Alexander Richard Avery (born 6 August 1971) is an English actor. Beginning his career in 1999, he has appeared in numerous television series, films and stage productions. Alongside appearing in productions for the

Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and opens around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, Stratf ...

, Avery has had notable stints in ''

Holby City ''Holby City'' (stylised on-screen as HOLBY CIY) is a British medical drama television series that aired weekly on BBC One. It was created by Tony McHale and Mal Young as a Spin-off (media), spin-off from the established BBC medical drama '' ...

'', ''

The Bill ''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, broadcast on ITV (TV network), ITV from 16 October 1984 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, "Woodentop (The Bill), Woodentop" (part of the ''Storyb ...

'' and ''

EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...

'', as well as portraying villain Graham Elton in the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

soap opera ''

Doctors Doctor, Doctors, The Doctor or The Doctors may refer to: Titles and occupations * Physician, a medical practitioner * Doctor (title), an academic title for the holder of a doctoral-level degree ** Doctorate ** List of doctoral degrees awarded b ...

''.

Life and career

Alexander Richard Avery was born on 6 August 1971 in

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

. Avery's family has been involved in wine trade for over 200 years. In 1999, Avery made his television debut in the

first series First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...

of the

medical drama series ''

''. He portrayed the recurring role of Carl until the second series. A year later, he made his film debut in '' Quills'', as well as beginning his stage career, appearing in '' Another Country''. He also appeared in ''A Tender Prayer'' at the

Bristol Old Vic Bristol Old Vic is a British theatre company based at the Theatre Royal, Bristol. The present company was established in 1946 as an offshoot of the Old Vic in London. It is associated with the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, which became a fin ...

later in 2000. In 2001, he appeared in four episodes of ''

'' as Special Constable Knowles. His character died at the end of Avery's stint. Then in 2004, he was cast in the BBC project ''

Dunkirk Dunkirk ( ; ; ; Picard language, Picard: ''Dunkèke''; ; or ) is a major port city in the Departments of France, department of Nord (French department), Nord in northern France. It lies from the Belgium, Belgian border. It has the third-larg ...

''. In December 2006, Avery made his first appearance in the BBC daytime soap opera ''

''. This marked the first of numerous of Avery's appearances in the soap. Avery appeared in two

productions in 2004: ''

The Two Gentlemen of Verona ''The Two Gentlemen of Verona'' is a Shakespearean comedy, comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1589 and 1593. It is considered by some to be Shakespeare's first play, and is often seen as showing his first ten ...

'' and ''

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (12 or 13 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC) was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in Caesar's civil wa ...

''. Then in 2007, he starred in a

West End theatre West End theatre is mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres in and near the West End of London.Christopher Innes"West End"in ''The Cambridge Guide to Theatre'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998), pp. 1194–1195, ...

production '' Kean'' as the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

. The production later toured the UK. A year later, Avery was cast in the recurring role of Simon Ackroyd on the BBC soap opera ''

''. His character was introduced as Abi Branning (

Lorna Fitzgerald Lorna Katie Fitzgerald (born 17 April 1996) is a British actress from Northampton. Her most notable role to date is that of Abi Branning in the BBC soap opera, ''EastEnders''. Since leaving ''EastEnders'' in January 2018, Fitzgerald has develop ...

) and Ben Mitchell's (Charlie Jones) teacher. He appeared again in 2014 and 2016. Throughout the early 2010s, Avery made various film appearances, including: '' The Grind'' (2012), '' What You Will'' (2012), ''

National Theatre Live National Theatre Live is an initiative operated by the Royal National Theatre in London. It broadcasts live, by satellite, performances of their productions (and those of other theatres) to cinemas and arts centres around the world. About I gre ...

War Horse The first evidence of horses in warfare dates from Eurasia between 4000 and 3000 BC. A Sumerian illustration of warfare from 2500 BC depicts some type of equine pulling wagons. By 1600 BC, improved harness and chariot design ...

'' (2014) and ''

The Ones Below ''The Ones Below'' is a 2015 British thriller directed by David Farr in his feature debut. It was shown in the Panorama section at the 66th Berlin International Film Festival and released on 11 March 2016 in the United Kingdom. Plot Kate an ...

'' (2015). In 2019, Avery portrayed the titular role in

Rose Theatre Kingston The Rose Theatre Kingston is a theatre on Kingston High Street in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames in London, England. The theatre seats 822 around a wide, thrust stage. It officially opened on 16 January, 2008 with the play ''Uncle V ...

's production of ''

Macbeth ''The Tragedy of Macbeth'', often shortened to ''Macbeth'' (), is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, estimated to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the physically violent and damaging psychological effects of political ambiti ...

''. In 2024, Avery returned to the BBC soap ''Doctors'', but this time was cast in the recurring role of Graham Elton. At the time of his casting, Avery was unaware that he had been cast as a villain.

Filmography

Film

Television

Stage

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Avery, Alex 1971 births 20th-century English male actors 21st-century English male actors English film actors English male Shakespearean actors English soap opera actors English stage actors English television actors Living people Male actors from Bristol Royal Shakespeare Company members