher  | recurring role; 4 episodes
Man of the World | Assistant Director  | Episode: "The Bandit"
Bud | Trefor Jones  | Episode: "#1.5"
1964  | Detective | Temple Doorkeeper  | Episode: "Death in Ecstasy"
Emergency-Ward 10 | Colin Davies  | Episode: "#1.769"
1965  | Jury Room | David Hemming, Juror  | Episode: "The Dilke Affair"
1969  | Mrs Wilson's Diary | Roy Jenkins | Television movie
The Gnomes of Dulwich | Gnome  | Episode: "#1.6"
Dad's Army | The Angry Man  | Episode: "The Armoured Might of Lance Corporal Jones"
1971  | The Last of the Baskets | Mr Snodgrass  | Episode: "For Richer, for Poorer"
Hine | Freddy Ambercourt  | Episode: "Everything I Am I Owe"
1973  | Hadleigh | Oliver Mason  | 2 episodes
1974  | Occupations | Libertini  | Television movie
Miss Nightingale | Dr Lewis
1976  | Couples | Mr Laker  | recurring role; 3 episodes
Bill Brand | Browning  | Television Miniseries; Episode: "Yarn"
1977  | Crown Court | Dr William Ranford  | Episode: "Beauty and the Beast (Part 1)"
Eleanor Marx | Engels  | 2 episodes
Marie Curie | Pierre Curie  | Television miniseries; 4 episodes
Just William | Mr Croombe  | Episode: "The Great Detective"
1978  | Warrior Queen | Catus Decianus  | recurring role; 4 episodes
Breakaway Girls | Derek Carter  | Episode: "Sarah Carter"
Going Straight | "Worm" Wellings  | Episode: "Going Going Gone"
Holocaust | Ohldendorf  | Television miniseries; Episode: "Part 2"
Edward & Mrs. Simpson | Walter Monckton | recurring role; 5 episodes
1979  | Thomas and Sarah | Wilson  | Episode: "The New Rich"
The Other Side | Skellow  | Episode: "Underdog"
The Knowledge | Mr Burgess  | Television movie
1980  | The Misanthrope | Philinte
The Tempest | Stephano
Jukes of Piccadilly | Brinsley Jukes  | recurring role; 6 episodes
The Good Companions | Reverend Chillingford  | Television miniseries; Episode: "Miss Trant Pays the Bill"
1980  | A Tale of Two Cities | Mr C.J. Stryver  | Television Movie
1980–1984  | Yes Minister | Sir Humphrey Appleby | series regular; 22 episodes
1981  | Tales of the Unexpected | Charles Drummond  | Episode: "The Last Bottle in the World"
1982  | The Hunchback of Notre Dame | Magistrate at Esmeralda's Trial  | Television movie
A Woman Called Golda | King Abdullah
The World Cup: A Captain's Tale | John Westwood
The Barchester Chronicles | Archdeacon Theophilus Grantly  | Television miniseries; 7 episodes
1983  | Tartuffe, or the Imposter | Orgon  | Television movie
1984  | Pope John Paul II | Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski
The House | General Fagg
1985–1986  | Mapp & Lucia | Georgie Pillson  | recurring role; 10 episodes
1985  | Jenny's War | Colonel  | recurring role; 4 episodes
1986–1988  | Yes, Prime Minister | Sir Humphrey Appleby  | series regular; 16 episodes
1989  | The Play on One | John  | Episode: "The Shawl"
1990  | Relatively Speaking | Philip Carter  | Television movie
1994  | Late Flowering Lust | Cousin John - poetry reader  | A "blend of music, poetry, dance, actor/dancers..."[15]
1994  | Betjeman Revisited | Narrator  | Hawthorne reads Betjeman's script for three 1962 programmes on Chippenham & Crewkerne, Sherborne, and Sidmouth, where the soundtrack was missing
1995  | Russia's War: Blood upon the Snow | Narrator  | Documentary series, 10 episodes
1996  | Inside | Colonel  | Television movie
The Fragile Heart | Dr Edgar Pascoe  | unknown episode
The Happy Prince | Narrator  | Television movie
1997  | Forbidden Territory: Stanley's Search for Livingstone | David Livingstone
1998  | Animal Stories | Narrator  | unknown episode
2000  | The Last Polar Bears | Television short
2001  | Victoria & Albert | Lord William Lamb | Television movie
Call Me Claus | Nick  | Television movie, (final film role)

