Kenneth Cranham

Kenneth Cranham (born 12 December 1944) is a Scottish film, television, radio and stage actor. His most notable screen roles were in Oliver! (1968), Up Pompeii (1971), Chocolat (1988), Layer Cake (2004), Gangster No. 1 (2000), Hot Fuzz (2007), Maleficent (2014), and Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool (2017).
On television he appeared in Budgie (1972), Boon (1989), Minder (1993), Merlin (2008), Rome, Death in Paradise (2013), War & Peace (2016), and The White Princess (2017).
On stage he has twice been nominated for the Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Play, winning it in 2016, for his performance in The Father.
Early life
Cranham was born in Dunfermline, Fife, the son of Lochgelly-born Margaret McKay Cranham (née Ferguson) and Ronald Cranham, a London-born civil servant. Cranham trained at the National Youth Theatre of Great Britain, and at Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, graduating in 1966 with an Acting (RADA Diploma).
Career
Television and film
He starred in the title role in the popular 1980s comedy drama Shine on Harvey Moon, prior to which he had appeared as Charlie Collins in A Family at War (1971). He also appeared in Oliver! (1968), Up Pompeii (1971), Chocolat (1988), Gangster No. 1 (2000), Layer Cake (2004), Hot Fuzz (2007), Maleficent (2014), and Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool (2017). He was cast as the deranged Philip Channard and his Cenobitic alter-ego in the Horror film Hellbound: Hellraiser II.
On television he has appeared in Budgie (1972), Boon (1989), Minder (1993), Rome (2007), Merlin (2008), Death in Paradise (2013), War & Peace (2016), and The White Princess (2017).
Theatre
Among many stage credits are West End productions of Entertaining Mr Sloane, Loot, An Inspector Calls (both transferring to Broadway), The Ruffian on the Stair, The Birthday Party and Gaslight (at the Old Vic). For his role as Inspector Goole in An Inspector Calls, he was nominated for a Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Play. It took another 23 years before winning the award when iIn 2016, Cranham won the Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Play for his role as Andre in Florian Zeller's The Father. Cranham's performance was described as "the performance of his life" by Michael Coveney of WhatsOnStage.com.
Radio
For BBC Radio 4's Afternoon Play, Cranham has played DS Max Matthews in The Interrogation by Roy Williams (2012–present) and starred as Thomas Gradgrind in BBC Radio's 2007 adaptation of Dickens' Hard Times.
Personal life
His first wife was actress Diana Quick. He has two daughters: Nancy Cranham from a relationship with actress Charlotte Cornwell, and Kathleen Cranham with his second wife, to whom he is still married, actress Fiona Victory.
Cranham was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2023 Birthday Honours for services to drama.
Filmography
Film
Oliver! (1968) as Noah Claypole
Otley (1968) as Kid #3
Fragment of Fear (1970) as Joe
All the Way Up (1970) as Tom Midway
Up Pompeii (1971) as First Christian
Brother Sun, Sister Moon (1972) as Paolo
Vampira (1974) as Paddy, the Delinquent
Robin and Marian (1976) as Jack's Apprentice
Peer Gynt (1976)
Joseph Andrews (1977) as The Wicked Squire
Chocolat (1988) as Boothby
Stealing Heaven (1988) as Suger
Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988) as Dr. Philip Channard / Channard Cenobite
Frederick Forsyth Presents: Just Another Secret (1989) as Brosch
A Little Bit Of Lippy (1989) as Reggie Titherington
Prospero's Books (1991) as Sebastian
Under Suspicion (1991) as Frank
Tale of a Vampire (1992) as Edgar
Bed of Roses (1996) as Simon
Deep in the Heart (1996) as Robert Flaherty
The Boxer (1997) as Matt MaGuire
RPM (1998) as Biggerman
Vigo (1998) as The Producer
Women Talking Dirty (1999) as George
