Clifford Samuel is a British actor. Clifford Samuel began acting at the

Anna Scher Theatre The Anna Scher Theatre is an independent and co-educational performing arts school based in Islington, Greater London. It was founded in 1968 by Anna Scher. It is considered among the first schools of its kind geared towards working class studen ...

. He is from

North London North London is the northern part of London, England, north of the River Thames. It extends from Clerkenwell and Finsbury, on the edge of the City of London financial district, to Greater London's boundary with Hertfordshire. The term ''nort ...

and born of

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

n heritage. Clifford trained at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, and graduated early to make his debut at the

Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and produces around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, St ...

, in ''

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, and ...

'' and ''

The Two Gentlemen of Verona ''The Two Gentlemen of Verona'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1589 and 1593. It is considered by some to be Shakespeare's first play, and is often seen as showing his first tentative steps in laying ...

'', in

Stratford-upon-Avon Stratford-upon-Avon (), commonly known as just Stratford, is a market town and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon district, in the county of Warwickshire, in the West Midlands region of England. It is situated on the River Avon, north-we ...

and also toured in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. Clifford played

Octavius Caesar Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...

at the Lyric Theatre,

Hammersmith Hammersmith is a district of West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. ...

, in London in 2005. He then went on to work for the

Cheek by Jowl Cheek by Jowl is an international theatre company founded in the United Kingdom by director Declan Donnellan and designer Nick Ormerod in 1981. Donnellan and Ormerod are Cheek by Jowl's artistic directors and together direct and design all of ...

theatre company, in the classical play, '' The Changeling'' at the Barbican theatre in London. Clifford toured with ''The Changeling'' on an extensive European tour in 2006, where it was awarded ''Best Foreign Play 2006'' in

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. From that period onwards, he worked periodically with the English theatre and film director and innovator,

Peter Brook Peter Stephen Paul Brook (21 March 1925 – 2 July 2022) was an English theatre and film director. He worked first in England, from 1945 at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre, from 1947 at the Royal Opera House, and from 1962 for the Royal Shak ...

. Clifford portrayed Tony Anderson, opposite actor Jack Shepherd, in the play ''Chasing the Moment'' at the

Arcola Theatre Arcola Theatre is an Off West End theatre in the London Borough of Hackney. It presents plays, operas and musicals featuring established and emerging artists. The theatre building, in the former Colourworks paint factory on Ashwin Street, Dalst ...

. He later appeared as the co-lead in the much anticipated two-part special of ''

The Bill ''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, first broadcast on ITV from 16 August 1983 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, '' Woodentop'', broadcast in August 1983. The programme focused on ...

'', which went on to win the Best Diversity In Drama Production at the

Screen Nation The Screen Nation Film & TV Awards, formerly the bfm (black filmmaker) Film and TV Awards, was founded in September 2003 by independent film producer Charles Thompson MBE, as a platform to raise the profile of black British and international fil ...

Awards 2007, best continuing drama at the

Royal Television Society The Royal Television Society (RTS) is a British-based educational charity for the discussion, and analysis of television in all its forms, past, present, and future. It is the oldest television society in the world. It currently has fourteen r ...

Awards and nominated for Best Continuing Drama at the 2008 BAFTA TV Awards. Clifford recently finished performing at the National Theatre as the co-lead in a new play by the actor/playwright

Kwame Kwei-Armah Kwame Kwei-Armah (born Ian Roberts; 24 March 1967 in Hillingdon, London) is a British actor, playwright, director, singer and broadcaster. He is best known for playing paramedic Finlay Newton in the BBC medical drama ''Casualty'' from 1999 unti ...

called Statement of Regret. Clifford was also in the recently released feature film

Shoot on Sight ''Shoot on Sight'' is a 2007 British film directed by Jag Mundhra and produced by Aron Govil. The film was marketed and distributed globally by Aron Govil Productions Inc. The cast includes Brian Cox, Sadie Frost, Naseeruddin Shah and Om Puri. ...

, directed by

Jag Mundhra Jagmohan "Jag" Mundhra (29 October 1948 – 4 September 2011) was an Indian director, producer, and screenwriter, best known for his early career as an American exploitation film writer-director. Family and early life Mundhra was born at Nagpu ...

. He can be seen playing Charly Charles the 1970s drummer in the film biopic,

Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll "Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll" is a 1977 single by Ian Dury, who popularised the phrase. Sex and drugs and rock and roll may refer to: Music * '' Sex, Drugs & Rock 'n' Roll'', a 1989 album by American heavy metal band the Mentors * "Sex Drugs & Rock- ...

about rock star

Ian Dury and the Blockheads Ian or Iain is a name of Scottish Gaelic origin, derived from the Hebrew given name (Yohanan, ') and corresponding to the English name John. The spelling Ian is an Anglicization of the Scottish Gaelic forename ''Iain''. It is a popular name in Sc ...

which is being shown in cinemas across the UK. He has recently finished playing 'Eilif' in ''

Mother Courage and Her Children ''Mother Courage and Her Children'' (german: Mutter Courage und ihre Kinder, links=no) is a play written in 1939 by the German dramatist and poet Bertolt Brecht (1898–1956), with significant contributions from Margarete Steffin. Four theatrical ...

'' at the National Theatre opposite

Fiona Shaw Fiona Shaw (born Fiona Mary Wilson; 10 July 1958) is an Irish film and theatre actress. She is known for her roles as Petunia Dursley in the ''Harry Potter'' film series (2001–2010), Marnie Stonebrook in the fourth season of the HBO serie ...

directed by

Deborah Warner Deborah Warner (born 12 May 1959) is a British director of theatre and opera, known for her interpretations of the works of Shakespeare, Bertolt Brecht, Benjamin Britten and Henrik Ibsen. Early life Warner was born in Oxfordshire, England, to ...

. Currently at the

Finborough Theatre The Finborough Theatre is a fifty-seat theatre in the West Brompton area of London (part of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea) under artistic director Neil McPherson. The theatre presents new British writing, as well as UK and world p ...

in the American play, '' In the Blood'' by Pulitzer prize-winning playwright

Suzan-Lori Parks Suzan-Lori Parks (born May 10, 1963) is an American playwright, screenwriter, musician and novelist. Her 2001 play ''Topdog/Underdog'' won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 2002; Parks was the first African-American woman to receive the award for d ...

. This show has been nominated for 3 off-West End awards.

Credits

2014, ''The Events'', Actors Touring Company, as The Boy 2010, ''Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll'', (Upcoming Film) 2008, ''Statement of Regret'', National Theatre as Adrian Mackenzie 2007, ''Shoot on Sight'', as Elijah, Film 2007, ''The Bill'', as Tyrone Brooks, TV Drama 2007, ''Roman’s Empire'', as Frobisher, BBC TV series ''Chasing the Moment'', 2007, Arcola theatre as Tony Anderson, Best Play Timeout Critics Choice Award ''The Changeling, 2006'', Cheek by Jowl stage play, Barbican/European Tour as Tomazo, Best International play El Mundo & El Pais Awards Spain ''Julius Caesar'', 2005, Royal Shakespeare Company, as Octavius Caesar

External links

*Interview with Natasha Tripney - MusicOMH - http://www.musicomh.com/theatre/features/clifford-samuel_0708.htm *Interview with Davina Morris - The Voice - http://www.voice-online.co.uk/content.php?show=10835 *IMDB - https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2666885/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Samuel, Clifford English male film actors English male television actors Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Male actors from London English male stage actors English people of Nigerian descent Alumni of the Anna Scher Theatre School