### Video games

[edit]

Year  | Title  | Role  | Notes

|
|
|

1998  | Jeff Wayne's the War of the Worlds | The General  | Voice
2001  | Tarzan: Untamed | Professor Porter

## Stage

[edit]

### Theatre

[edit]

Year  | Title  | Role  | Company  | Venue

|
|
|
|

1950  | The Shop at Sly Corner | Archie  |  | Hofmeyr Theatre
1951  | You Can't Take It With You | Donald  |  | Embassy Theatre
1957  | His Excellency | Captain the Contino Sevastein Jacono de Piero  |  |
Talking To You | Fancy Dan  |  | Duke of York's Theatre
1967  | Mrs Wilson's Diary | Roy  |  | Criterion Theatre
The Marie Lloyd Story | Sir Oswald Stoll |  | Theatre Royal, Stratford
1968  | Early Morning | Albert |  | Royal Court Theatre
1970  | Curtains | Niall  |  | Edinburgh Festival
1971  |  | Open Space
Alma Mater | Major  |  |
1972  | The Trial of St George | Judge  |  | Soho Poly
1973  | A Question of Everything | Hugh  |  |
The Emergency Channel | Graham  |  |
The Philanthropist | Philip  |  | May Fair
1975  | A Child of Hope | Police Captain  |  |
The Floater | Morris Shelman  |  |
Otherwise Engaged | Stephen  |  | Queens Theatre
The Doctor's Dilemma | Culter Walpole  |  | Mermaid Theatre
1976  | Play Things | Tenby  |  |
Buffet | Jack  |  |
As You Like It | Touchstone |  | Riverside Studios
1977  | The Fire that Consumes | Abbe de Pradts  |  | Mermaid Theatre
Blind date | Brian  |  | King's Head Theatre
Privates on Parade | Major Gliles Flack  |  |
1978  | Destiny | Major Lewis Rolfe  |  |
The Millionairess | Julius  |  | Theatre Royal Haymarket
1980  | The Enigma | Fenton  |  |
A Rod of Iron | Trevor  |  |
Jessie | Mr. Edmonds  |  |
1981  | A Brush with Mr. Porter on the Road to Eldorado | Fulton  |  |
Protest | Vaclav Havel  |  |
1982  | The Critic | Mr. Sneer  |  |
1986  | Across from the Garden of Allah | Douglas  |  | Comedy Theatre
1988  | The Miser | Harpagon  |  |
Hapgood | Blair  |  | Aldwych Theatre
1989  | The Spirit of Man | Reverend Jonathan Guerdon  |  |
Shadowlands | C. S. Lewis |  | Queens Theatre
1990  |  | Brooks Atkinson Theatre
1991  | The Trials of Oz | Brian Leary  |  |
The Madness of George III | George III |  |
1992  | Flea Bites | Kryst  |  |
1999  | King Lear | Lear | RSC | Barbican

## Awards and nominations

[edit]

Year  | Title  | Accolade  | Category  | Result

|
|
|
|

1977  | Privates on Parade | Laurence Olivier Award | Best Actor in a Supporting Role | Won
1981  | Yes Minister | Broadcasting Press Guild Award | Best Actor in a Light Entertainment Program | Won
1982  | British Academy Television Award | Best Light Entertainment Performance | Won
1983  | Won
1986  | The Magistrate | Laurence Olivier Awards | Best Comedy Performance | Nominated
1987  | Yes, Prime Minister | British Academy Television Awards | Best Light Entertainment Performance | Won
1988  | Won
1989  | CableACE Award | Actor in a Comedy Series | Nominated
1990  | Shadowlands | Laurence Olivier Award | Actor of the Year | Nominated
1991  | Tony Award | Best Actor in a Play | Won
1992  | The Madness of George III | Laurence Olivier Award | Actor of the Year | Won
1995  | The Clandestine Marriage | Best Comedy Performance | Nominated
The Madness of King George | Academy Award | Best Actor | Nominated
1996  | Empire Award | Best Actor | Won
British Academy Film Award | Best Actor in a Leading Role | Won
London Critics Circle Film Award | British Actor of the Year | Won
1997  | The Fragile Heart | British Academy Television Award | Best Actor | Won
1999  | The Object of My Affection | London Critics Circle Film Award | British Supporting Actor of the Year | Won

