Jack Arthur Davenport (born 1 March 1973) is an English actor. He is best known for his roles in the television series ''
This Life
This may refer to:
* ''This'', the singular proximal demonstrative pronoun
Places
* This, or ''Thinis'', an ancient city in Upper Egypt
* This, Ardennes, a commune in France
People with the surname
* Hervé This, French culinary chemist Arts, e ...
'' and ''
Coupling
A coupling is a device used to connect two shafts together at their ends for the purpose of transmitting power. The primary purpose of couplings is to join two pieces of rotating equipment while permitting some degree of misalignment or end mov ...
'', and as
James Norrington
This is a list of characters appearing in the ''Pirates of the Caribbean'' film series.
__TOC__
Main characters Jack Sparrow
Captain Jack Sparrow is the protagonist of the series, portrayed by Johnny Depp. First introduced in the film '' P ...
in the ''
Pirates of the Caribbean'' series. He has also appeared in other Hollywood films, such as ''
The Talented Mr. Ripley
''The Talented Mr. Ripley'' is a 1955 psychological thriller novel by Patricia Highsmith. This novel introduced the character of Tom Ripley, who returns in four subsequent novels. It has been adapted numerous times for screen, including ''Purpl ...
'' and ''
Kingsman: The Secret Service''.
On television, Davenport is known for his roles in the ensemble drama series ''
FlashForward,'' ''
Smash'', and
''The Morning Show'' as well as his leading role in the 2013 ITV drama series ''
Breathless''.
Early life
Davenport, the son of actors
Nigel Davenport
Arthur Nigel Davenport (23 May 1928 – 25 October 2013) was an English stage, television and film actor, best known as the Duke of Norfolk and Lord Birkenhead in the Academy Award-winning films '' A Man for All Seasons'' and '' Chariots of F ...
and
Maria Aitken
Maria Penelope Katharine Aitken (born 12 September 1945) is an English theatre director, teacher, actress, and writer.
Early life and career
Aitken was born in Dublin, Ireland, the daughter of Sir William Aitken, a Conservative MP, and Penelo ...
,
was born in
Wimbledon, London
Wimbledon () is a district and town of Southwest London, England, southwest of the centre of London at Charing Cross; it is the main commercial centre of the London Borough of Merton. Wimbledon had a population of 68,187 in 2011 which includes ...
, and lived in
Ibiza, Spain, for the first seven years of his life. His uncle is writer and former Conservative MP
Jonathan Aitken
Jonathan William Patrick Aitken (born 30 August 1942) is a British author, Church of England priest, former prisoner and former Conservative Party politician. Beginning his career in journalism, he was elected to Parliament in 1974 (serving un ...
, his maternal grandmother was socialite
Penelope Aitken
Penelope Loader, Lady Aitken, MBE (2 December 1910 – 7 February 2005), styled The Honourable Lady Aitken and nicknamed 'Pempe', was an English socialite.
Biography
Born Penelope Loader Maffey, she was the daughter of Sir John Maffey, later ...
, his maternal grandfather was politician
William Aitken, and one of his maternal great-grandfathers was
John Maffey, 1st Baron Rugby
John Loader Maffey, 1st Baron Rugby, , (1 July 1877 – 20 April 1969) was a British civil servant and diplomat who was a key figure in Anglo-Irish relations during the Second World War.
Biography
Early life
Maffey was the younger son of Thoma ...
. Through Jonathan Aitken's marriage to Elizabeth Rees-Williams, Davenport is also related to
Jared Harris
Jared Francis Harris (born 24 August 1961) is a British actor. His roles include Lane Pryce in the AMC television drama series ''Mad Men'', for which he was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Seri ...
and
Jamie Harris, her sons from her marriage to
Richard Harris
Richard St John Francis Harris (1 October 1930 – 25 October 2002) was an Irish actor and singer. He appeared on stage and in many films, notably as Corrado Zeller in Michelangelo Antonioni's '' Red Desert'', Frank Machin in '' This Sporting ...
