Simon Russell Beale

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 Potters 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 Iannuccis 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 madefortelevision films Henry IV Part I and Part II 2012 He was part of the main cast of Showtimes Penny Dreadful