Nicholas Woodeson
Biography
Nicholas Woodeson (born November 30, 1949) is an English film, television and theatre actor, and Drama Desk and Olivier award nominee. Woodeson was born in Sudan and lived in the Middle East as a boy. He started performing at prep school in Sussex, and Marlborough College. He read English at the University of Sussex, and became involved in student drama productions, where he met Michael Attenborough, Jim Carter, and Andy de la Tour. He took part in the 1970 National Student Drama Festival. Next was a season in rep at the Lyceum Theatre, Crewe, after deciding not to pursue an academic career. He won a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (1972–74). His first work after drama school was a season at the Everyman Theatre, Liverpool (1974–75), in a company that included Jonathan Pryce (artistic director), Julie Walters, Pete Postlethwaite and Bill Nighy. He has worked in regional theatre in the UK and US, at the Hampstead Theatre Club, the Young Vic and the Almeida Theatre in London and at the Manhattan Theatre Club (Off-Broadway). He joined the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in 1982 and worked with them for seven years. On Broadway his work includes Straker in Man and Superman (1978), Piaf (1981), Inspector Goole in An Inspector Calls (1995), and Burleigh in Mary Stuart (2009). In 2011, he played Mr Prince in the National Theatre revival of Odets' Rocket to the Moon. He has appeared in the West End in Funny Peculiar (1976), in Good (1982) (also Broadway), as Inspector Goole in An Inspector Calls (2009), as Bonesy in Jumpers (2003) (also Broadway), as Mussabini in Chariots of Fire (2012), and as Harold Wilson in The Audience (2015). He has been in two productions of Pinter's 'The Birthday Party', playing McCann at the National Theatre in 1994, and Goldberg in the Lyric Hammersmith's 50th centenary production in 2008, and two productions of Pinter's The Homecoming, playing Lenny in the 25th Anniversary West End revival in 1991, and Max at the RSC in 2011. In 2017, following the death of Tim Pigott-Smith, he took over the role of Willy Loman in the Royal & Derngate theatre's tour of Death of a Salesman, for which he was nominated for a UK Theatre Award as Best Actor in a Leading Role. Woodeson's first film work was a role in Heaven's Gate, released in 1980. By chance, he spent more time on location in Montana than any other actor in the film. He has also appeared in, among others, The Russia House (1990), The Pelican Brief (1993), Shooting Fish (1997), The Man Who Knew Too Little (1997) Titanic Town (1998), The Avengers (1998), Mad Cows (1999), Topsy-Turvy (1999), Dreaming of Joseph Lees (1999), Amazing Grace (2006), Hannah Arendt (2012), the James Bond film Skyfall (2012), Mr. Turner (2014), The Danish Girl (2015), Race (2016), Disobedience (2017), The Death of Stalin (2017) and The Hustle (2019).
Known For

