Peter Sullivan (born 26 July 1964) is an English film and television actor.
Life and career
Sullivan was born in
Hoddesdon
Hoddesdon () is a town in the Borough of Broxbourne, Hertfordshire, lying entirely within the London Metropolitan Area and Greater London Urban Area. The area is on the River Lea and the Lee Navigation along with the New River.
Hoddesdon is ...
,
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...
. In 1982, he joined the
National Youth Theatre
The National Youth Theatre of Great Britain (NYT) is a youth theatre and registered charity in London. Its aim is to develop and nurture young people through creative arts and theatrical productions. Founded in 1956 as the world's first youth th ...
, where he played
Edmond
Edmond is a given name related to Edmund. Persons named Edmond include:
* Edmond Canaple (1797–1876), French politician
* Edmond Chehade (born 1993), Lebanese footballer
* Edmond Conn (1914–1998), American farmer, businessman, and politician
...
in ''
King Lear
''King Lear'' is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare.
It is based on the mythological Leir of Britain. King Lear, in preparation for his old age, divides his power and land between two of his daughters. He becomes destitute and insane an ...
'', and then joined the
Old Vic
Old or OLD may refer to:
Places
*Old, Baranya, Hungary
* Old, Northamptonshire, England
*Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD)
*OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Ma ...
Youth Theatre playing the title role in ''
Macbeth
''Macbeth'' (, full title ''The Tragedie of Macbeth'') is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. It is thought to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those w ...
''. He studied at
Central School of Speech and Drama
The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama was founded by Elsie Fogerty in 1906, as The Central School of Speech Training and Dramatic Art, to offer a new form of training in speech and drama for young actors and other students. It became a ...
from 1983 to 1986 and then in New York under
Uta Hagen
Uta Thyra Hagen (12 June 1919 – 14 January 2004) was a German-American actress and theatre practitioner. She originated the role of Martha in the 1962 Broadway premiere of ''Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'' by Edward Albee, who called her "a p ...
at
HB Studio
The HB Studio (Herbert Berghof Studio) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization offering professional training in the performing arts through classes, workshops, free lectures, theater productions, theater rentals, a theater artist residency prog ...
.
In 1988 he joined the Catalan performance group
La Fura dels Baus
La Fura dels Baus () is a Spanish theatrical group founded in 1979 in Moià, Barcelona (Spain), known for their urban theatre, use of unusual settings and blurring of the boundaries between audience and actor. "La Fura dels Baus" in Catalan mea ...
and toured the world with them in their trilogy of spectacles ''Accions'', ''Suz/O/Suz'' and ''Tier Mon''. In 1990 he was asked 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 ...
to join the
National Theatre in London to tour ''King Lear'' and ''
Richard III
Richard III (2 October 145222 August 1485) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty. His defeat and death at the Battl ...
'', directed by
Richard Eyre
Sir Richard Charles Hastings Eyre (born 28 March 1943) is an English film, theatre, television and opera director.
Biography
Eyre was born in Barnstaple, Devon, England, the son of Richard Galfridus Hastings Giles Eyre and his wife, Minna Ma ...
, staying on to play in ''Napoli Millionaria'' as part of the
Lyttelton Theatre
The Royal National Theatre in London, commonly known as the National Theatre (NT), is one of the United Kingdom's three most prominent publicly funded performing arts venues, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Opera House. In ...
company. He also worked extensively at the
National Theatre Studio
The Royal National Theatre in London, commonly known as the National Theatre (NT), is one of the United Kingdom's three most prominent publicly funded performing arts venues, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Opera House. In ...
with
Simon Usher and there formed The Actors' Group. He left the National to work with
David Freeman, playing Pentheus in
Opera Factory's ''Bacchae'' at the
Queen Elizabeth Hall
The Queen Elizabeth Hall (QEH) is a music venue on the South Bank in London, England, that hosts classical, jazz, and avant-garde music, talks and dance performances. It was opened in 1967, with a concert conducted by Benjamin Britten.
The ...
, before moving into television to play the lead in
Dick Clement
Dick Clement (born 5 September 1937) is an English writer, director and producer. He became known for his writing partnership with Ian La Frenais for television series including ''The Likely Lads'', ''Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?'', ...
and
Ian La Frenais
Ian La Frenais (born 7 January 1937) is an English writer best known for his creative partnership with Dick Clement. They are most famous for television series including ''The Likely Lads'', ''Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?'', ''Porridg ...
