Chris Larkin

Last updated

Chris Larkin
Chris Larkin (B&W) 1.jpg
Larkin in 2011
Born
Christopher Larkin Stephens

(1967-06-19) 19 June 1967 (age 56)
Fitzrovia, London, England
Alma mater London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art
OccupationActor
Years active1993-present
Spouse
Victoria "Suki" Steadman
(m. 2005)
Children2
Parents
Relatives Toby Stephens (brother)
Beverley Cross (step-father)
Patricia Quinn (step-mother)

Christopher Larkin Stephens (born 19 June 1967), known professionally as Chris Larkin, is an English actor.

Contents

Early life

Born Christopher Larkin Stephens on 19 June 1967 in London, Larkin is the elder son of actors Dame Maggie Smith and Sir Robert Stephens. His younger brother is actor Toby Stephens. Larkin revealed in an interview that he chose his stage name in order to distance himself from his famous parents, not wanting "to trade on the family connection", and selecting Larkin in honour of his favourite poet Philip Larkin. [1]

Career

Larkin trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA). He is best known for playing Hermann Göring in the film Hitler: The Rise of Evil , but also played Charles Darwin for the PBS series Evolution and the abolitionist William Wilberforce in the radio production of Grace Victorious. Larkin also played Capt. Howard of the Marines in Peter Weir's Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World alongside Paul Bettany and Russell Crowe, and appeared in Valkyrie with Tom Cruise playing Sgt. Helm. Other film credits are Angels and Insects , Franco Zeffirelli's Jane Eyre and Tea with Mussolini , and Heroes and Villains directed by Selwyn Roberts.

Larkin played Cambridge[ who? ] in three series of John Sullivan's Roger Roger for BBC1 and George Marsden[ who? ] in Charles Sturridge's Shackleton for Channel Four. Larkin also appeared in the 2007 episode of Doctor Who "The Shakespeare Code" and the 2012 low-budget horror film The Facility (originally titled Guinea Pigs) directed by Ian Clark. [2] He appeared in three episodes of the fourth season of Black Sails, starring his brother, Toby Stephens.

In 2013 he starred in the television revival of Yes, Prime Minister as Bernard Woolley, [3] reprising the role he had played in the Gielgud Theatre in London's West End.

Other theatre credits include: Edgar in The Lady from Dubuque starring his mother, Maggie Smith, and directed by Anthony Page; Jopari in Nicholas Hytner's production of His Dark Materials at The National Theatre; The Whisky Taster by James Graham at the Bush Theatre, London; and the nationwide tour of Noises Off, directed by Lindsay Posner.

Filmography

YearTitleRoleNotes
1995 Angels & Insects Robin Whitefield
1996 Jane Eyre Frederick Lynn
1997 Highlander: The Series Steven KeaneEpisode: Forgive Us Our Trespasses
Casualty Adam ParkerEpisode: What Friends Are For
1999 Tea with Mussolini Major Gibson
2001 The Six Wives of Henry VIII Henry VIII Miniseries
2002 Shackleton George Marston Miniseries
2003 Hitler: The Rise of Evil Hermann Göring Miniseries
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World Capt. Howard, Royal Marines
2005 Mysterious Island Atherton TV movie
2007 Doctor Who LynleyEpisode: The Shakespeare Code
2008 Marple Gerald WrightEpisode: A Pocket Full of Rye
Valkyrie Sergeant Helm
2011 Holby City Leonard DawkingEpisode: Blue Valentine
2011, 2015, 2021 Doctors Edward Roxburgh / Father Sebastian Wood / Richard Waters [4] 3 episodes
2012The FacilityDr. Mansell
2013 Yes, Prime Minister Bernard Woolley6 episodes
2015 The Program John Wilcockson
2016 Endeavour Ivor MaddoxEpisode: Arcadia
Churchill's Secret Rab Butler TV movie
2017 Black Sails Captain Berringer3 episodes
2018 Father Brown Roger FrobisherEpisode: The Devil You Know
2020 Outlander Richard Brown 4 episodes
2023 Widow Clicquot Muller

