Simon Russell Beale
Born
January 12, 1961 (64 years old)
Known For
Acting
Place of Birth
Penang, Malaysia
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
The Choral
2025
Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale
2025
Firebrand
Stephen Gardiner
2024
Home! Home!
Self (narrator)
2024
Thor: Love and Thunder
Dionysus
2022
The Hour
Himself
2020
The Death of Stalin
Lavrenti Beria
2017
RSC Live: The Tempest
Prospero
2017
The Legend of Tarzan
Mr. Frum
2016
Cunk on Shakespeare
Self - Actor
2016
Shakespeare Live! From the RSC
Richard II
2016
Monteverdi in Mantua - The Genius of the Vespers
presenter
2015
Into the Woods
Baker's Father
2014
The Mysterious Mr Webster
Self - Interviewee
2014
National Theatre Live: King Lear
Lear, King of Britain
2014
Legacy
Hookey
2013
Lava Land - Glowing Hawaii
Narrator
2013
National Theatre Live: 50 Years on Stage
Hamlet
2013
Muse of Fire
Self
2013
The Deep Blue Sea
Sir William Collyer
2011
My Week with Marilyn
Cotes-Preedy
2011
BBC Proms: Sondheim's 80th Birthday
Himself - Performer
2010
An Easter Celebration
presenter
2008
Deep Water
Donald Crowhurst (voice)
2006
The Young Visiters
Prince of Wales
2003
The Gathering
Luke Fraser
2003
Blackadder: Back & Forth
Wellington
1999
Alice in Wonderland
King Cedric of Hearts
1999
Hamlet
Second Gravedigger
1996
Persuasion
Charles Musgrove
1995
Orlando
Earl of Moray
1992
Time and the Conways
Party Guest
1985
De Gaulle – Partie 1 : La France Libre
Winston Churchill
The Magic Faraway Tree
De Gaulle – Partie 2
Winston Churchill
Douglas Is Cancelled
Bently · (4 episodes)
2024
Mary & George
Sir George Villiers · (1 episode)
2024
House of the Dragon
Ser Simon Strong · (6 episodes)
2022
Operation Mincemeat
Winston Churchill
2022
The Outfit
Roy Boyle
2022
Benediction
Robbie Ross
2021
A Christmas Carol
Scrooge's voice (voice)
2020
Radioactive
Professor Lippmann
2020
National Theatre Live: The Lehman Trilogy
Henry Lehman
2019
National Theatre Live: The Tragedy of King Richard the Second
Richard II
2019
Mary Queen of Scots
Robert Beale
2018
Vanity Fair
John Sedley · (7 episodes)
2018
Operation Finale
David Ben-Gurion
2018
Museo
Frank Graves
2018
My Cousin Rachel
Couch
2017
Penny Dreadful
Ferdinand Lyle · (14 episodes)
2014
National Theatre Live: Timon of Athens
Timon
2012
Shakespeare's Sonnets
2012
The Hollow Crown
Falstaff · (3 episodes)
2012
Simon Schama's Shakespeare
(2 episodes)
2012
A Musical Nativity with John Rutter
2011
National Theatre Live: Collaborators
Joseph Stalin
2011
Symphony
(4 episodes)
2011
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (The Royal Ballet at the Royal Opera House)
The Duchess / Introduced by
2011
A Christmas History
Presenter
2010
National Theatre Live: London Assurance
Sir Harcourt Courtly
2010
Dunkirk
Winston Churchill · (3 episodes)
2004
Spooks
William Towers · (6 episodes)
2002
Spooks
Home Secretary · (7 episodes)
2002
An Ideal Husband
Sir Edward
1999
A Dance to the Music of Time
Widmerpool · (4 episodes)
1997
The Mushroom Picker
Anthony · (3 episodes)
1993
American Experience
John Adams (voice) · (1 episode)
1988
A Very Peculiar Practice
Mark Stibbs · (1 episode)
1986