Mark Williams ( actor ) - wikipedia Mark Williams ( actor ) Mark Williams ( 1959 - 08 - 22 ) 22 August 1959 ( age 58 ) Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, England Occupation Actor, presenter, screenwriter Years active 1982 -- present Spouse ( s ) Dianne Williams Children Mark Williams ( born 22 August 1959 ) is an English actor, screenwriter and presenter. He is best known as Arthur Weasley in the Harry Potter films, and as one of the stars of the popular BBC sketch show The Fast Show. He also played Brian Williams ( father of Rory Williams ) in the BBC series Doctor Who, and Olaf Petersen in Red Dwarf. More recently he has appeared as the title character in the BBC series Father Brown. Contents 1 Early life 2 Career 3 Filmography 3.1 Film 3.2 Television 4 References 5 External links Early life Williams was educated at North Bromsgrove High School and Brasenose College, Oxford. He performed with Oxford University Dramatic Society ( OUDS ). Having made a career as a theatre actor and working for the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal National Theatre along the way, he came to wider public attention through his appearances on the BBC television sketch programmes Alexei Sayle 's Stuff and The Fast Show. Williams has described the huge popularity of the latter show as a `` double - edged sword '' as it has led to his being seen by the public as a comedian rather than as an actor. Career Williams made his film début alongside fellow débutants Hugh Grant and Imogen Stubbs in the Oxford University Film Foundation production Privileged in 1982. His most famous cinema role is as Arthur Weasley in the Harry Potter film series, which began in 2002. Other high - profile appearances include the film adaptation of Neil Gaiman 's Stardust alongside Michelle Pfeiffer, Robert De Niro and Claire Danes in 2007 and a 2012 role in Doctor Who as Brian Williams, father of the Doctor 's companion, Rory. Since 2013, he has appeared as the lead role in the BBC costume drama Father Brown. Williams also featured in the first series of Blandings, the BBC TV adaptation of the P.G. Wodehouse Blandings Castle stories, broadcast in 2013, in which he played Beach, the Emsworth 's tipsy butler ; his performance was described as `` a delight '' by Quentin Letts in the Daily Mail but he did not return for the show 's second season, for which he was replaced by Tim Vine. In 2014 and 2015, he presented the BBC daytime game show The Link. The show ran for two series. Aside from his acting work, Williams has also presented several documentary programmes : Mark Williams ' Big Bangs on the history of explosives, a follow - up to previous series Mark Williams on the Rails, Industrial Revelations and More Industrial Revelations. He is a supporter of Aston Villa F.C. although, living in Lewes, he also supports Brighton & Hove Albion. Interviewed in 2014 by the Lancashire Evening Post, when asked if some people still saw him as a comedy actor, Williams replied, `` Well, it 's only a few people in the BBC. In America, they see me as a major British character actor, but unfortunately, the BBC is pretty parochial and people are institutionalised here. '' Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes 1982 Privileged Wilf Out of Order PC 1988 High Season Benny 1994 Prince of Jutland Aslak 101 Dalmatians Horace The Borrowers Exterminator Jeff 1998 Shakespeare in Love Wabash 1999 Whatever Happened to Harold Smith ? Roland Thornton 2000 High Heels and Low Lifes Tremaine 2001 Second Star To The Left Duke 2002 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Arthur Weasley 2002 Anita and Me The Reverend ' Uncle ' Alan 2002 The Final Curtain Declan Farrell Agent Cody Banks 2 : Destination London Inspector Crescent Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Arthur Weasley 2005 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Arthur Weasley 2006 A Cock and Bull Story Ingoldsby 2007 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Arthur Weasley 2007 Stardust Billy the Innkeeper 2009 Harry Potter and the Half - Blood Prince Arthur Weasley Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows : Part 1 Arthur Weasley Flutter Raymond 2011 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows : Part 2 Arthur Weasley 2011 Albert Nobbs Sean 2016 Golden Years Publican 2018 Early Man Barry Voice Television Year Title Role Notes 1988 The Storyteller Fearnot 's brother Episode `` Fearnot '' Red Dwarf Olaf Petersen Three episodes : `` The End '', `` Balance of Power '' & `` Stasis Leak '' Alexei Sayle 's Stuff