Charles Edwards (English actor)

For other people named Charles Edwards, see Charles Edwards (disambiguation).
Charles Edwards
Born (1969-10-01) 1 October 1969
Haslemere, Surrey, England, UK
Nationality British
Occupation Actor
Years active 1993–present
Known for Bertie and Elizabeth
Downton Abbey
Holy Flying Circus

Charles Edwards (born 1 October 1969) is an English actor, the youngest of four brothers in his family.[1] He graduated from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in 1992.

Career

Theatre

Educated at Winchester College.

His first professional theatre engagement was in Blithe Spirit at age 24.[1] Since then he has appeared in many shows such as The Duchess of Malfi, Hay Fever, Private Lives and The Apple Cart.

Edwards received acclaim for his Broadway debut performance as Richard Hannay in the 2005 play of The 39 Steps, in the first London production in 2006,[2] and in the first US productions in 2007 (Boston)[3] and 2008 (New York City).[4] He is the only actor from the London production to transfer to the US productions. Edwards concluded his run in the play on 6 July 2008.[5][6]

He has made appearances in a good number of Shakespeare plays, including Peter Hall's production of Twelfth Night at the Royal National Theatre (Cottesloe auditorium) as Sir Andrew Aguecheek and as Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing at Shakespeare's Globe,[7] as well as The Merchant of Venice and A Midsummer Night's Dream playing Oberon to Judi Dench's Titania.

In 2012 Edwards played the lead role of Bertie in the original stage play of The King's Speech on a nationwide tour and also the West End, gaining positive feedback from critics across the board. "Edwards, who has been edging towards stardom for several seasons, has now unequivocally arrived." Michael Billington.

He was shortlisted along with Benedict Cumberbatch, Jonny Lee Miller and Bertie Carvel for Best Actor at the Evening Standard Awards in 2011 for Benedick in "Much Ado about Nothing", and at the 2011 Whatsonstage Awards for Andrew Aguecheek in "Twelfth Night".

Later in 2012, he took on the role of Conservative Whip Jack Weatherill in James Graham's political epic This House at the National's Cottelsloe theatre, alongside such stars as Philip Glenister and Phil Daniels.

Edwards starred in a Simon Godwin adaptation of Eugene O'Neill's Pulitzer prize winning play Strange Interlude as "Dear Old Charlie" Charles Marsden, playing at the National's Lyttleton theatre.

In 2014 he co-starred in Michael Blakemore's adaptation of Coward's Blithe Spirit, opposite Dame Angela Lansbury.

In 2015 he stars as Richard II in Simon Godwin's production at Shakespeare's Globe, and as Henry Trebell in Harley Granville Barker's play Waste at the National Theatre.

TV and film

His film and television credits include Batman Begins, An Ideal Husband, Monarch of the Glen, Mansfield Park, Murder Rooms: The Dark Beginnings of Sherlock Holmes, The Shell Seekers, Colditz and Midsomer Murders.

In 2002 he played David, also known as King Edward VIII, in the feature length TV drama Bertie and Elizabeth for ITV.

In 2011 he played Michael Palin in Holy Flying Circus, a dramatisation of the controversy surrounding Monty Python's Life of Brian.[8] The film was nominated for a 2012 BAFTA for Best Single Drama.

In October 2012 he appeared in the third series of the widely acclaimed Downton Abbey as Michael Gregson, a wealthy London editor and publisher who wins the heart of Lady Edith Crawley (portrayed by Laura Carmichael). He returned for the show's fourth season, leaving halfway through. His character mysteriously went missing. During Series 5, it is confirmed that he had died.

He appeared in the 2013 film, Diana, charting the final few years of Diana, Princess of Wales. Edwards played her private secretary Patrick Jephson. The film is directed by Oliver Hirschbiegel (Downfall) and stars Naomi Watts as Diana.

References

  1. 1 2 Joe Tropia (17 January 2008). "Charles Edwards (Fresh Face Interview)". Broadway.com. Retrieved 2008-07-12.
  2. ↑ Dominic Cavendish (18 August 2006). "Irreverent romp down the nostalgia track". Telegraph. London. Retrieved 2008-04-07.
  3. ↑ Louise Kennedy (21 September 2007). "Hitch a ride". Boston Globe. Retrieved 2008-04-07.
  4. ↑ Ben Brantley (16 January 2008). "Spies, Blonde and a Guy Go North by Northwest". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-04-07.
  5. ↑ Robert Simonson (4 June 2008). "Charles in Charge". Playbill. Archived from the original on 8 June 2008. Retrieved 2008-06-14.
  6. ↑ Kenneth Jones (4 June 2008). "Sam Robards Is the Next Pursued Man of Broadway's 39 Steps". Playbill. Retrieved 2008-06-14.
  7. ↑ Billington, Michael (28 May 2011). "Much Ado About Nothing – review". The Guardian. London.
  8. ↑ "BBC to dramatise Life Of Brian controversy in new film". BBC News. 21 June 2011.

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/20/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.