Beautiful Thing (play)
''Beautiful Thing'' is a play written by Jonathan Harvey and first performed in 1993. A screen adaptation of the play was released in 1996 by Channel 4 Films, with a revised screenplay also by Harvey. Plot of the Screen Version The story is set in Thamesmead, a working class area of South East London dominated by post-war council estates. Jamie, a teen who is infatuated with his classmate, Ste, has to deal with his single mother Sandra, who is pre-occupied with ambitious plans to run her own pub and with an ever-changing string of lovers, the latest of whom is Tony, a neo-hippie. Sandra finds herself at odds with Leah, a sassy and rude neighbour who has been expelled from school, does several drugs, and constantly listens and sings along to her mother's Cass Elliot records. While Jamie's homosexuality remains concealed, his introvert nature and dislike of football are reason enough for his classmates to bully him at every opportunity. Ste, who is living together with his dr ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Jonathan Harvey (playwright)
Jonathan Paul Harvey (born 13 June 1968) is an English screen actor and playwright. Life and works Harvey was born at Liverpool, Lancashire in 1968 to Maureen and Brian Harvey. He has a brother, Timothy, who is a music teacher in Chester. A former secondary school English teacher, his first serious attempt as a playwright was in 1987. He entered a competition, with a first prize of £1,000, for young writers at the Liverpool Playhouse, with his play ''The Cherry Blossom Tree'', a blend of suicide, murder and nuns. He won National Girobank Young Writer of the Year Award for ''The Cherry Blossom Tree''. Encouraged by this success he wrote ''Mohair'' (1988), ''Wildfire'' (1992) and ''Babies'' (1993), the latter won the 'George Devine Award' for 1993 and Evening Standard Theatre Awards#Most Promising PlaywThe Evening Standard's 'Most Promising Playwright Award' for 1994. In 1993, Harvey, premiered ''Beautiful Thing (play), Beautiful Thing'', a gay-themed play-turned-film for wh ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Sophie Stanton
Sophie Stanton (born 1971 in London, England) is an English actress, director and playwright. She is best known for her role as DCI Jill Marsden in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' in which she has appeared on and off since 2001. Career EastEnders Born in London and raised in Suffolk from the age of three, first in Onehouse and then in Stowmarket from age nine Marsden first appeared on 5 March 2001, appearing for the storyline labelled 'Who Shot Phil?'. She left on 27 March 2001 In 2002, she appeared in January, April and then from 14 November to 6 December. Again, in 2003 Marsden made numerous returns, in March, July, August, November and for a longer stint in December. In November 2009, it was reported that Stanton would be reprising her role as Jill. Marsden returned to investigate the murder of Archie Mitchell (Larry Lamb). Speaking of her return, she said: 'It came completely out of the blue, and knocked me for six.' Continuing, she said, 'I really thought Marsden was n ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Michael Darragh
Michael Robert Darragh (born 4 March 1975 in Gold Coast, Australia) is a theatre producer and director as well as writer and occasional performer. Theatre credits * 2008: director, producer - '' Beautiful Thing'' by Jonathan Harvey at Zhijiang Dream Factory, Shanghai, China. * 1999: assistant director - ''The Amaranth'' at Bondi Pavilion Theatre, Sydney, Australia. * 1999: director, designer - '' Making Porn'' by Ronnie Larsen for Jacobsen Entertainment at Seymour Theatre, Sydney, Australia. * 1998: director, co-producer - '' Beautiful Thing'' by Jonathan Harvey for Make Believe Productions at Studio Theatre, Sydney, Australia. * 1997: director, co-producer - ''Salam Shalom: A Tale of Passion'' by Saleem for Make Believe Productions at PACT Theatre, Sydney, Australia. * 1997: director, designer - ''The Ugly Man'' by Brad Fraser for Darlinghurst Theatre at Wayside Theatre, Sydney, Australia. * 1996: actor - ''When You Comin' Back Red Ryder?'' for Darlinghurst Theatre at Waysid ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Rhys Ifans