First series, six episodes Tumbledown Lumpy Kinsey Danny Making Out Manfred Episodes 1 and 2 KYTV Episode `` Launch '' 1991 Merlin of the Crystal Cave Cerdic Bottom Boris Episode `` Accident '' The Smell of Reeves and Mortimer Don Powell Seven episodes 1993 -- 1995 1994 Health and Efficiency Steven Episode `` Cinderella Rockafeller '' The Fast Show 23 episodes 1994 -- 2000 Chef ! Policeman 2 Episode `` Masterchef '' 1995 The Big Game Tommy Hollis Searching Gerald Peak Practice Roland Grogan Episode `` Life and Soul '' 1998 The Fast Show Live The Canterbury Tales Chanticleer Episode `` Leaving London '' -- voice Ted & Ralph Confirmed Bachelor 1999 Hunting Venus Peter 2000 Gormenghast Professor Perch The Strangerers Cadet Flynn Nine episodes 2001 Fun at the Funeral Parlour Larry Nazareth Episode `` The Jaws of Doom '' Industrial Revelations Himself Two series ( as presenter ) 2002 Shackleton Dudley Docker 2003 Grass Ben Six episodes Mark Williams on the Rails Himself Presenter Carrie and Barry Kirk Two episodes 2006 Mark Williams ' Big Bangs Himself Presenter Saxondale Deggsy One episode 2007 A Room with a View Mr Beebe 2008 Sense and Sensibility Sir John Middleton 2009 Inspector George Gently Joe Bishop Episode `` Gently in the Night '' Blood in the Water Jerry Hourihan Agatha Christie 's Marple Claud Evans Episode `` Why Did n't They Ask Evans ? '' New Tricks David Beaumont Episode `` The Truth is out There '' Merlin voice of goblin Episode `` Goblin 's Gold '' The Indian Doctor Richard Sharpe Five episodes 2011 Frankenstein 's Wedding Alphonse Frankenstein 2012 Being Human Regus Hustle Dale Ridley Doctor Who Brian Williams Episodes `` Dinosaurs on a Spaceship '' and `` The Power of Three '' 2013 Blandings Sebastian Beach Six episodes Still Open All Hours Planter 's Salesman 2013 -- Father Brown Father Brown Title character, 60 episodes 2014 -- 2015 The Link Presenter BBC daytime game show 2015 Drunk History Robert Catesby Episode : `` Episode Four '' 2016 We 're Going on a Bear Hunt Dad ( voice ) Television short 2016 Twirlywoos Waiter Television series, `` More About This Way, That Way '' References Jump up ^ `` Harry Potter : The Exhibition ''. Heart. ^ Jump up to : `` Mark Williams : I 'm not a comedian ''. Belfasttelegraph.co.uk. 2013 - 01 - 12. Retrieved 2013 - 01 - 16. Jump up ^ ( 1 ) Jump up ^ Letts, Quentin ( 13 January 2013 ). `` A 36 - stone porker to rival the genius of Jeeves ''. Mail Online. Retrieved 15 January 2013 Jump up ^ `` Mark Williams : Captain of industry ''. The Independent, 21 September 2005. Retrieved 2015 - 12 - 14. Jump up ^ `` I 'm a British character actor -- not a comedian ''. Jump up ^ TV.com. `` Merlin -- Goblin 's Gold ''. tv.com. Retrieved 2013 - 01 - 16. Jump up ^ Ian Wolf. `` The Indian Doctor -- Production Details ''. British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 18 November 2010. External links Mark Williams on IMDb The Fast Show Members Caroline Aherne Simon Day Charlie Higson John Thomson Arabella Weir Paul Whitehouse Mark Williams Spin - off shows Grass Jumpers for Goalposts Swiss Toni Ted and Ralph VIAF : 49422605 LCCN : no2001019909 ISNI : 0000 0001 1472 2395 GND : 1053537697 BNF : cb14030774t ( data ) Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mark_Williams_(actor)&oldid=798168672 '' Categories : 1959 births Alumni of Brasenose College, Oxford English male film actors English male stage actors English male television actors English television writers English male voice actors Living people Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Screen Actors Guild Award winners People from Bromsgrove Male actors from Worcestershire 20th - century English male actors 21st - century English male actors The Fast Show Hidden categories : Use dmy dates from August 2016 Use British English from August 2016 Pages using infobox person with unknown parameters Pages to import images to Wikidata Articles with hCards All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from March 2014 Wikipedia articles with VIAF identifiers Wikipedia articles with LCCN identifiers Wikipedia articles with ISNI identifiers Wikipedia articles with GND identifiers Wikipedia articles with BNF identifiers Talk Contents About Wikipedia Čeština Dansk Deutsch Español فارسی Français 한국어 Bahasa Indonesia Italiano עברית Magyar Nederlands Norsk Polski Português Русский Slovenčina Suomi Svenska Türkçe Edit links This page was last edited on 31 August 2017, at 10 : 55. 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Question: who is the actor who plays father brown
Answer: Mark Williams