The Last Yellow (1999) as Len
Kevin & Perry Go Large (2000) as Vicar
Gangster No. 1 (2000) as Tommy
Born Romantic (2000) as Barney
The Most Fertile Man in Ireland (2000) as Da
Shiner (2000) as Gibson
Two Men Went to War (2002) as Sgt. Peter King
Man Dancin' (2003) as D.I. Pancho Villers
Blackball (2003) as Chairman Collins
Trauma (2004) as Detective Constable Jackson
Layer Cake (2004) as Jimmy Price
Mangal Pandey: The Rising (2005) as Kent
A Good Year (2006) as Sir Nigel
Hot Fuzz (2007) as James Reaper
Valkyrie (2008) as Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel
Running in Traffic (2009) as Bill Cullen
Made in Dagenham (2010) as Monty Taylor
5 Days of War (2011) as Michael Stilton
National Theatre Live: The Cherry Orchard (2011) as Firs
Flying Blind (2012) as Victor
Suspension of Disbelief (2012) as Bullock
Closed Circuit (2013) as Cameron Fischer
The Legend of Hercules (2014) as Lucius
Maleficent (2014) as King Henry
Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool (2017) as Joe Turner
Mr. Jones (2019) as David Lloyd George
Official Secrets (2019) as Judge Hyam
Television
City '68 (1967) as Len
Ways with Words (1967)
Boy Meets Girl (1969) as Tom Last
Z-Cars (1970) as Togo Millington
Softly, Softly: Taskforce (1970–1972) as Ken Buckley / Ashley
A Family at War (1971) as Charlie Collins
Hadleigh (1971) as Andrew Matlock
From a Bird's Eye View (1971) as Tim O'Donovan
New Scotland Yard (1972) as David Collins
Budgie (1972) as Inky Ballantine
Achilles Heel (1973) as Gordon
Crown Court (1973–1981) as John Tucker / Clive Jessup QC
Village Hall (1975) as Lop
Against the Crowd (1975) as Geoff Smailes
Holding On (1977) as Ted Wheelwright
The Velvet Glove (1977) as Townie
Danger UXB (1979) as Sapper Salt / L / Corporal Salt
Donkeys' Years (1980) as Bill Taylor
Thérèse Raquin (1980) as Camille Raquin
Enemy at the Door (1980) as Jack Foster
Cribb (1980) as Francis Mostyn-Smith
'Tis Pity She's a Whore (1980) as Giovanni
The Merchant of Venice (1980) as Gratiano
Strangers (1980–1982) as Det. Chief Insp. Jim Lennard / Willie Bruce
Brideshead Revisited (1981) as Sergeant Block
The Bell (1982) as Nick Fawley
Shine on Harvey Moon (1982–1985) as Harvey Moon
Reilly: Ace of Spies (1983) as Lenin
Heart of the High Country (1985) as Calvin Laird
Dead Man's Folly (1986) as Detective Inspector Bland
A Sort of Innocence (1987) as Eric Palmer
Inspector Morse (1987) as Cedric Downes
The Play on One: Normal Service (1988) as Peter
Just Another Secret (1989) as Brosch
Boon (1989) as Aiden Curtis
Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit (1990) as Pastor Finch
TECX (1990) as Colonel Braum
Casualty (1990) as James Lawrence
Dunrulin (1990) as Mr. Kneecap
El C.I.D. (1990–1992) as Gus Mercer
Chimera (1991) as Hennessey
Bergerac (1990) as Gascoigne
Van der Valk (1991) as Dirk Boutsen
Murder Most Horrid (1991) as Inspector Salford
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles (1992) as Colonel Schmidt
Between the Lines (1992) as D.C.I. Stubbs
Minder (1993) as Walter
Screen One (1993) as Douglas
Lovejoy (1993) as Litvak
Requiem Apache (1994) as Tony
On Dangerous Ground (1996) as Brig. Charles Ferguson
Heartbeat (1996) as Charlie Wallace
The Tenant of Wildfell Hall (1996) as Reverend Millward
Midnight Man (1997) as Brig. Charles Ferguson
Get Well Soon (1997) as Inspector Trussler
Our Mutual Friend (1998) as Silas Wegg
Kavanagh QC (1998) as Roy Lawrence
The Murder of Stephen Lawrence (1999) as Michael Mansfield QC
Justice in Wonderland (2000) as George Carman
Lady Audley's Secret (2000) as Sir Michael Audley
The Ancients (2000) as William Blake
The Sins (2000) as Gilbert
Without Motive (2000) as DCS Derek Henderson
NCS: Manhunt (2001) as Ricky Valesi
Dalziel and Pascoe (2001) as Tommy Collingwood
Night Flight (2002) as Ted Atwell
Dickens (2002) as John Forster