Rhys Ifans (; born Rhys Owain Evans; 22 July 1967) is a Welsh actor and musician. He was the frontman of Welsh rock music bands the Peth and Super Furry Animals. As an actor, he is best known for his roles in ''Notting Hill'' (1999), ''Kevin & Perry Go Large'' (2000) and ''Enduring Love'' (2004) as well as his portrayals of Xenophilius Lovegood in ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1'' (2010), the supervillain Lizard in Marc Webb's ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' (2012) and the Marvel Cinematic Universe film '' Spider-Man: No Way Home'' (2021), and Grigori Rasputin in ''The King's Man'' (2021). Other roles include Hector DeJean in the Epix thriller series '' Berlin Station'', Mycroft Holmes in the CBS series ''Elementary'', and Ser Otto Hightower in the HBO television series ''House of the Dragon''. Early life Ifans was born Rhys Owain Evans''Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England & Wales, 1916–2005.''; at ancestry.com in Haverfordwest on 22 July 1967, the son of ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Diane Parish
Diane Parish (born 1 November 1969) is an English actress, who has been portraying the character Denise Fox on the BBC One soap opera ''EastEnders'' since 2006 Born in Chelsea, London and a graduate of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, Parish has appeared on British television for over two decades. She has appeared in a number of TV shows over the years, including the ITV dramas ''The Bill'' and '' M.I.T.: Murder Investigation Team'' playing Detective Eva Sharpe. She is also known for appearing in two series of the BBC One comedy-drama ''Lovejoy'' (1993–1994). Career After graduating from London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, she worked mainly in theatre, including playing Cordelia in Talawa Theatre Company's 1994 production of ''King Lear''. Parish has appeared in various television roles. In ''Lovejoy'', she played Beth Taylor, the replacement for the character Eric Catchpole. Another television role was as Lola Christie, girlfriend of Mick McFarlane, the manager of ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Richard Dormer
Richard Dormer (born 11 November 1969) is an actor, playwright and screenwriter from Northern Ireland. He is best known for his roles as Beric Dondarrion in the HBO television series ''Game of Thrones'' and Dan Anderssen in Sky Atlantic's '' Fortitude''. Early life Dormer was born in Portadown, Northern Ireland. He studied at the RADA school of acting in London. After living and working in London, he returned to Northern Ireland. He lives in Belfast and is married to director Rachel O'Riordan. Career Dormer gained recognition following his performance as Northern Irish snooker star Alex Higgins in ''Hurricane'' in 2003, which he wrote and starred in. Dormer won ''The Stage'' award for Best Actor in 2003. In 2004, Dormer won the ''Irish Times'' Best Actor Award for his performance in Frank McGuinness's ''Observe the Sons of Ulster Marching Towards the Somme'' and in 2005 completed a season with Sir Peter Hall at the Theatre Royal and starred in Bath as Antonio in William ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Zubin Varla
Zubin Varla (born 1970) is a British actor and singer. He played the role of Judas in the 1996 West End revival of ''Jesus Christ Superstar'', alongside Steve Balsamo (Jesus), Joanna Ampil (Mary Magdalene), and David Burt (Pilate). This production was staged at Lyceum Theatre, and was recorded in a full-length CD. Career Varla was trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and has also performed in West End productions of ''Cyrano de Bergerac'' and ''Julius Caesar''. He initiated the role of Saleem in the first written-for-stage production of ''Midnight's Children'' at London's Barbican Theatre in 2001-2. He starred as Frederick Trumper in the 2001 Danish Tour of the musical ''Chess'' and, along with his fellow cast members, made the only complete recording of the score, the CD of which is now unavailable. He took a leading role in the ''Silent Witness'' episode "Cargo" as Detective Superintendent Vijay Asher. He played Daniel Doyce in the BBC TV adaptation of Charles ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Duke Of York's Theatre
The Duke of York's Theatre is a West End theatre in St Martin's Lane, in the City of Westminster, London. It was built for Frank Wyatt and his wife, Violet Melnotte, who retained ownership of the theatre until her death in 1935. Designed by the architect Walter Emden, it opened on 10 September 1892 as the Trafalgar Square Theatre, and was renamed to Trafalgar Theatre in 1894. The following year, it became the Duke of York's to honour the future King George V. The theatre's opening show was comic opera ''The Wedding Eve'' by Frédéric Toulmouche. One of the earliest musical comedies, ''Go-Bang'', was a success at the theatre in 1894. In 1900, Jerome K. Jerome's ''Miss Hobbs'' was staged as well as David Belasco's ''Madame Butterfly'', which was seen by Puccini, who later turned it into the famous opera. This was also the theatre where J. M. Barrie's ''Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up'' debuted on 27 December 1904. Many famous British actors have appeared here, includ ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Hugh Bonneville