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Nigel Hawthorne Biography, FilmReference.com. Retrieved 18 August 2009.
2. ^ a b Kathleen Riley (2004) Nigel Hawthorne on Stage, University of Hertfordshire Press, Hatfield; ISBN 978-1-90280-629-7
3. ^ a b Biography for Nigel Hawthorne[dead link], TCM.com. Retrieved 18 August 2009.
4. ^ Michael Green (2004) Around and About: Memoires of a South African Newspaperman, David Philip Publishers, Cape Town; ISBN 0-86486-660-7
5. ^ Staff and agencies (26 December 2001). "Actor Sir Nigel Hawthorne dies". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 17 October 2017.
6. ^ Nigel Hawthorne (2002) Straight Face, Hodder & Stoughton, London ISBN 978-0-34076-942-3
7. ^ Hubbard, Michael; "Straight Face by Nigel Hawthorne" Archived 11 December 2006 at the Wayback Machine MusicOMH.com (Retrieved: 18 August 2009)
8. ^ a b c Payne, Stewart (27 December 2001). "Sir Nigel Hawthorne dies of heart attack aged 72". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 24 November 2012.
9. ^ Wilson, Scott. Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons, 3d ed.: 2 (Kindle Locations 20441-20442). McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. Kindle Edition.
10. ^ 'Friends pay tribute to Nigel Hawthorne' – The Guardian 10 January 2002
11. ^ Bennett, Alan (2005). Untold Stories. London, England: Faber & Faber. p. 302.
12. ^ "1987 New Year Honours". The London Gazette.
13. ^ Barker, Dennis; "Sir Nigel Hawthorne" The Guardian, 27 December 2001 (Retrieved: 18 August 2009)
14. ^ UK list: "No. 55354". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 31 December 1998. p. 2.
15. ^ Lemomu, Damie (26 March 2020). "Vintage Adventures: Late Flowering Lust". New Adventures. Retrieved 14 November 2024.

## External links

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Nigel Hawthorne.

* Nigel Hawthorne at IMDb
* Nigel Hawthorne at the Internet Broadway Database

Awards for Nigel Hawthorne

* v
* t
* e

BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role

1952–1967|

| British|

* Ralph Richardson (1952)
* John Gielgud (1953)
* Kenneth More (1954)
* Laurence Olivier (1955)
* Peter Finch (1956)
* Alec Guinness (1957)
* Trevor Howard (1958)
* Peter Sellers (1959)
* Peter Finch (1960)
* Peter Finch (1961)
* Peter O'Toole (1962)
* Dirk Bogarde (1963)
* Richard Attenborough (1964)
* Dirk Bogarde (1965)
* Richard Burton (1966)
* Paul Scofield (1967)

|

Foreign|

* Marlon Brando (1952)
* Marlon Brando (1953)
* Marlon Brando (1954)
* Ernest Borgnine (1955)
* François Périer (1956)
* Henry Fonda (1957)
* Sidney Poitier (1958)
* Jack Lemmon (1959)
* Jack Lemmon (1960)
* Paul Newman (1961)
* Burt Lancaster (1962)
* Marcello Mastroianni (1963)
* Marcello Mastroianni (1964)
* Lee Marvin (1965)
* Rod Steiger (1966)
* Rod Steiger (1967)