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ian McKellen</span> English actor (born 1939)

Sir Ian Murray McKellen is an English actor. With a career spanning more than seven decades, he is noted for his roles on the screen and stage in genres ranging from Shakespearean dramas and modern theatre to popular fantasy and science fiction. He is regarded as a British cultural icon and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1991. He has received numerous accolades, including a Tony Award, six Olivier Awards, and a Golden Globe Award as well as nominations for two Academy Awards, five BAFTA Awards and five Emmy Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maggie Smith</span> English actress (born 1934)

Dame Margaret Natalie Smith is an English actress. Known for her wit in comedic roles, she has had an extensive career on stage and screen over seven decades and is one of Britain's most recognisable and prolific actresses. She has received numerous accolades including two Academy Awards, five BAFTA Awards, four Emmy Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, and a Tony Award.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Courtenay</span> British actor

Sir Thomas Daniel Courtenay is an English actor. After studying at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, he achieved prominence in the 1960s as part of actors of the British New Wave. Courtenay received numerous accolades including three BAFTA Awards, a Golden Globe Award, the Silver Bear, and the Volpi Cup for Best Actor as well as nominations for two Academy Awards, two Tony Awards, and a Emmy Award. He was knighted for his services to cinema and theatre in the 2001 New Year Honours.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helen Mirren</span> British actor (born 1945)

Dame Helen Mirren is an English actor. With a career spanning 60 years, she is the recipient of numerous accolades and is the only performer to have achieved both the American and the British Triple Crowns of Acting. Mirren has received an Academy Award and a BAFTA Award for her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth II in The Queen, a Tony Award and a Laurence Olivier Award for portraying the same character in The Audience, as well as three British Academy Television Awards and four Primetime Emmy Awards for her role as DCI Jane Tennison in Prime Suspect.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christopher Eccleston</span> English actor (born 1964)

Christopher Eccleston is an English actor. A twice BAFTA Award winner, he has been active in television and film, which includes his role as the ninth incarnation of the Doctor in the BBC sci-fi series Doctor Who (2005), playing Matt Jamison in The Leftovers (2014–2017), and his collaborations with filmmakers Danny Boyle and Michael Winterbottom.

Alex Michael Jennings is an English actor of the stage and screen, who worked extensively with the Royal Shakespeare Company and National Theatre. For his work on the London stage, Jennings received three Olivier Awards, winning for Too Clever by Half (1988), Peer Gynt (1996), and My Fair Lady (2003). He is the only performer to have won Olivier awards in the drama, musical, and comedy categories.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gielgud Theatre</span> Theatre in Londons West End since 1906

The Gielgud Theatre is a West End theatre, located on Shaftesbury Avenue, at the corner of Rupert Street, in the City of Westminster, London. The house currently has 986 seats on three levels.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toby Stephens</span> British actor

Toby Stephens is a British actor who has appeared in films in the UK, US and India. He is known for the roles of Bond villain Gustav Graves in the 2002 James Bond film Die Another Day, for which he was nominated for the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor, William Gordon in the 2005 Mangal Pandey: The Rising film and Edward Fairfax Rochester in the 2006 BBC television adaptation of Jane Eyre. From 2014 to 2017, he starred as Captain Flint in the Starz television series Black Sails, followed by one of the lead roles in the Netflix science fiction series Lost in Space from 2018 to 2021. He currently stars as the Greek God Poseidon in Percy Jackson and the Olympians.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Stephens</span> English actor (1931–1995)

Sir Robert Graham Stephens was a leading English actor in the early years of Britain's Royal National Theatre. He was one of the most respected actors of his generation and was at one time regarded as the natural successor to Laurence Olivier.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Beckley</span> Australian actor

Michael Beckley is an Australian actor. He has worked with major theatre companies in both Australia and the United Kingdom, and appeared on London's West End in A Few Good Men and Cabaret. He is probably best known for playing Rhys Sutherland, the patriarch of a new family that arrived in the fictional town of Summer Bay in the internationally televised series Home and Away.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trevor Bannister</span> British actor (1934–2011)

Trevor Gordon Bannister was a British actor best known for having played the womanising and wisecracking junior salesman Mr Lucas in the sitcom Are You Being Served? from 1972 to 1979, and for his role as Toby Mulberry Smith in the long-running sitcom Last of the Summer Wine, from 2003 until it ended its run in 2010.