' sit-com ''Over The Rainbow''.
He was nominated for the ''Evening Standard'' Best Newcomer award for his portrayal of Ray in Simon Bennet's ''Drummers'' directed by
Max Stafford-Clark
Maxwell Robert Guthrie Stewart "Max" Stafford-Clark (born 17 March 1941) is a British theatre director.
Life and career
Stafford-Clark was born in Cambridge, England. the son of David Stafford-Clark, a physician, and Dorothy Crossley (née Old ...
at the New Ambassadors in London's West End. He also played SS Colonel
Karl Schoengarth in the multi-award-winning B.B.C./H.B.O film ''
Conspiracy
A conspiracy, also known as a plot, is a secret plan or agreement between persons (called conspirers or conspirators) for an unlawful or harmful purpose, such as murder or treason, especially with political motivation, while keeping their agree ...
'' written by
Loring Mandel
Loring Mandel (May 5, 1928 – March 24, 2020) was an American playwright and screenwriter whose notable works include the TV movie ''Conspiracy''. He wrote for radio, television, film and the stage.
Early and personal life
Mandel was a native of ...
and directed by
Frank Pierson
Frank Romer Pierson (May 12, 1925 – July 22, 2012) was an American screenwriter and film director.Byrge, Duane (July 23, 2012). rank Pierson, Former Movie Academy President, Writer and Director, Dies at 87.''The Hollywood Reporter''Yardley, Wi ...
. He then played
Jack the Ripper
Jack the Ripper was an unidentified serial killer active in and around the impoverished Whitechapel district of London, England, in the autumn of 1888. In both criminal case files and the contemporaneous journalistic accounts, the killer wa ...
in
Jonathan Kent's revival of
Wedekind's ''Lulu'' in a new version by
that started at the
Almeida Theatre before transferring to the
Kennedy Center
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (formally known as the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, and commonly referred to as the Kennedy Center) is the United States National Cultural Center, located on the Potom ...
in Washington, D.C.
He has worked extensively for
Peter Gill, appearing in both ''Way of the World'' and ''Certain Young Men'' at the Almeida Theatre, as well as in a number of plays at the
Royal Court Theatre
The Royal Court Theatre, at different times known as the Court Theatre, the New Chelsea Theatre, and the Belgravia Theatre, is a non-commercial West End theatre in Sloane Square, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, Englan ...
, contributing to their recent book ''Inside Out''. At the Court he played The Husband in
Debbie Tucker Green
debbie tucker green is a British playwright, screenwriter, and director. She spells her name in lower-case. She has written a number of plays, including ''born bad'' (2003), for which she won the Olivier Award for Most Promising Newcomer in 2004. ...
's ''Stoning Mary'' directed by
Marianne Elliott
Marianne Phoebe Elliott (born 27 December 1966) is a British theatre director and producer who works on the West End and Broadway. She has received numerous accolades including three Laurence Olivier Awards and four Tony Awards.
Initially ...
, originated the role of Ferdinand in
Tom Stoppard
Sir Tom Stoppard (born , 3 July 1937) is a Czech born British playwright and screenwriter. He has written for film, radio, stage, and television, finding prominence with plays. His work covers the themes of human rights, censorship, and politi ...
's ''Rock n Roll'' directed by
Trevor Nunn
Sir Trevor Robert Nunn (born 14 January 1940) is a British theatre director. He has been the Artistic Director for the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Royal National Theatre, and, currently, the Theatre Royal, Haymarket. He has directed dramas f ...
, which transferred to the West End and Broadway, as well as playing Cash in
Dominic Cooke
Dominic Cooke (born 1966) is an English director and writer.
Early life
Born in Wimbledon, south London, Cooke was brought up seeing a lot of theatre as a teenager from free theatre tickets provided by the Inner London Education Authority.
...
's first play as artistic director, ''The Pain and The Itch'' by the American writer
Bruce Norris. He played Mortensgaard in Antony Page's acclaimed revival of
Ibsen
Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright and theatre director. As one of the founders of modernism in theatre, Ibsen is often referred to as "the father of realism" and one of the most influential playw ...