1968–present|

* Spencer Tracy (1968)
* Dustin Hoffman (1969)
* Robert Redford (1970)
* Peter Finch (1971)
* Gene Hackman (1972)
* Walter Matthau (1973)
* Jack Nicholson (1974)
* Al Pacino (1975)
* Jack Nicholson (1976)
* Peter Finch (1977)
* Richard Dreyfuss (1978)
* Jack Lemmon (1979)
* John Hurt (1980)
* Burt Lancaster (1981)
* Ben Kingsley (1982)
* Michael Caine / Dustin Hoffman (1983)
* Haing S. Ngor (1984)
* William Hurt (1985)
* Bob Hoskins (1986)
* Sean Connery (1987)
* John Cleese (1988)
* Daniel Day-Lewis (1989)
* Philippe Noiret (1990)
* Anthony Hopkins (1991)
* Robert Downey Jr. (1992)
* Anthony Hopkins (1993)
* Hugh Grant (1994)
* Nigel Hawthorne (1995)
* Geoffrey Rush (1996)
* Robert Carlyle (1997)
* Roberto Benigni (1998)
* Kevin Spacey (1999)
* Jamie Bell (2000)
* Russell Crowe (2001)
* Daniel Day-Lewis (2002)
* Bill Murray (2003)
* Jamie Foxx (2004)
* Philip Seymour Hoffman (2005)
* Forest Whitaker (2006)
* Daniel Day-Lewis (2007)
* Mickey Rourke (2008)
* Colin Firth (2009)
* Colin Firth (2010)
* Jean Dujardin (2011)
* Daniel Day-Lewis (2012)
* Chiwetel Ejiofor (2013)
* Eddie Redmayne (2014)
* Leonardo DiCaprio (2015)
* Casey Affleck (2016)
* Gary Oldman (2017)
* Rami Malek (2018)
* Joaquin Phoenix (2019)
* Anthony Hopkins (2020)
* Will Smith (2021)
* Austin Butler (2022)
* Cillian Murphy (2023)
* Adrien Brody (2024)

* v
* t
* e

BAFTA TV Award for Best Actor

1955–1975|

* Paul Rogers (1955)
* Peter Cushing (1956)
* Michael Gough (1957)
* Michael Hordern (1958)
* Donald Pleasence (1959)
* Patrick McGoohan (1960)
* Lee Montague (1961)
* Rupert Davies (1962)
* Harry H. Corbett (1963)
* Alan Badel (1964)
* Patrick Wymark (1965)
* Alan Badel (1966)
* Warren Mitchell (1967)
* Eric Porter (1968)
* Roy Dotrice (1969)
* Edward Woodward (1970)
* Keith Michell (1971)
* John Le Mesurier (1972)
* Anthony Hopkins (1973)
* Frank Finlay (1974)
* Peter Barkworth (1975)

1976–2000|

* John Hurt (1976)
* Derek Jacobi (1977)
* Peter Barkworth (1978)
* Edward Fox (1979)
* Alec Guinness (1980)
* Denholm Elliott (1981)
* Anthony Andrews (1982)
* Alec Guinness (1983)
* Alan Bates (1984)
* Tim Pigott-Smith (1985)
* Bob Peck (1986)
* Michael Gambon (1987)
* David Jason (1988)
* Ray McAnally (1989)
* John Thaw (1990)
* Ian Richardson (1991)
* Robert Lindsay (1992)
* John Thaw (1993)
* Robbie Coltrane (1994)
* Robbie Coltrane (1995)
* Robbie Coltrane (1996)
* Nigel Hawthorne (1997)
* Simon Russell Beale (1998)
* Tom Courtenay (1999)
* Michael Gambon (2000)

2001–present|

* Michael Gambon (2001)
* Michael Gambon (2002)
* Albert Finney (2003)
* Bill Nighy (2004)
* Rhys Ifans (2005)
* Mark Rylance (2006)
* Jim Broadbent (2007)
* Andrew Garfield (2008)
* Stephen Dillane (2009)
* Kenneth Branagh (2010)
* Daniel Rigby (2011)
* Dominic West (2012)
* Ben Whishaw (2013)
* Sean Harris (2014)
* Jason Watkins (2015)
* Mark Rylance (2016)
* Adeel Akhtar (2017)
* Sean Bean (2018)
* Benedict Cumberbatch (2019)
* Jared Harris (2020)
* Paul Mescal (2021)
* Sean Bean (2022)
* Ben Whishaw (2023)
* Timothy Spall (2024)
* Lennie James (2025)

* v
* t
* e

BAFTA TV Award for Best Entertainment Performance

1958–1975|

* Tony Hancock (1958)
* Alan Melville (1959)
* Tony Hancock (1960)
* Stanley Baxter (1961)
* Eric Sykes (1962)
* Michael Bentine (1963)
* Morecambe and Wise (1964)
* Millicent Martin (1965)
* Peter Cook & Dudley Moore (1966)
* Alan Bennett (1967)
* Alan Bennett (1968)
* Marty Feldman (1969)
* Eric Morecambe & Ernie Wise (1970)
* Eric Morecambe & Ernie Wise (1971)
* Ronnie Barker & Ronnie Corbett (1972)
* Eric Morecambe & Ernie Wise (1973)
* Eric Morecambe & Ernie Wise (1974)
* Stanley Baxter (1975)

