Simon Russell Beale
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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.
Known for
Credits
Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)
as Dionysus
De Gaulle: Résistance (2026)
as Winston Churchill
The Legend of Tarzan (2016)
as Mr. Frum
The Magic Faraway Tree (2026)
as Know All
Mary Queen of Scots (2018)
as Robert Beale
The Death of Stalin (2017)
as Lavrenti Beria
Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale (2025)
as Sir Hector Moreland
Into the Woods (2014)
as Baker's Father
The Outfit (2022)
as Roy Boyle
Operation Mincemeat (2022)
as Winston Churchill
The Choral (2025)
as Sir Edward Elgar
De Gaulle: Liberté (2026)
as Winston Churchill
Operation Finale (2018)
as David Ben-Gurion
My Week with Marilyn (2011)
as Cotes-Preedy
Alice in Wonderland (1999)
as King Cedric of Hearts
The Deep Blue Sea (2011)
as Sir William Collyer
Radioactive (2020)
as Professor Lippmann
Persuasion (1995)
as Charles Musgrove
My Cousin Rachel (2017)
as Couch
Firebrand (2024)
as Stephen Gardiner
An Ideal Husband (1999)
as Sir Edward
Hamlet (1996)
as Second Gravedigger
Orlando (1992)
as Earl of Moray
Benediction (2021)
as Robbie Ross
Muse of Fire (2013)
as Self
The Gathering (2003)
as Luke Fraser
National Theatre Live: 50 Years on Stage (2013)
as Hamlet
National Theatre Live: King Lear (2014)
as Lear, King of Britain
Shakespeare Live! From the RSC (2016)
as Richard II
BBC Proms: Sondheim's 80th Birthday (2010)
as Himself - Performer
Royal Opera House: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (2011)
as The Duchess / Introduced by
National Theatre Live: The Tragedy of King Richard the Second (2019)
as Richard II
Blackadder: Back & Forth (1999)
as Wellington
National Theatre Live: The Lehman Trilogy (2019)
as Henry Lehman
RSC Live: The Tempest (2017)
as Prospero
Museo (2018)
as Frank Graves
Prima Facie (2026)
Actor
The Young Visiters (2003)
as Prince of Wales
National Theatre Live: Collaborators (2011)
as Joseph Stalin
National Theatre Live: London Assurance (2010)
as Sir Harcourt Courtly
National Theatre Live: Timon of Athens (2012)
as Timon
A Christmas Carol (2020)
as Scrooge's voice (voice)
This Is Your Five Minute Call (—)
as Malcolm
Lava Land - Glowing Hawaii (2013)
as Narrator
Time and the Conways (1985)
as Party Guest
Cunk on Shakespeare (2016)
as Self - Actor
The Mysterious Mr Webster (2014)
as Self - Interviewee
Deep Water (2006)
as Donald Crowhurst (voice)
Legacy (2013)
as Hookey
Shakespeare's Sonnets (2012)
Actor
Home! Home! (2024)
as Narrator (voice)
Sacred Music: God's Composer (2011)
as Presenter
A Musical Nativity with John Rutter (2011)
Actor
The Temptation of Franz Schubert (1997)
as Franz Schubert
Monteverdi in Mantua - The Genius of the Vespers (2015)
as presenter
An Easter Celebration (2008)
as presenter
Sacred Music: A Christmas History (2010)
as Presenter
The Hour (2020)
as Himself