Robert Carlyle

Robert Carlyle (born 14 April 1961) is a Scottish actor. His film work includes: Trainspotting, The Full Monty (1997), Ravenous and The World Is Not Enough (both 1999), There's Only One Jimmy Grimble (2000), The Beach (2000), The 51st State (2001), Eragon (2006), 28 Weeks Later (2007) and The Legend of Barney Thomson (2015). He has starred in television series such as Hamish Macbeth (1995–1998), Stargate Universe (2009–2011), Once Upon a Time (2011–2018) and COBRA (2020–2023).

He won the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for The Full Monty and a Gemini Award for Stargate Universe, and was nominated for an Emmy Award for his work in the miniseries Human Trafficking (2005). Carlyle also earned plaudits for playing King James VI and I in the BBC miniseries Gunpowder, Treason & Plot (2004).

Early life and education Robert Carlyle was born on 14 April 1961 in Maryhill, Glasgow, the son of Elizabeth, who worked for a bus company, and Joseph Carlyle, a painter and decorator. He was raised by his father after his mother left when he was four years old.

Carlyle left North Kelvinside Secondary School at the age of 16 without any qualifications and worked for his father as a painter and decorator. He later attended night classes at Cardonald College, in Glasgow. He first became involved in drama at the Glasgow Arts Centre at the age of 21 (having been inspired by reading Arthur Miller's The Crucible) and he later graduated from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (RSAMD).

Career In 1990, Carlyle, Alexander Morton, Caroline Paterson, and friends founded a theatre company, Raindog (which was involved in television and film work). The same year he guest starred in The Bill and also starred in his first film, Riff-Raff, directed by Ken Loach. Shortly after his appearance in Cracker, he landed the role of Highland policeman Hamish Macbeth in the BBC comedy-drama Hamish Macbeth. The series ran for three seasons from 1995 to 1997.

In 1996 and 1997, he appeared in the two highest-profile roles of his career to date: as the sociopathic Francis Begbie in Trainspotting and Gaz, the leader of a group of amateur male strippers, in The Full Monty. The latter earned Carlyle a BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role. He also starred with Ray Winstone in the 1997 film Face. Carlyle played the senior Malachy McCourt (father of author Frank McCourt) in the 1999 film adaptation of McCourt's first memoir, Angela's Ashes; the arch villain Renard in the 1999 James Bond film The World Is Not Enough; and a cannibalistic soldier in the 1999 Ravenous.

Carlyle appeared in the 2002 Oasis music video for "Little By Little". He played Adolf Hitler in the 2003 miniseries Hitler: The Rise of Evil, portraying the future dictator's rise to power. In 2006 he played the villain Durza in Eragon. In 2007 Carlyle played one of the main characters in the film 28 Weeks Later. He also played the lead role as a marine engineer attempting to save London from total devastation in the disaster film Flood. That year he also portrayed Father Joseph Macavoy in the film The Tournament.

In 2008 Carlyle narrated a BBC audiobook version of The Cutting Room. In 2008, he was cast as Dr. Nicholas Rush in the television series Stargate Universe. His was touted by the studio as the "leading role" in Universe.

In 2008, Carlyle appeared in 24: Redemption, a television movie based on the TV series 24, starring alongside Kiefer Sutherland.

In 2009, Carlyle appeared in "The Man Who Walked Around The World", a long-form commercial for Johnnie Walker whisky. Carlyle was shown walking down a path and talking for six minutes in a single long take. The ad took two days to film. The director, Jamie Rafn, afterwards referred to Carlyle as an "utter genius".

He voices the character of Gabriel Belmont, and his counterpart, Dracula, in the video game Castlevania: Lords of Shadow, as well as its sequels Mirror of Fate and Lords of Shadow 2.

From 2011 to 2018, Carlyle portrayed Rumplestiltskin / Mr. Gold in the fantasy-drama television series Once Upon a Time. The character is a wizard, deal-maker, and master manipulator. In an interview, Carlyle explained that his son inspired him to create Rumplestiltskin's voice.

In 2019, he portrayed Ogilvy in a three-part television adaptation of The War of the Worlds for the BBC, and made an uncredited appearance as John Lennon in the film Yesterday. From 2020 to 2023, he portrayed Robert Sutherland, the Prime Minister and Leader of the Conservative Party in the Sky series Cobra. In 2023, he reprised his role as Gaz for the sequel series to The Full Monty, and appeared in the 2025 Netflix drama Toxic Town.

Carlyle's upcoming roles include Jack Ruby, the killer of Lee Harvey Oswald in the film November 1963, DCS Dave Cook in The Hack, an ITVX drama about the News International phone hacking scandal, and Sherlock Holmes in the second season of the CBS series Watson.

Acting style Known for his commitment to authenticity in roles, Carlyle has often altered his lifestyle and physical appearance to gain a better understanding of a character; much akin to method acting. Before playing a homeless character in Antonia Bird's Safe, for example, he went to live in the Waterloo area of London where the film was set. For his role as a bus driver in Ken Loach's Carla's Song, he passed the test for a PSV licence (a licence to drive a bus with passengers) in a Glasgow Leyland Atlantean bus. Carlyle also had dentistry as part of his preparations for reprising his role as Begbie in T2 Trainspotting, choosing to have a dental implant and an adjacent tooth that became damaged during the implant's removal, extracted. Writing of Carlyle's performance in The Full Monty, Andrew Johnston stated: "Carlyle was brilliant as the savage psycho Begbie in Trainspotting; here, he proves he can be almost as good when kept on a short leash. We don't know much about Gaz, but he's the most interesting character in the movie, largely because of Carlyle's down-to-earth warmth."