1976–2000|

* Ronnie Barker (1976)
* Penelope Keith (1977)
* Ronnie Barker (1978)
* Ronnie Barker (1979)
* John Cleese (1980)
* Rowan Atkinson (1981)
* Nigel Hawthorne (1982)
* Nigel Hawthorne (1983)
* Tracey Ullman (1984)
* Judi Dench (1985)
* Victoria Wood (1986)
* Nigel Hawthorne (1987)
* Nigel Hawthorne (1988)
* Victoria Wood (1989)
* Rowan Atkinson (1990)
* David Jason (1991)
* Richard Wilson (1992)
* Joanna Lumley (1993)
* Richard Wilson (1994)
* Rory Bremner (1995)
* Rory Bremner (1996)
* John Bird & John Fortune (1997)
* Paul Whitehouse (1998)
* Michael Parkinson (1999)
* Graham Norton (2000)

2001–present|

* Graham Norton (2001)
* Graham Norton (2002)
* Paul Merton (2003)
* Jonathan Ross (2004)
* Paul O'Grady (2005)
* Jonathan Ross (2006)
* Jonathan Ross (2007)
* Harry Hill (2008)
* Harry Hill (2009)
* Ant & Dec (2010)
* Graham Norton (2011)
* Graham Norton (2012)
* Alan Carr (2013)
* Ant & Dec (2014)
* Ant & Dec (2015)
* Leigh Francis (2016)
* Michael McIntyre (2017)
* Graham Norton (2018)
* Lee Mack (2019)
* Mo Gilligan (2020)
* Romesh Ranganathan (2021)
* Big Zuu (2022)
* Claudia Winkleman (2023)
* Joe Lycett (2024)
* Joe Lycett (2025)

* v
* t
* e

Critics' Circle Theatre Award for Best Actor

* Bob Hoskins (1982)
* Derek Jacobi (1983)
* Brian Cox / Antony Sher (1984)
* Anthony Hopkins / Gary Oldman (1985)
* Bill Fraser / Hugh Quarshie (1986)
* Brian Cox (1987)
* Alex Jennings / Tom Wilkinson (1988)
* Ian McKellen (1989)
* Michael Gambon (1990)
* Nigel Hawthorne (1991)
* Paul Eddington (1992)
* Ian Holm (1993)
* Tom Courtenay (1994)
* Daniel Massey (1995)
* David Suchet (1996)
* Ian Holm (1997)
* Kevin Spacey (1998)
* Henry Goodman (1999)
* Michael Gambon (2000)
* Ian McDiarmid (2001)
* Simon Russell Beale (2002)
* Michael Sheen (2003)
* Richard Griffiths (2004)
* Simon Russell Beale (2005)
* Rufus Sewell (2006)
* Charles Dance (2007)
* Kenneth Branagh (2008)
* Mark Rylance (2009)
* David Suchet (2010)
* Benedict Cumberbatch (2011)
* Adrian Lester (2012)
* Lenny Henry (2013)
* Mark Strong (2014)
* Kenneth Cranham (2015)
* Stephen Dillane (2016)
* Bryan Cranston (2017)
* Kyle Soller (2018)
* Andrew Scott (2019)
* Ben Daniels (2022)
* Andrew Scott (2023)

* v
* t
* e

Empire Award for Best Actor

* Nigel Hawthorne (1996)
* Morgan Freeman (1997)
* Kevin Spacey (1998)
* Tom Hanks (1999)
* Pierce Brosnan (2000)
* Russell Crowe (2001)
* Elijah Wood (2002)
* Tom Cruise (2003)
* Johnny Depp (2004)
* Matt Damon (2005)
* Johnny Depp (2006)
* Daniel Craig (2007)
* James McAvoy (2008)
* Christian Bale (2009)
* Christoph Waltz (2010)
* Colin Firth (2011)
* Gary Oldman (2012)
* Martin Freeman (2013)
* James McAvoy (2014)
* Andy Serkis (2015)
* Matt Damon (2016)
* Eddie Redmayne (2017)
* Hugh Jackman (2018)

