
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.
Awards & recognition
- Knight Bachelor · 2019
- honorary doctorate · 2010
- Commander of the Order of the British Empire
- Laurence Olivier Awards
- European Film Award – People's Choice Award — Best European Film · 2018 · nominated
Show all 6 awards →
- Tony Award — Best Actor in a Play · 2004 · nominated
Filmography38 titles

House of the Dragon

Penny Dreadful

Royal Opera House: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

Spooks

A Christmas Carol

The Hollow Crown

Hamlet

Vanity Fair

Douglas Is Cancelled

Shakespeare Live! From the RSC

Deep Water

Persuasion

Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale

Mary & George

The Outfit

The Death of Stalin

Orlando

Operation Finale

My Week with Marilyn

Radioactive

Mary Queen of Scots

American Experience

Operation Mincemeat

Museo

Muse of Fire

An Ideal Husband

Thor: Love and Thunder

Dunkirk

Firebrand

The Choral

Benediction

Alice in Wonderland

The Legend of Tarzan

The Deep Blue Sea

Into the Woods

My Cousin Rachel

The Gathering

Legacy