Personal life Carlyle has been married to make-up artist Anastasia Shirley since 1997. They have three children: a daughter born in 2002, and two sons born in 2004 and 2006. Carlyle is a patron of 'School for Life' in Romania. He was appointed an OBE in 1999.

Filmography

Film Year Title Role Notes 1990 Silent Scream Big Woodsy Riff-Raff Steve 1993 Being Human Prehistoric Shaman 1994 Priest Graham Marooned Peter 1995 Go Now Nick Cameron 1996 Trainspotting Francis "Franco" Begbie Carla's Song George Lennox 1997 The Full Monty Gary "Gaz" Schofield Face Ray 1999 Plunkett & Macleane Will Plunkett Ravenous Colonel Ives / F.W. Colqhoun The World Is Not Enough Renard (Viktor Zokas) Angela's Ashes Malachy McCourt 2000 The Beach Daffy There's Only One Jimmy Grimble Eric Wirral 2001 To End All Wars Major Ian Campbell The 51st State Felix DeSouza 2002 Once Upon a Time in the Midlands Jimmy Black and White David O'Sullivan 2004 Dead Fish Danny Devine 2005 The Mighty Celt O Marilyn Hotchkiss' Ballroom Dancing and Charm School Frank Keane 2006 Eragon Durza 2007 28 Weeks Later Donald "Don" Harris Flood Robert Morrison 2008 Stone of Destiny John MacCormick Summer Shaun I Know You Know Charlie2009 The Tournament Father Joseph MacAvoy The Unloved Lucy's Father 2012 California Solo Lachlan MacAldonich 2015 The Legend of Barney Thomson Barney Thomson Also director 2016 All That Remains Violin player 2017 T2 Trainspotting Francis "Franco" Begbie 2019 Yesterday John Lennon Uncredited 2022 North of Normal Papa Dick 2023 The Performance Fugler November 1963 Jack Ruby

Television +Key Denotes works that have not yet been released

Video games Year Title Voice role Notes 2006 Eragon Shade Durza 2010 Castlevania: Lords of Shadow Gabriel Belmont 2013 Castlevania: Lords of Shadow – Mirror of Fate Gabriel Belmont / Dracula 2014 Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 Gabriel Belmont / Dracula / Inner Dracula Watch Dogs Stephen Fedder

Audio books Year Title Role Notes 2008 The Cutting Room Narrator

Awards and nominations Year Award Category Work Result 1993 BAFTA Scotland Awards Best Actor – Film Riff-Raff 1995 Best Actor – Television Cracker & Hamish Macbeth CableACE Awards Supporting Actor in a Movie or Miniseries Cracker 1996 Awards Circuit Community Awards Best Actor in a Supporting Role Trainspotting Royal Television Society Awards Best Actor Hamish Macbeth 1997 British Academy Film Awards Best Actor in a Leading Role The Full Monty BAFTA Scotland Awards Best Actor – Television Hamish Macbeth Best Actor – Film Trainspotting Evening Standard British Film Awards Best ActorFace, Carla's Song & The Full Monty London Film Critics' Circle Awards British Actor of the Year Salerno Shadowline Film Festival Shadowline Award Golden Satellite Awards Best Supporting Actor – Drama Trainspotting Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture (with Mark Addy, Paul Barber, Deirdre Costello, Steve Huison, Bruce Jones, Lesley Sharp, William Snape, Hugo Speer, Tom Wilkinson & Emily Woof) The Full Monty 1998 British Academy Television Awards Best Actor Hamish Macbeth MTV Movie & TV Awards Best Dance Sequence (with Mark Addy, Paul Barber, Steve Huison, Hugo Speer & Tom Wilkinson) The Full Monty Sant Jordi Awards Best Foreign Actor The Full Monty & Go Now Golden Satellite Awards Best Actor in a Motion Picture, Comedy or Musical The Full Monty 1999 British Academy Television Awards Best Actor Looking After Jo Jo 2000 Fangoria Chainsaw Awards Ravenous Irish Film & Television AwardsAngela's Ashes 2001 Empire Awards Best British Actor 2004 Golden Satellite Awards Best Actor in a Miniseries or a Motion Picture Made for Television Hitler: The Rise of Evil 2006 Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or MovieHuman Trafficking Gold Derby Awards TV movie/Miniseries Supporting Actor Women's Image Network Awards Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie 2008 BAFTA Scotland Awards Best Acting Performance in Film Summer 2009 Best Actor – Television The Unloved 2010 Gemini Awards Best Actor in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role Stargate Universe 2015 BAFTA Scotland Awards Best Directing in Film or TelevisionThe Legend of Barney Thomson Best Actor – Film Best Feature Film (with John G. Lenic, Kaleena Kiff & Brian Coffey) Behind the Voice Actors Awards Best Male Lead Vocal Performance in a Video Game Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 Edinburgh International Film Festival Awards The Michael Powell Award for Best British Feature FilmThe Legend of Barney Thomson 2016 Monte-Carlo Comedy Film Festival Audience Award 2017 20/20 Awards Best Supporting Actor Trainspotting BAFTA Scotland Awards Best Actor – Film T2 Trainspotting