* v
* t
* e

Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Actor

* Richard Burton (1955)
* Paul Scofield (1956)
* Laurence Olivier (1957)
* Michael Redgrave (1958)
* Eric Porter (1959)
* Alec Guinness (1960)
* Christopher Plummer (1961)
* Paul Scofield (1962)
* Michael Redgrave (1963)
* Nicol Williamson (1964)
* Ian Holm (1965)
* Albert Finney (1966)
* Laurence Olivier (1967)
* Alec McCowen (1968)
* Nicol Williamson (1969)
* John Gielgud (1970)
* Alan Bates (1971)
* Laurence Olivier (1972)
* Alec McCowen (1973)
* John Wood (1974)
* John Gielgud (1975)
* Albert Finney (1976)
* Donald Sinden (1977)
* Alan Howard (1978)
* Warren Mitchell (1979)
* Tom Courtenay (1980)
* Alan Howard (1981)
* Alec McCowen (1982)
* Derek Jacobi (1983)
* Ian McKellen (1984)
* Antony Sher (1985)
* Albert Finney (1986)
* Michael Gambon (1987)
* Eric Porter (1988)
* Ian McKellen (1989)
* Richard Harris (1990)
* John Wood (1991)
* Nigel Hawthorne (1992)
* Ian Holm (1993)
* Tom Courtenay (1994)
* Michael Gambon (1995)
* Paul Scofield (1996)
* Ian Holm (1997)
* Kevin Spacey (1998)
* Stephen Dillane (1999)
* Simon Russell Beale (2000)
* Alex Jennings (2001)
* Simon Russell Beale (2002)
* Michael Sheen (2003)
* Richard Griffiths (2004)
* Simon Russell Beale (2005)
* Rufus Sewell (2006)
* Patrick Stewart (2007)
* Chiwetel Ejiofor (2008)
* Mark Rylance (2009)
* Rory Kinnear (2010)
* Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller (2011)
* Simon Russell Beale (2012)
* Adrian Lester and Rory Kinnear (2013)
* Tom Hiddleston (2014)
* James McAvoy (2015)
* Ralph Fiennes (2016)
* Andrew Garfield (2017)
* Ralph Fiennes (2018)
* Andrew Scott (2019)
* James McAvoy (2022)
* Andrew Scott (2023)

* v
* t
* e

Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor

1976–1984
and 1988|

| Revival|

* Alan Howard (1976)
* Ian McKellen (1977)
* Alan Howard (1978)
* Warren Mitchell (1979)
* Jonathan Pryce (1980)
* Daniel Massey (1981)
* Stephen Moore (1982)
* Derek Jacobi (1983)
* Ian McKellen (1984)
* Brian Cox (1988)

|

New Play|

* Paul Copley (1976)
* Michael Bryant (1977)
* Tom Conti (1978)
* Ian McKellen (1979)
* Roger Rees (1980)
* Trevor Eve (1981)
* Ian McDiarmid (1982)
* Jack Shepherd (1983)
* Brian Cox (1984)
* David Haig (1988)

1985 onwards
(except 1988)|

* Antony Sher (1985)
* Albert Finney (1986)
* Michael Gambon (1987)
* Oliver Ford Davies (1989/1990)
* Ian McKellen (1991)
* Nigel Hawthorne (1992)
* Robert Stephens (1993)
* Mark Rylance (1994)
* David Bamber (1995)
* Alex Jennings (1996)
* Antony Sher (1997)
* Ian Holm (1998)
* Kevin Spacey (1999)
* Henry Goodman (2000)
* Conleth Hill (2001)
* Roger Allam (2002)
* Simon Russell Beale (2003)
* Matthew Kelly (2004)
* Richard Griffiths (2005)
* Brian Dennehy (2006)
* Rufus Sewell (2007)
* Chiwetel Ejiofor (2008)
* Derek Jacobi (2009)
* Mark Rylance (2010)
* Roger Allam (2011)
* Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller (2012)
* Luke Treadaway (2013)
* Rory Kinnear (2014)
* Mark Strong (2015)
* Kenneth Cranham (2016)
* Jamie Parker (2017)
* Bryan Cranston (2018)
* Kyle Soller (2019)
* Andrew Scott (2020)
* No Ceremony (2021)
* Hiran Abeysekera (2022)
* Paul Mescal (2023)
* Mark Gatiss (2024)
* John Lithgow (2025)