Hugh Richard Bonneville Williams (born 10 November 1963) is an English actor. He is best known for portraying Robert Crawley, Earl of Grantham, in the ITV historical drama series ''Downton Abbey''. His performance on the show earned him a nomination at the Golden Globes and two consecutive Primetime Emmy Award nominations, as well as three Screen Actors Guild Awards. He reprised his role in the feature films, ''Downton Abbey'' (2019), and '' Downton Abbey: A New Era'' (2022). He also appeared in the films ''Notting Hill'' (1999), ''Iris'' (2001), ''The Monuments Men'' (2014), and the '' Paddington films'' (2014-2023). Early life and education Hugh Richard Bonneville Williams was born on 10 November 1963 in Paddington, London. His mother was a nurse and his father was a urological surgeon. He was educated at Dulwich College Preparatory School and at Sherborne School, an independent school in Dorset. Following secondary education, Bonneville read theology at Corpus Christi Co ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Shaun Dingwall
Shaun Dingwall (born 21st February 1970) is a British actor from London. He is known for his roles as Pete Tyler in ''Doctor Who'', as Reg Trotter in ''Rock & Chips'' and as D.C. Mark Rivers in ''Touching Evil''. Early life Shaun Dingwall was born in London and attended Ilford County High School for Boys until 1988. His initial ambition was to become a photographer and for several years he worked as an assistant photographer within the fashion industry and commercial car industry. In 1990 he decided to change direction and attended the Central School of Speech and Drama. Television Dingwall has played leading roles in many drama series such as the BAFTA winning BBC One serial '' Charles II: The Power and the Passion'' (as Thomas Osborne, Earl of Danby), directed by Joe Wright. He also appeared in another period drama, the BBC adaptation of ''Crime and Punishment'', as Rhazhumikin. He played the recurring character Pete Tyler in the revival of ''Doctor Who''. One of Dingwall's e ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Amelda Brown
Amelda Brown is a British actress of stage, film, and television. She trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, graduating in 1980, and became known for her work in fringe theatre. She played leading roles in the premieres of Caryl Churchill's ''Fen'' (1983) and ''A Mouthful of Birds'' (1986) as well as appearing in leading roles in revivals of Churchill's '' Light Shining in Buckinghamshire'' at the Royal National Theatre (1996) and ''Heart's Desire'' at the Orange Tree Theatre (2016). Her other stage roles have included Lady Macbeth for the Royal National Theatre's 1989 US tour of ''Macbeth''; Maudlin in ''A Chaste Maid in Cheapside'' at Shakespeare's Globe in 1997; and Gibb in the 2014 world premiere of Tim Crouch's ''Adler and Gibb'' at the Royal Court theatre. Amongst her television roles are Brenda Parkin in ''Backup'', Mrs. Roach in ''Soldier Soldier'', Pauline Cook in ''A Touch of Frost'', and Sue Barnes in ''Peak Practice'', and she has also appeared in ''The Advent ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Donmar Warehouse
The Donmar Warehouse is a 251-seat, not-for-profit theatre in Covent Garden, London, England. It first opened on 18 July 1977. Sam Mendes, Michael Grandage and Josie Rourke have all served as artistic director, a post held since 2019 by Michael Longhurst. The theatre has a diverse artistic policy that includes new writing, contemporary reappraisals of European classics, British and American drama and small-scale musical theatre. As well as presenting at least six productions a year at its home in Covent Garden, every year the Donmar tours one in-house production in the UK. History Theatrical producer Donald Albery formed Donmar Productions around 1953, with the name derived from the first three letters of his name and the first three letters of his wife's middle name, Margaret. In 1961, he bought the warehouse, a building that in the 1870s had been a vat room and hops warehouse for the local brewery in Covent Garden, and in the 1920s had been used as a film studio and then th ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |