Steve Toussaint

Stephen Toussaint (born 22 March 1965) is a British actor and writer. He first gained prominence through his role in the ITV crime drama '' The Knock'' (1994–2000). Currently, he plays Lord Corlys Velaryon in the HBO fantasy series ''House of the Dragon''.

His films include '' Shooting Dogs'' (2005) and '' Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time'' (2010). On television, he appeared in the second series of ''Line of Duty'' (2014), the ninth series of '' Lewis'' (2015), the Australian series '' Pine Gap'' (2018), and '' Small Axe'': '' Red, White and Blue'' (2020).

Early life

Toussaint was born in Birmingham to Barbadian parents and grew up on an estate in the New Cross area of South London, where his father worked for the London Underground and his mother worked as a nurse. His first taste of acting came in a school nativity play as a Roman centurion in a suit of Armour made from cardboard. He studied politics at the University of Sussex. During his time there, he was scouted for a role in a play and joined the drama society. After graduating, he briefly worked in merchant banking and hospital administration before deciding to try acting again. He took evening drama classes.

Toussaint changed his surname to Toussaint because his birth name conflicted with a pre-existing member of his actors' union. He chose the name from Toussaint Louverture, the Haitian revolutionary leader (as at the time he had been reading about him in '' The Black Jacobins'' by C. L. R. James).

Career

Toussaint's first professional role in acting, was as the Genie in the Lamp in ''Aladdin'' at the Churchill Theatre in 1990 in a cast that included John Inman, Paul Shane, Susan Maughan, Eli Woods and David Janson. His other extensive theatre career included performances in ''A Doll's House'' at the Young Vic, ''Macbeth'' and ''The Merchant of Venice'' for the Royal Shakespeare Company, ''Twelfth Night'' at the Nottingham Playhouse, and more.

Toussaint's big break on television was starring as Barrie Christie in all 37 episodes of the ITV crime drama '' The Knock'' from 1994 to 2000. He appeared in '' Waking the Dead'' in 2002, '' My Dad's the Prime Minister'' in 2004, and ''Mutant Chronicles'' in 2008.

In 2010, Toussaint starred in the Mike Newell-directed film '' Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time'' alongside Jake Gyllenhaal, Gemma Arterton and Ben Kingsley. Toussaint appeared as CS Ray Mallick in the second season of the BBC2 police drama series ''Line of Duty'' in 2014. In 2015 he starred in '' Lewis'', In 2018 he starred in 6 episodes of '' Pine Gap''.

In 2022, Toussaint began starring as Corlys Velaryon, the head of House Velaryon, in the HBO fantasy series ''House of the Dragon'', a ''Game of Thrones'' spin-off. He then appeared in the BBC One series ''Rain Dogs'' as the Duke.

Filmography

Film

Television

Video games

Stage

References

External links

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Steve Toussaint Official Website

Steve Toussaint
at Twitter

Steve Toussaint
at Instagram

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Living people
1965 births
20th-century British male actors
21st-century British male actors
Alumni of the University of Sussex
Black British male actors
British male television actors
British male film actors
British male voice actors
English people of Barbadian descent
Male actors from Birmingham, West Midlands
Male actors from London
Actors from the London Borough of Lewisham
British male stage actors
British male video game actors
People from New Cross