* v
* t
* e

Laurence Olivier Award for Best Performance in a Supporting Role

1976–1984|

| Merged|

* Margaret Courtenay (1976)

|

Actor|

* Nigel Hawthorne (1977)
* Robert Eddison (1978)
* Patrick Stewart (1979)
* David Threlfall (1980)
* Joe Melia (1981)
* David Healy (1982)
* Alan Devlin (1983)
* Edward Petherbridge (1984)

Actress|

* Mona Washbourne (1977)
* Elizabeth Spriggs (1978)
* Doreen Mantle (1979)
* Suzanne Bertish (1980)
* Gwen Watford (1981)
* Anna Massey (1982)
* Abigail McKern (1983)
* Marcia Warren (1984)

1985–1990|

| Merged|

* Imelda Staunton (1985)
* Paul Jesson (1986)
* Michael Bryant (1987)
* Eileen Atkins (1988)
* Michael Bryant (1989/1990)

|

1991–1995|

| Actor|

* David Bradley (1991)
* Oleg Menshikov (1992)
* Julian Glover (1993)
* Joseph Mydell (1994)
* Ken Stott (1995)

|

Actress|

* Sara Crowe (1991)
* Frances de la Tour (1992)
* Barbara Leigh-Hunt (1993)
* Helen Burns (1994)
* Dora Bryan (1995)

1996–2002|

| Actor|

* Trevor Eve (1997)
* Roger Allam (2000)
* Ben Daniels (2001)
* Toby Jones (2002)

|

Actress|

* Deborah Findlay (1997)
* Patricia Hodge (2000)
* Essie Davis (2001)
* Marcia Warren (2002)

Merged|

* Simon Russell Beale (1996)
* Sarah Woodward (1998)
* Brendan Coyle (1999)

2003–2009|

| Merged|

* Essie Davis (2003)
* Warren Mitchell (2004)
* Amanda Harris (2005)
* Noma Dumezweni (2006)
* Jim Norton (2007)
* Rory Kinnear (2008)
* Patrick Stewart (2009)

|

2010–present|

| Actor|

* Eddie Redmayne (2010)
* Adrian Scarborough (2011)
* Richard McCabe (2013)
* Jack Lowden (2014)
* Nathaniel Parker (2015)
* Mark Gatiss (2016)
* Anthony Boyle (2017)
* Bertie Carvel (2018)
* Chris Walley (2019)
* Adrian Scarborough (2020)
* No Ceremony (2021)
* Fred Davis, Daisy Franks, Romina Hytten, Tom Larkin, Habib Nasib Nader, Tom Stacy, and Scarlet Wilderink (2022)
* Will Keen (2023)
* Will Close (2024)
* Elliot Levey (2025)

|

Actress|

* Ruth Wilson (2010)
* Michelle Terry (2011)
* Nicola Walker (2013)
* Sharon D. Clarke (2014)
* Angela Lansbury (2015)
* Judi Dench (2016)
* Noma Dumezweni (2017)
* Denise Gough (2018)
* Monica Dolan (2019)
* Indira Varma (2020)
* No Ceremony (2021)
* Liz Carr (2022)
* Anjana Vasan (2023)
* Haydn Gwynne (2024)
* Romola Garai (2025)

Merged|

* Sheridan Smith (2012)

* v
* t
* e

London Film Critics' Circle Award for British Actor of the Year

* Alan Rickman (1991)
* Daniel Day-Lewis (1992)
* David Thewlis (1993)
* Ralph Fiennes (1994)
* Nigel Hawthorne (1995)
* Ewan McGregor / Ian McKellen (1996)
* Robert Carlyle (1997)
* Brendan Gleeson (1998)
* Jeremy Northam (1999)
* Jim Broadbent (2000)
* Paul Bettany (2001)
* Hugh Grant (2002)
* Paul Bettany (2003)
* Daniel Craig (2004)
* Ralph Fiennes (2005)
* Toby Jones (2006)
* James McAvoy (2007)
* Michael Fassbender (2008)
* Colin Firth (2009)
* Christian Bale (2010)
* Michael Fassbender (2011)
* Toby Jones (2012)
* James McAvoy (2013)
* Timothy Spall (2014)
* Tom Hardy (2015)
* Andrew Garfield (2016)
* Daniel Kaluuya (2017)
* Rupert Everett (2018)
* Robert Pattinson (2019)
* Riz Ahmed (2020)
* Andrew Garfield (2021)
* Bill Nighy (2022)