Believe Nothing (2002) as DI Aldiss
Pollyanna (2003) as Mr. Pendleton
Killing Hitler (2003) as Brigadier Sir Stewart Menzies
Sparkling Cyanide (2003) as George Barton
Bible Mysteries (2003)
M.I.T.: Murder Investigation Team (2005) as Ray Morgan
Genghis Khan (2005) as Genghis Khan (voice)
Rome (2005) as Pompey Magnus
The Lavender List (2006) as Harold Wilson
The Chatterley Affair (2006) as Older Keith
Hustle (2006) as Francis Owen
Hannibal (2006) as Narrator (voice)
New Tricks (2006) as Lord McCready
The Line of Beauty (2006) as Sir Maurice Tipper
Afterlife (2006) as Stan Mundy
Victoria Cross Heroes (2006) as Narrator
Doc Martin (2006, 2022) as Terry Glasson
Lilies (2007) as Mr. Pritchard
Sinking of the Lusitania: Terror at Sea (2007) as Captain Turner
The Last Detective (2007) as Gary Solway
The Curry Club (2007) as Bob
Heroes and Villains (2007) as General Carteaux
Tess of the D'Urbervilles (2008) as Mr Clare
Merlin (2008) as Aulfric
Agatha Christie's Marple (2008) as Rex Fortescue
Spanish Flu: The Forgotten Fallen (2009) as MJ O'Loughlin
Midsomer Murders (2010) as Jude Langham
The Night Watch (2011) as Horace Mundy
Upstairs Downstairs (2012) as Sergeant Ashworth
Falcón (2012) as Alberto Montes
Panto! (2012) as Jerry
Death in Paradise (2013) as Father John
In the Flesh (2013–2014) as Vicar Oddie
37 Days (2014) as John Burns
Moving On (2014) as Mike
A.D. The Bible Continues (2015) as Tiberius
Neil Gaiman's Likely Stories (2016) as Dean Smith
War & Peace (2016) as Uncle Mikhail
The White Princess (2017) as John Morton
Bancroft (2017) as Charlie Baverstock
Hatton Garden (2019) as Brian Reader
Finding Alice (2021) as Gerry Walsh
Radio
The Legends of Robin Hood (2019) as Sheriff Hugh of Nottingham
Grossman's War: Stalingrad (2019) as Stepan Spiridonov
The Father (2016) as Andre
The Interrogation (2012–present) as DS/DI Max Matthews
The Moonstone (2011) as Sergeant Cuff
The Hireling (2011) as the Narrator
Grossman's War: Life and Fate (2011) as Stepan Spiridonov
My Mad Grandad (2009) as Bernard Hill
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2009) as Inspector Mendel
Call for the Dead (2009) as Inspector Mendel
Left in Trust (2009)
Hard Times (2007) as Thomas Gradgrind
Answered Prayers (2004) as Walter
The Winter's Tale (2004) as Polixenes
The Chief Inspector Dover Mysteries (2003) as Chief Inspector Dover
His Dark Materials: Northern Lights (2003) as Farder Coram
Barry Lyndon (2003) as The Earl of Crabs
Hopes and Desires: "The Non-Entity" (2003) as Dmitri
Carmilla (2003) as Mountebank/General
New Grub Street (2002) as Mr. Yule
Little Dorrit (2001) as Mr. Merdle
Hamlet (1999) as Claudius
In the Chair (1998) as Jim Hardie
The Barchester Chronicles (1997) as Crawley
The Tin Drum (1996) as Matzerath
Brighton Rock (1996) as Cubitt
Cyrano de Bergerac (1996) as De Guiche
Talking (1995) as The Judge
It's Cold Outside (1995) as Ray
Beau Geste (1994) as Sgt. Major LeJaune
Only The Good Die Young (1992) as Stone
Georgy Girl (1992) as James
The Admirable Crichton (1986) as Crichton
The White Devil (1983) as Duke Francisco
Fear and Fear Again (1983) as Franz Kafka
Busman's Honeymoon (1983) as Frank Crutchley
The Dog It Was That Died (1982) as Hogben
Loot as Hal
Men of Violence (1979) as Blaze
The Ruffian on the Stair (1964) as Wilson
Boy Dudgeon (1963) as Boy Dudgeon
He has also performed a number of readings for BBC Radio.
Awards and nominations
Theatre
References
External links
Kenneth Cranham
Kenneth Cranham HBO Bio
Kenneth Cranham on BBC Genome
1944 births
20th-century Scottish male actors
21st-century Scottish male actors
Alumni of RADA
Commanders of the Order of the British Empire
Living people
Laurence Olivier Award winners
National Youth Theatre members
People from Dunfermline
Scottish male film actors
Scottish male television actors
Scottish male radio actors
Scottish people of English descent