Simon Callow
Simon Phillip Hugh Callow (CBE)(born 15 June 1949) is an English actor. Known as a character actor on stage and screen, he has received numerous accolades including an Olivier Award and Screen Actors Guild Award as well as nominations for two BAFTA Awards. He was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for his services to acting by Queen Elizabeth II in 1999. Callow rose to prominence originating the title role of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in the 1979 Peter Shaffer play Amadeus, for which he received a Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role nomination. Callow joined the Miloš Forman 1984 film adaptation, this time portraying Emanuel Schikaneder. In 1992, Callow won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Director of a Musical for Carmen Jones. As an actor, he won acclaim for his comedic roles in A Room with a View (1985) and Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994) earning a BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role nomination for each. Other notable roles include in Maurice (1987), Howards End (1992), Shakespeare in Love (1998), and The Phantom of the Opera (2004). His television roles include Tom Chance in the Channel 4 series Chance in a Million (1984) and The Duke of Sandringham in the series Outlander from 2014 to 2016. He portrayed Napoleon in The Man of Destiny (1981), and Charles Dickens in numerous television projects. He has also appeared on numerous shows such as Midsomer Murders, Rome, Angels in America, Doctor Who, Galavant, Hawkeye, and The Witcher. Callow was born on 15 June 1949 in Streatham, South London, the son of Yvonne Mary (née Guise), a secretary and Neil Francis Callow, a businessman. His father was of French descent and his mother was of Danish and German ancestry. His father left when Simon was 18 months old, and he was brought up by his mother and grandmothers. He and his mother travelled to Northern Rhodesia (now called Zambia) when he was nine to try and reconcile with his father. This did not happen and Callow was sent for three years to boarding school in South Africa. He and his mother returned to Britain when he was twelve. He was raised as a Catholic. Callow was a student at the London Oratory School in West Brompton, and then went on to study briefly at Queen's University Belfast in Northern Ireland, where he was active in the gay liberation movement.[5] He gave up his degree course after a year to take a three-year acting course at the Drama Centre London. He made his first film appearance in 1984 as Schikaneder in Amadeus. The following year, he appeared as the Reverend Mr Beebe in A Room with a View. His first television role was in the Carry On Laughing episode "Orgy and Bess" in 1975, but it was cut from the final print. He starred in several series of the Channel 4 situation comedy Chance in a Million, as Tom Chance, an eccentric individual to whom coincidences happened regularly. Roles like this and his part in Four Weddings and a Funeral brought him to a wider audience. Callow portrayed Pliny the Elder in CBBC's 2007 children's drama series, Roman Mysteries in the episode "The Secrets of Vesuvius". He played Armand Duquesne in Marvel's Hawkeye on Disney+
Known For
Credits
- 2025 · Étoile as
- 2024 · The Holiday List as Samuel
- 2024 · Alec Guinness: A Class Act as self
- 2024 · The Boy That Never Was as Cozimo
- 2024 · Merchant Ivory as Self
- 2024 · Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey 2 as Cavendish
- 2023 · Dodger Special: Coronation as Archbishop of Canterbury
