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Discover more about the stars of BBC Drama. |
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 Richard Griffiths
Best known on TV for his role as a crime-solving cook in drama Pie In The Sky*, Richard's also appeared in many classic films such as Withnail and I and the Harry Potter movies. He returns to television in the BBC's new adaptation of Bleak House.
Test your knowledge of Richard Griffiths »
| What's he been in? |
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Richard joins an all-star cast in the BBC's 2005 adaptation of Bleak House. He plays the doctor Mr Bayham Badger.
He's a familiar face from his starring role in 1990s drama Pie In The Sky*. He played Henry Crabbe, a retired detective running his own restaurant, who was continually called upon to solve more crimes.
Richard played the grotesque Swelter, another chef in the BBC's adaptation of Mervyn Peake's Gormenghast, in 2000. His many other TV credits include the dramas Jeffrey Archer: The Truth, playing Willie Whitelaw, Hope and Glory*, and the comedy TLC.
Away from his TV roles, he's reached an entirely new audience with the role of Uncle Vernon in the Harry Potter* movies.
His film career also includes parts in such classic 1980s films as Withnail and I*, Gandhi, and Chariots of Fire*. In 1999, he appeared in Sleepy Hollow with Johnny Depp*.
He's also had a stint in dictionary corner on Channel 4's long-running words and numbers quiz Countdown*, and lent his voice to the acclaimed documentary A History Of Britain.
Before his TV and film work, he built up a reputation on the stage for playing Shakespearean clowns with the Royal Shakespeare Company*. In 2004, he proved a big hit as Hector in Alan Bennett's The History Boys at the National Theatre*. The play went on tour and, as well as returning to the National Theatre, is being made into a movie*, with Richard reprising the his role.
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| Did you know? |
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Richard learned sign language as a child, as both his parents were deaf.
As well as the Harry Potter* movies, his connection to the fantasy genre extends to The Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy. He provided the voice of Vogan Jeltz in the 2005 movie, and played Slartibartfast in the radio adaptations, The Tertiary Phase, The Quandary Phase and The Quintessential Phases.
He was considered for the lead role in Doctor Who, when actor Tom Baker left in 1981. He was also in the minds of the production team as a potential replacement for Sylvester McCoy, before the original series came to an end in 1989. His Withnail and I co-stars Richard E.Grant and Paul McGann, did go on to play The Doctor - Grant in online adventure The Scream of Shalka, and McGann in the 1996 TV movie.
Away from acting, Richard's also worked as a porter.
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| Personal Details |
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Richard was born on 31 July 1947 in Thornaby-on-Tees*, Cleveland, UK.
He attended evening drama classes at Stockton & Billingham College, before finding acting work in radio and on the stage.
* The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.
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