's ''Rosmersholm'' in a new version by
Mike Poulson
Michael Poulson (born January 4, 1965 in Ogden, Utah U.S., later raised in Layton, Utah) is an American "Old School" former professional Bicycle Motocross (BMX) racer whose prime competitive years were from 1981-1987.
Racing career milestones
No ...
, once again at the Almeida. He has played JPW for Garry Hynes in Tom Murphy's ''The Gigli Concert'' at Druid in Galway and has returned to the National to do two plays with Angus Jackson; David Hare's financial crash piece ''The Power of Yes'' and a revival of Clifford Odets' ''Rocket to the Moon''. Most recently he has played Sir Robert Morton in Lindsey Posner's acclaimed revival of ''The Winslow Boy'' at The Old Vic and was critically acclaimed for his rediscovery of the role of Sir William Collier in ''
The Deep Blue Sea'', his seventh play at the National.
He played Cardinal Sforza in ''
The Borgias'' and was Commander Laurence Stern in
Abi Morgan
Abigail Louise Morgan (born 1968) is a Welsh playwright and screenwriter known for her works for television, such as ''Sex Traffic'' and '' The Hour'', and the films '' Brick Lane'', '' The Iron Lady'', ''Shame'' and ''Suffragette''.
Early li ...
's award-winning ''
The Hour'' for the BBC. He played the leads in Sky TV's ''
Critical
Critical or Critically may refer to:
*Critical, or critical but stable, medical states
**Critical, or intensive care medicine
*Critical juncture, a discontinuous change studied in the social sciences.
*Critical Software, a company specializing in ...
'', created by
Jed Mercurio
Gerald Gary "Jed" Mercurio (born September 1966) is a British television writer, producer, director and novelist. A former hospital doctor and Royal Air Force officer, Mercurio has been ranked among UK television's leading writers. In 2017, Mer ...
, and in ''
Cuffs'' on BBC1. He played recurring leads in ''Curfew'' for Sky, ''
MotherFatherSon
''MotherFatherSon'' is a British thriller television series starring Richard Gere his first major television role Helen McCrory, Billy Howle, Ciarán Hinds and Elena Anaya. The series broadcast on BBC Two began on 6 March 2019 and ended on 24 ...
'' with
Richard Gere
Richard Tiffany Gere ( ; born August 31, 1949) is an American actor. He began in films in the 1970s, playing a supporting role in '' Looking for Mr. Goodbar'' (1977) and a starring role in ''Days of Heaven'' (1978). He came to prominence with ...
for BBC2, and was also Ralph Hanson in Series 5 of the BBC1 drama series ''
Poldark
''Poldark'' is a series of historical novels by Winston Graham, published from 1945 to 1953 and continued from 1973 to 2002. The first novel, '' Ross Poldark'', was named for the protagonist of the series. The novel series was adapted twice fo ...
''. He will soon reoccur in
Jack Thorne
Jack Thorne FRSL (born 6 December 1978) is a British playwright, television writer, screenwriter, and producer.
He is best known for writing the stage play ''Harry Potter and the Cursed Child'', the films ''Wonder'' and '' Enola Holmes'', an ...
’s drama ''The Light'' for Channel 4, having also appeared in Thorne's miniseries ''
The Accident for the same channel.
Sullivan played antagonist Nyle Bellamy in the 2022
BBC adaptation of adventure novel ''
Around The World In Eighty Days
''Around the World in Eighty Days'' (french: link=no, Le tour du monde en quatre-vingts jours) is an adventure novel by the French writer Jules Verne, first published in French in 1872. In the story, Phileas Fogg of London and his newly employe ...
'' by
Jules Verne
Jules Gabriel Verne (;''Longman Pronunciation Dictionary''. ; 8 February 1828 – 24 March 1905) was a French novelist, poet, and playwright. His collaboration with the publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel led to the creation of the ''Voyages extraor ...
.
He has appeared in numerous television shows, both as regular and guest characters and in a number of films, both studio pictures as well as indie films in the U.S, U.K. and Spain.
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sullivan, Peter
English male stage actors
People from Hoddesdon
1964 births
Living people
Male actors from Hertfordshire
National Youth Theatre members
English male Shakespearean actors