Agatha Christie's Poirot

Silent Witness

Casualty

Miami Vice

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power

New Tricks

A Touch of Frost

Waking the Dead
All Movies (52)
- Savage House2026 · as Mr. Brimsby, Jeweller
- Peter Pan's Neverland Nightmare2025 · as Steven
- A Paris Proposal2023 · as Jacques
- Firebird2021 · as Polkovnik Kuznetsov
- On the Beaches2019 · as Albert Einstein
- The Hustle2019 · as Albert
- Disobedience2018 · as Rabbi Goldfarb
- Beirut2018 · as Herzerg
- Paddington 22017 · as Insurance Company CEO
- The Death of Stalin2017 · as Boris Bresnavich, Conductor #2
- The Limehouse Golem2016 · as Toby Dosett
- Race2016 · as Fred Rubien
- Ramona & The Chair2016 · as Priest
- The Danish Girl2015 · as Dr. Buson
- The Eichmann Show2015 · as Yaakov Jonilowicz
- Mr. Turner2014 · as Gentleman Critic
- Loving Miss Hatto2012 · as Erich
- Skyfall2012 · as Doctor Hall
- Hannah Arendt2012 · as William Shawn
- John Carter2012 · as Dalton
- Hysteria2011 · as Dr. Richardson
- Red Riding: The Year of Our Lord 19802009 · as Michael Warren
- Pope Joan2009 · as Arighis
- Filth: The Mary Whitehouse Story2008 · as Harman Grisewood
- Poppy Shakespeare2008 · as Professor
- Amazing Grace2006 · as Harrison
- Christine2004 · as Gerald Leyman
- One of the Hollywood Ten2002 · as Bill
- Conspiracy2001 · as Otto Hofmann
- Topsy-Turvy1999 · as Mr. Seymour
- Dreaming of Joseph Lees1999 · as Mr. Dian
- Mad Cows1999 · as Detective Slynne
- Great Expectations1999 · as Wemmick
- The Avengers1998 · as Dr. Darling
- Titanic Town1998 · as Jeremy Immonger
- The Woman In White1997 · as Asylum Proprietor
- The Man Who Knew Too Little1997 · as Sergei
- Shooting Fish1997 · as Mr Collyns
- Men of the Month1994 · as Keith
- The Pelican Brief1993 · as Stump
- Maria's Child1993 · as Roland
- Hedda Gabler1993 · as Jorgen Tesman
- The Blackheath Poisonings1992 · as Bertie Williams
- Bad Girl1992 · as Geoff Harris
- A Fatal Inversion1992 · as Inspector Winder
- My Kingdom for a Horse1991 · as Robin 'Jacko' Jackman
- The Russia House1990 · as Niki Landau
- Max and Helen1990 · as Martin Greenbaum
- Piaf1984 · as Emil / Jacko
- Heaven's Gate1980 · as Small man
- Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble— · as Steven
- Untitled Tinkerbell Movie— · as Steven
All TV Shows (43)
- Death by Lightning2025 · as Loeffler
- Beyond Paradise2023 · as Father Brian
- The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power2022 · as Diarmid
- Quiz2020 · as Nicholas Hilliard QC
- Will2017 · as Phillip Henslowe
- Taboo2017 · as Robert Thoyt
- Delicious2016 · as Allen Billington
- The Living and the Dead2016 · as Reverend Matthew Denning
- Mapp and Lucia2014 · as Algernon Wyse
- The Escape Artist2013 · as George Balfour QC
- It's Kevin2013 · as Various
- Ripper Street2012 · as Dr. William Corcoran
- Secret State2012 · as Lord Justice Holbeck
- Friday Night Dinner2011 · as Rabbi
- Silk2011 · as Professor Stephen Nyman
- Borgen2010 · as Alexander Grozin
- Red Riding2009
- Eleventh Hour2006
- Rome2005 · as Posca
- Shameless2004 · as Isaac
- New Tricks2004 · as Viktor Proust
- Foyle's War2002 · as Josef Novak
- Helen West2002 · as Brian Redwood
- Waking the Dead2001 · as Reese Dickson, Solicitor
- Great Expectations1999 · as Wemmick
- Silent Witness1996 · as Derek Galton
- Pie in the Sky1994 · as Maurice Plummer
- Cracker1993 · as Hennessy
- Mr. Wroe's Virgins1993 · as Brother Moses
- Bonjour la Classe1993
- The Blackheath Poisonings1993 · as Bertie Williams
- A Touch of Frost1992 · as Anton Caldwell
- Performance1991 · as Jorgen Tesman
- The Wolvis Family1991
- For the Greater Good1991 · as Michael Parke-Walsh MP
- The Chief1990 · as Milverton
- Blackeyes1989 · as Stilk
- Agatha Christie's Poirot1989 · as Detective Sergeant Hoskins
- Casualty1986 · as Jack Clayton
- ScreenPlay1986 · as Geoff Harris
- Miami Vice1984 · as Artie Cross
- The Hound of the Baskervilles1982 · as Sir Henry Baskerville
- A Rumor of War1980 · as Cpl. Kazmarak