- 2023 · Murder Ballads: How to Make It in Rock 'n' Roll as Richard O'Keefe
- 2023 · Doctor Jekyll as
- 2023 · Surprised by Oxford as Dr. Sterling
- 2022 · The Pay Day as Gates
- 2022 · American: An Odyssey to 1947 as Self
- 2022 · Westminster Abbey: Behind Closed Doors as Self - Narrator (voice)
- 2022 · The Fringe, Fame and Me as Self
- 2022 · Judi Dench: Our National Treasure as Narrator
- 2022 · Marvel Studios Assembled: The Making of Hawkeye as
- 2021 · The Amazing Mr. Blunden as Mr. Blunden
- 2021 · Hawkeye as Armand Duquesne III
- 2021 · Alexander Pope: Rediscovering a Genius as Alexander Pope
- 2021 · The Cleaner as Mr. Abahassine
- 2021 · Classical Destinations: The Great Composers as narrator
- 2020 · Nutcracker Delights: English National Ballet as Narrator
- 2019 · The Witcher as Codringher
- 2018 · The Dead Room as Aubrey Judd
- 2018 · A Christmas Carol as
- 2018 · They'll Love Me When I'm Dead as Self
- 2018 · Blue Iguana as Uncle Martin
- 2017 · Grindsploitation 3: Video Nasty as
- 2017 · The Man Who Invented Christmas as Leech
- 2017 · Victoria & Abdul as Mr. Puccini
- 2017 · 50 Years Legal as Self
- 2017 · Hampstead as Judge
- 2017 · Tate Britain's Great Art Walks as Self
- 2017 · Viceroy's House as Cyril Radcliffe
- 2016 · Mindhorn as Himself
- 2016 · There's Something About Romcoms as Self
- 2016 · The Rebel as Henry Palmer
- 2016 · Golden Years as Royston
- 2015 · Galavant as Edwin the Magnificent
- 2015 · Creditors as
- 2014 · Rik Mayall: Lord of Misrule as Narrator (voice)
- 2014 · The First Silent Night: The Christmas Carol That United the World as
- 2014 · Magician: The Astonishing Life and Work of Orson Welles as Self - Actor and Welles' Biographer
- 2014 · Outlander as Duke of Sandringham
- 2014 · Miss in Her Teens as The Author
- 2014 · Inside No. 9 as Dick
- 2013 · The Sarah Millican Television Programme - Best of Series 1-2 as Self
- 2013 · A Very British Murder with Lucy Worsley as Himself
- 2013 · Plebs as
- 2012 · Best Possible Taste: The Kenny Everett Story as Dickie Attenborough
- 2012 · Them From That Thing as Various
- 2012 · Shakespeare's Sonnets as
- 2012 · Playhouse Presents as Dudley
- 2012 · Being Shakespeare as
- 2012 · Acts of Godfrey as Godfrey
- 2011 · The British Guide to Showing Off as Self
- 2011 · Death in Paradise as Larry South
- 2011 · Late Bloomers as Richard
- 2011 · Love's Kitchen as Guy Witherspoon
- 2011 · Art of Freedom as Self
- 2011 · Lily Allen: From Riches to Rags as Narrator
- 2011 · Jamie's Dream School as Himself
- 2011 · Ice as Prime Minister
- 2011 · Ice as Prime Minister
- 2010 · The Unforgettable Harry Secombe as Self
- 2010 · Save Our Bacon as The Swinesbury's Boss (voice)
- 2010 · Arn: The Knight Templar as Fader Henry
- 2009 · Orson Welles Over Europe as Himself - Presenter
- 2009 · The Addictions of Sin: WH Auden in His Own Words as Readings (voice)
- 2009 · Theatreland as Himself
- 2008 · Maggie Smith at the BBC: a portrait as Self
- 2008 · Q&A as Self - Panellist
- 2008 · Chemical Wedding as Haddo
- 2007 · Arn: The Knight Templar as Father Henry
- 2007 · The Sarah Jane Adventures as Tree Blathereen (voice)
- 2007 · The Company as MI6 liaison officer Elihu
- 2007 · Surveillance 24/7 as St John
- 2007 · Roman Mysteries as Pliny
- 2007 · Derren Brown: Trick or Treat as Himself
- 2007 · How Gay Sex Changed the World as Self
- 2006 · The Madness of Boy George as Narrator (voice)
- 2006 · The Curse of King Tut's Tomb as George Russell
- 2006 · Reviving Harry Lime as Himself
- 2006 · The Curse of King Tut's Tomb as George Russell
- 2006 · Men of Mystery as Himself
- 2005 · Ripley Under Ground as Dean Bentliffe