* v
* t
* e

London Film Critics' Circle Award for British Supporting Actor of the Year

* Rupert Everett (1997)
* Nigel Hawthorne (1998)
* Michael Caine (1999)
* Albert Finney (2000)
* Paul Bettany (2001)
* Kenneth Branagh (2002)
* Bill Nighy (2003)
* Phil Davis (2004)
* Tom Hollander (2005)
* Michael Caine (2006)
* Tom Wilkinson (2007)
* Eddie Marsan (2008)
* Michael Fassbender (2009)
* Andrew Garfield (2010)

* v
* t
* e

Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Play

1947–1975|

* José Ferrer / Fredric March (1947)
* Henry Fonda / Paul Kelly / Basil Rathbone (1948)
* Rex Harrison (1949)
* Sidney Blackmer (1950)
* Claude Rains (1951)
* José Ferrer (1952)
* Tom Ewell (1953)
* David Wayne (1954)
* Alfred Lunt (1955)
* Paul Muni (1956)
* Fredric March (1957)
* Ralph Bellamy (1958)
* Jason Robards Jr. (1959)
* Melvyn Douglas (1960)
* Zero Mostel (1961)
* Paul Scofield (1962)
* Arthur Hill (1963)
* Alec Guinness (1964)
* Walter Matthau (1965)
* Hal Holbrook (1966)
* Paul Rogers (1967)
* Martin Balsam (1968)
* James Earl Jones (1969)
* Fritz Weaver (1970)
* Brian Bedford (1971)
* Cliff Gorman (1972)
* Alan Bates (1973)
* Michael Moriarty (1974)
* John Kani and Winston Ntshona (1975)

1976–2000|

* John Wood (1976)
* Al Pacino (1977)
* Barnard Hughes (1978)
* Tom Conti (1979)
* John Rubinstein (1980)
* Ian McKellen (1981)
* Roger Rees (1982)
* Harvey Fierstein (1983)
* Jeremy Irons (1984)
* Derek Jacobi (1985)
* Judd Hirsch (1986)
* James Earl Jones (1987)
* Ron Silver (1988)
* Philip Bosco (1989)
* Robert Morse (1990)
* Nigel Hawthorne (1991)
* Judd Hirsch (1992)
* Ron Leibman (1993)
* Stephen Spinella (1994)
* Ralph Fiennes (1995)
* George Grizzard (1996)
* Christopher Plummer (1997)
* Anthony LaPaglia (1998)
* Brian Dennehy (1999)
* Stephen Dillane (2000)

2001–present|

* Richard Easton (2001)
* Alan Bates (2002)
* Brian Dennehy (2003)
* Jefferson Mays (2004)
* Bill Irwin (2005)
* Richard Griffiths (2006)
* Frank Langella (2007)
* Mark Rylance (2008)
* Geoffrey Rush (2009)
* Denzel Washington (2010)
* Mark Rylance (2011)
* James Corden (2012)
* Tracy Letts (2013)
* Bryan Cranston (2014)
* Alex Sharp (2015)
* Frank Langella (2016)
* Kevin Kline (2017)
* Andrew Garfield (2018)
* Bryan Cranston (2019)
* Andrew Burnap (2020/21)
* Simon Russell Beale (2022)
* Sean Hayes (2023)
* Jeremy Strong (2024)

* v
* t
* e

British Triple Crown winners

listed by duration and year of completion

Competitive BTCs|

* Judi Dench (1966–1977)
* Virginia McKenna (1955–1979)
* Peggy Ashcroft (1976–1986)
* Nigel Hawthorne (1977–1996)
* Alan Bennett (1990–1996)
* Julie Walters (1984–2002)
* Albert Finney (1961–2003)
* Kenneth Branagh (1982–2009)
* Helen Mirren (1991–2013)
* Mark Rylance (1994–2016)
* Stephen Daldry (1993–2022)

Honorary recipients|

* Alec Guinness (1958–1988)
* Anthony Hopkins (1973–1992)
* Vanessa Redgrave (1966–2010)
* Maggie Smith (1970–2010)

Portals:

* Biography
* Theatre
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Artists|

* MusicBrainz
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People|

* Trove

Other|

* IdRef
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