Name: Derek Jacobi
Date of Birth: 22 October 1938 Was the mentor and acting instructor of Kenneth Branagh. He won a Tony in 1985 for "Much Ado About Nothing." Was on the short list of actors considered for the role of Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs (1991) He and Laurence Olivier are the only actors to have received both a Danish and a British Knighthood. Awarded CBE (Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) in 1985 He was knighted in 1994. Charlton Heston and Ronnie Barker had been considered for the role of Claudius in "I, Claudius" (1976) before he landed the role. ... He was awarded the Laurence Olivier Theatre Award in 1984 (1983 season) for Best Actor in a Revival for Cyrano de Bergerac. He was awarded the 1983 London Critics Circle Theatre Award (Drama Theatre Award) for Best Actor for his performances in Cyrano de Bergerac and Much Ado About Nothing. He was awarded the 1983 London Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Actor for his performance in Much Ado About Nothing. An Associate Member of RADA. Has a Victorian home in London, England. Replaced Donald Sutherland as Franklyn Madson in Dead Again (1991). Won Broadway's 1985 Tony Award as Best Actor (Play) for William Shakespeare's "Much Ado About Nothing." He was also Tony-nominated in the same category in 1988 for "Breaking the Code." Is a native of Leytonstone, in London's East End, which has also produced film maker Alfred Hitchcock, TV journalists & presenters Jonathan Ross and Paul Ross, TV cook Fanny Cradock, Bangra-DnB composer/producer Talvin Singh, Iron-Maiden bassist/songwriter Steve Harris, former England cricket captain Graham Gooch, and England soccer captain David Beckham. On the shortlist of actors considered for the main guest lead of Captain Rorvik (played by Clifford Rose) in the episode "Warriors' Gate" of "Doctor Who" (1963). After 27 years together, registered his civil partnership with long-term partner Richard Clifford in March 2006, four months after civil unions became legal in England and Wales. Patron of the British American Drama Academy, London. In 1963, when Jacobi auditioned for Britain's just-forming National Theatre, Olivier hired him as an understudy and spear-carrier. Luckily for Jacobi, the actor he was understudying. Jeremy Brett got the call to Hollywood, and Jacobi inherited all his parts. Was one of three actors considered for the role of Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs (1991). Once was invited to play Hamlet at Kronborg Castle, better known as Elsinore Castle, the setting of the play itself. Along with Mark Gatiss, he is one of only two actors to play both the "Doctor Who" character the Doctor and his greatest enemy, the Master. He played the former (as well as a failed television writer named Martin Bannister) in the Big Finish "Doctor Who Unbound" audio drama Deadline. He played the latter in both the BBCi webcast "Doctor Who: Scream of the Shalka" (2003) and the "Doctor Who" (2005) episode "Utopia". He has portrayed two different versions of the "Doctor Who" character the Master: an android copy of the first incarnation of the Master in the BBCi webcast "Doctor Who: Scream of the Shalka" (2003) and the fifth incarnation of the Master in the "Doctor Who" (2005) episode "Utopia". Played Hamlet opposite Patrick Stewart as Claudius. He would later direct Kenneth Branagh in the title role, before appearing as Claudius in the film production directed by Branagh. After Roger Delgado, Peter Pratt, Geoffrey Beevers, Anthony Ainley, Gordon Tipple and Eric Roberts, he is the seventh actor to play the Master, the Doctor's greatest enemy. He played the role in "Doctor Who: Utopia (#3.11)" (2007). He was succeeded in the role by John Simm. Nominated for the 1988 Tony Award (New York City) for Actor in a Drama for "Breaking the Code". Read more Derek Jacobi movies (actor)User Comments |