- 2005 · A Tribute To Ismail Merchant as Self (archive footage)
- 2005 · Revisiting Brideshead as Narrator
- 2005 · Rag Tale as Cormac Rourke
- 2005 · The Best Man as Big-Time Publisher
- 2005 · The Civilization of Maxwell Bright as Mr. Wroth
- 2005 · Doctor Who as Charles Dickens
- 2005 · Bob the Butler as Mr. Butler
- 2004 · Agatha Christie's Marple as Colonel Melchett
- 2004 · The Phantom of the Opera as Andre
- 2004 · Shoebox Zoo as Wolfgang the Wolf (voice) / Hunter the Horse (voice)
- 2004 · Thank You, Doctor Rey as Bob
- 2004 · George and the Dragon as King Edgar
- 2003 · Angels in America as Prior 2
- 2003 · Angels in America as Prior Walter Ancestor #2
- 2003 · Bright Young Things as King of Anatolia
- 2003 · Little Britain as
- 2002 · Galileo’s Battle for the Heavens as Galileo
- 2002 · The Mystery of Charles Dickens as Charles Dickens
- 2002 · Hans Christian Andersen: My Life as a Fairytale as Charles Dickens
- 2002 · Thunderpants as Sir John Osgood
- 2001 · Christmas Carol: The Movie as Charles Dickens / Ebenezer Scrooge (voice)
- 2001 · Don't Eat the Neighbours as
- 2001 · No Man's Land as Colonel Soft
- 2000 · Deadly Appearances as Rick Spencer
- 2000 · Around The World In 80 Days as Phileas Fogg (voice)
- 2000 · Animated Epics: Don Quixote as Don Quixote
- 1999 · Loose Women as Self
- 1999 · Notting Hill as Simon Callow (uncredited)
- 1998 · Shakespeare in Love as Tilney
- 1998 · Bedrooms and Hallways as Keith
- 1998 · The Scarlet Tunic as Captain Fairfax
- 1998 · Parkinson as Self
- 1997 · Midsomer Murders as Dr. Wellow
- 1997 · The Woman In White as Count Fosco
- 1996 · Victory as Zangiacomo
- 1996 · Testament: The Bible in Animation as Meneptah (voice)
- 1996 · Moses as Meneptah II (voice)
- 1996 · James and the Giant Peach as Grasshopper (voice)
- 1996 · Dennis the Menace and Gnasher as Hugo Trenchfoot (voice)
- 1996 · An Audience with Charles Dickens as Charles Dickens
- 1995 · Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls as Vincent Cadby
- 1995 · Jefferson in Paris as Richard Cosway
- 1995 · England, My England as Charles II
- 1995 · El pasajero clandestino as Major Owens
- 1994 · Street Fighter as A. N. Official
- 1994 · Little Napoleons as Edward Feathers
- 1994 · Four Weddings and a Funeral as Gareth
- 1993 · Camp Christmas as
- 1993 · Femme Fatale as Vicar Ronnie
- 1993 · Soft Top Hard Shoulder as Eddie Cherdowski
- 1992 · Howards End as Music and Meaning Lecturer (uncredited)
- 1991 · The Trials of Oz as John Mortimer
- 1991 · The Crucifer of Blood as Inspector Lestrade
- 1991 · Performance as John Mortimer
- 1990 · Mr. & Mrs. Bridge as Dr. Alex Sauer
- 1990 · Postcards from the Edge as Simon Asquith
- 1990 · Old Flames as Nathanial Quass
- 1989 · Agatha Christie's Poirot as Dr. Lutz
- 1988 · Manifesto as Police Chief Hunt
- 1987 · Maurice as Mr. Ducie
- 1987 · Acting as
- 1987 · Cariani and the Courtesans as Raimondi
- 1987 · Inspector Morse as Theodore Kemp
- 1986 · David Copperfield as Wilkins Micawber
- 1986 · A Room with a View as The Reverend Mr. Beebe
- 1986 · Dead Head as Hugo Silver
- 1984 · Amadeus as Emanuel Schikaneder
- 1984 · Chance in a Million as Tom Chance
- 1979 · Question Time as Himself - Panellist
- 1975 · The Sweeney as Detective Sergeant
- Future · Eternal Return as Malcolm
- 1989 · Revolutionary Witness as Franciscus Palloy
- 1987 · The Reluctant Dragon as Dragon (voice)
- 1985 · The Good Father as Mark Varda
- 1985 · Honour, Profit & Pleasure as George Frideric Handel
- 1981 · The Man of Destiny as Napoleon
- 1979 · Instant Enlightenment Including VAT as Maximillian
- 1974 · NOVA as Galileo