. His parents divorced when he was seven, at which point he was sent to the independent
Dragon School
("Reach for the Sun")
, established = 1877
, closed =
, type = Preparatory day and boarding school and Pre-Prep school
, religion = Church of England
, president =
, head_label = Head
, head = Emma Goldsm ...
in
Oxford
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
, as his parents did not want him to become involved in the divorce proceedings. He then went on to attend
Cheltenham College
("Work Conquers All")
, established =
, closed =
, type = Public school Independent School Day and Boarding School
, religion = Church of England
, president =
, head_label = Head
, head = Nicola Hugget ...
, a boarding independent school for boys (now co-educational), in the
spa town
A spa town is a resort town based on a mineral spa (a developed mineral spring). Patrons visit spas to "take the waters" for their purported health benefits.
Thomas Guidott set up a medical practice in the English town of Bath in 1668. He ...
of
Cheltenham in
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean.
The county town is the city of Gl ...
, in the
West of England
West of England is a combined authority area in South West England. It is made up of the Bristol, South Gloucestershire, and Bath and North East Somerset unitary authorities. The combined authority is led by the Mayor of the West of England Dan ...
, followed by the
British American Drama Academy
The British American Drama Academy is a drama school in London, in the United Kingdom. It is affiliated with Sarah Lawrence College and Yale University.
Background
The British American Drama Academy (BADA) was founded in 1983 by Tony Branch and ...
in London.
Career
Davenport had not planned to become an actor; however, his career began when he took a
gap year
A gap year, also known as a sabbatical year, is typically a year-long break before or after college/university during which students engage in various educational and developmental activities, such as travel or some type of regular work. Gap yea ...
after attending Cheltenham College. A director from
Theatr Clwyd
Theatr Clwyd () is a regional arts centre and producing theatre from Mold, Flintshire, in North East Wales. It opened as Theatr Clwyd in 1976, but was known between 1998 and 2015 as Clwyd Theatr Cymru, before reverting to its original name.
His ...
was impressed by his performance in a summer drama course and asked Davenport to work for him. Aged 18 he was in
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
, performing bit parts in ''
Hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...
'', where he became friends with
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 & ...
.
The following year, he attended the
University of East Anglia
The University of East Anglia (UEA) is a public research university in Norwich, England. Established in 1963 on a campus west of the city centre, the university has four faculties and 26 schools of study. The annual income of the institution f ...
(UEA), concentrating in Film Studies and English Literature. He tried acting once more at the UEA but was not, at this point, particularly interested in it. Davenport had considered becoming a member of a film crew, as opposed to acting in front of the camera. His mother advised him, after his graduation from UEA, to write to
John Cleese requesting work on the set of his upcoming film, ''
Fierce Creatures
''Fierce Creatures'' is a 1997 British-American farcical comedy film. While not literally a sequel, ''Fierce Creatures'' is a spiritual successor to the 1988 film '' A Fish Called Wanda''. Both films star John Cleese, Jamie Lee Curtis, Kevin ...
'', so that Davenport could gain some experience behind the camera. Cleese instead sent Davenport's letter to the casting department, and he was subsequently cast as a trainee zookeeper. Whilst a small part with few lines it provided his first opportunity to work in front of the camera. After the production of ''Fierce Creatures'' was completed, Davenport found an agent who secured him an audition for the role of Miles Stewart in the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
''.
Since then Davenport has played roles in many successful films and TV series, including ''
''. He also provides the voice over for the British
'', a period and relationship drama for CBS about the impact of sexual and social liberation in 1970s American suburban households, with story arcs involving open marriages and key parties. This was cancelled after one season.
In 2008, Davenport was cast in the
. In the series, Davenport played the character of Lloyd Simcoe, a physicist allegedly responsible for a worldwide blackout, which causes the whole world to see the future. The series was cancelled after a single season.
In February 2011, Davenport was cast in the NBC musical drama pilot ''
''. It ran for two seasons and is now a cult favorite on streaming services. The first season of the series follows a group of people coming together to put on a Marilyn Monroe musical on Broadway. Davenport plays the musical's director. The second season expands as the various cast members branch out into other productions; Davenport’s character, Derek Wills, quits the Broadway production of Bombshell to pursue a small off-Broadway musical and take it to Broadway with his protégé, Karen Cartwright (Katharine McPhee). The season ends with the two shows competing at the Tonys.
Davenport also starred as the replacement singer in the video for
's single "Called Out in the Dark", released on YouTube on 17 August 2011, alongside
.
.
on 1 May 2000. Their son, Harry, was born in 2010.