Christopher Pizzey is a British actor and comedian from London, best known for playing Mr. Stephen in the CBBC series The Basil Brush Show.

John Slade Nettleton was an English actor best known for playing Sir Arnold Robinson, Cabinet Secretary in Yes Minister (1980–1984) and President of the Campaign for Freedom of Information in the follow-up Yes, Prime Minister (1985–1988). Another political role for Nettleton was as Conservative Party MP Sir Stephen Baxter in the sitcom The New Statesman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Patricia Quinn (British actress)</span> Northern Irish actress and singer (born 1944)

Patricia Quinn, Lady Stephens is an Irish actress and singer. She is best known for her role as Magenta in the 1975 musical comedy horror film The Rocky Horror Picture Show, and the original stage play from which it was adapted. She appeared as Dr. Nation McKinley in the 1981 musical film Shock Treatment. In 2012, Quinn played the role of Megan in the horror film The Lords of Salem.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toby Jones</span> British actor (born 1966)

Toby Edward Heslewood Jones is an English actor. He is known for his extensive character actor roles on stage and screen. From 1989 to 1991, Jones trained at L'École Internationale de Théâtre Jacques Lecoq. He made his stage debut in 2001 in the comedy play The Play What I Wrote, which played in the West End and on Broadway, earning him a Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. In 2020, he was nominated for his second Olivier Award, for Best Actor for his performance in a revival of Anton Chekov's Uncle Vanya.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lindsay Duncan</span> Scottish actress

Lindsay Vere Duncan is a Scottish actress. She is the recipient of three BAFTA nominations and one Scottish BAFTA nomination, as well as two Olivier Awards and a Tony Award for her work on stage. She has starred in several plays by Harold Pinter. Duncan's film credits include Prick Up Your Ears (1987), The Reflecting Skin (1990), City Hall (1996), An Ideal Husband, Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, Mansfield Park, Under the Tuscan Sun, AfterLife, Starter for 10 (2006), Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland (2010), About Time (2013), Birdman (2014), and Blackbird (2019).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roger Michell</span> South African-born British film director (1956–2021)

Roger Michell was a South African-born British theatre, television and film director. He was best known for directing films such as Notting Hill and Venus, as well as the 1995 made-for-television film Persuasion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Murray Melvin</span> British actor (1932–2023)

Murray Melvin was an English actor. He was best known for his acting work with Joan Littlewood, Ken Russell and Stanley Kubrick. He was the author of two books: The Art of Theatre Workshop (2006) and The Theatre Royal, A History of the Building (2009).

Alan Beverley Cross was an English playwright, librettist, and screenwriter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aneurin Barnard</span> Welsh actor

Aneurin Barnard is a Welsh actor. He is known for playing Davey in Hunky Dory, Claude in The Truth About Emanuel, Bobby Willis in Cilla, Tim in Thirteen, King Richard III in The White Queen, William in Dead in a Week or Your Money Back, Gibson in Dunkirk, and Boris Pavlikovsky in The Goldfinch.

References

  1. "Dame Maggie Smith's son changed name to lose family connection". Daily Express. 10 January 2013. Archived from the original on 4 November 2015. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
  2. "Trailer: New Found Footage Film, "Guinea Pigs"". Sound On Sight. Archived from the original on 20 December 2014. Retrieved 30 March 2012.
  3. "Yes, Prime Minister – Production Details". British Comedy Guide . Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 4 February 2013.
  4. "The Burden of Debt". Doctors. 10 November 2021. BBC. BBC One . Retrieved 16 November 2021.