Thomas Aldridge, also known as Tom Aldridge (born 1982), is an English television and theatre actor. He is best known for playing

Ron Weasley Ronald Bilius Weasley is a fictional character in the ''Harry Potter'' series of novels by J. K. Rowling. He is introduced in '' Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'' as a first-year student on his way to the wizarding school Hogwarts. ...

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child ''Harry Potter and the Cursed Child'' is a play written by Jack Thorne from an original story by Thorne, J. K. Rowling, and John Tiffany. The plot occurs nineteen years after the events of Rowling's novel ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hall ...

in London's West End. He is married to West End actress Helen Owen.

Early career

Born in Essex, Aldridge has been working in professional theatre and television since the 1990s. As a child actor, he made his professional theatre debut in the

Catherine Cookson Dame Catherine Ann Cookson (''née'' McMullen; 20 June 1906 – 11 June 1998), was a British writer. She is in the top 20 of the most widely read British novelists, with sales topping 100 million, while she retained a relatively low profile in ...

play ''Fifteen Streets'', at the Queen's Theatre Hornchurch. He then went on to feature in programs such as ''Our Boy'' with

Ray Winstone Raymond Andrew Winstone (; born 19 February 1957) is an English television, stage, and film actor with a career spanning five decades. Having worked with many prominent directors, including Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg, Winstone is known ...

, ''

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 '' London's Burning''. After leaving school he played the role of Jenkins in ''Boyz Unlimited'' and Danny in the second series of 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 ...

drama '' Hope and Glory''. In 2000 Aldridge attended the

Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts, formerly Mountview Theatre School, is a drama school in Peckham, south London, England, founded in 1945. Mountview Academy provides specialist vocational training in acting, musical theatre and actor musicians ...

in London where he trained for three years. In his graduate year he played

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

in the

Andrew Lloyd Webber Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber (born 22 March 1948) is an English composer and impresario of musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End theatre, West End and on Broadway theatre, Broad ...

musical ''

Jesus Christ Superstar ''Jesus Christ Superstar'' is a sung-through rock opera with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice. Loosely based on the Life of Jesus in the New Testament, Gospels' accounts of Passion of Jesus, the Passion, the work interprets ...

'' at the Actors' Church in London's

Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist sit ...

. Since then, Aldridge has continued to work concurrently in both television and theatre,

Television and film

On screen, Aldridge has played Garvey in ''

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 ...

'', Steward Taylor in the 2012 ITV and ABC America series ''

Titanic RMS ''Titanic'' was a British ocean liner that sank in the early hours of 15 April 1912 as a result of striking an iceberg on her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, United States. Of the estimated 2,224 passengers a ...

'' written by ''

Downton Abbey ''Downton Abbey'' is a British historical drama television series set in the early 20th century, created and co-written by Julian Fellowes. It first aired in the United Kingdom on ITV (TV network), ITV on 26 September 2010 and in the United St ...

'' and ''

Gosford Park ''Gosford Park'' is a 2001 satirical black comedy mystery film directed by Robert Altman and written by Julian Fellowes. The film, which is influenced by Jean Renoir's French classic '' The Rules of the Game'', follows a party of wealthy Brito ...

'' creator

Julian Fellowes Julian Alexander Kitchener-Fellowes, Baron Fellowes of West Stafford (born 17 August 1949), known professionally as Julian Fellowes, is an English actor, novelist, writer, producer, film director, and Conservative peer. He has received nume ...

, Jimmy (Smudger) Collins in ''

Call the Midwife ''Call the Midwife'' is a British period drama television series about a group of nurse midwives working in the East End of London in the late 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. The principal cast of the show has included Jessica Raine, Miranda Hart, ...

'', Callum Ross in ''

Silent Witness ''Silent Witness'' is a British crime drama television series produced by the BBC that focuses on a team of forensic pathology experts and their investigations into various crimes. The series was created by Nigel McCrery, a former murder squa ...

'', Jason in the

drama '' Killers'' written by David Eldridge and

Tony Jordan Tony Jordan (born 21 July 1957) is a British television writer. For many years, he was lead writer and series consultant for BBC One soap opera ''EastEnders''. He has written over 250 episodes for the programme since 1989, including the 2008 S ...

, Darren Peasgood in ''

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 ...

'', Warren in the second series of the ITV sci-fi drama '' Primeval'', Reece in the second series of '' Law and Order UK'', Copper in the

BBC Three BBC Three is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes for a 16 to 34-year-old target aud ...

Original Drama short ''Flea''. and Bridge in the

series ''

Undercover A cover in foreign, military or police human intelligence or counterintelligence is the ostensible identity and role or position in an infiltrated organization assumed by a covert agent during a covert operation. Official cover In espionage, a ...

'' written by

Peter Moffat Alexander Peter Moffat (born 2 June 1962) is a British playwright and screenwriter. Early life Moffat was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, to John Laidlaw Moffat, who was in the Royal Military Police, and Norma Guthrie. His grandfather and great- ...

and starring

Adrian Lester Adrian Anthony Lester (born Anthony Harvey on 14 August 1968) is a British actor. He is the recipient of a Laurence Olivier Award, an Evening Standard Theatre Award and a Critics' Circle Theatre Award for his work on the London stage, an ...

and

Sophie Okonedo Sophie Okonedo (born 11 August 1968) is a British actress and narrator. The recipient of a Tony Award, she has been nominated for an Academy Award, three BAFTA TV Awards, an Emmy Award, two Laurence Olivier Awards, and a Golden Globe Award. She ...

. Film roles include Phillip Patel in ''MI 9-2-5'' directed by ''

Blackadder ''Blackadder'' is a series of four Period piece, period British sitcoms - ''The Black Adder'', ''Blackadder II'', ''Blackadder the Third'' and ''Blackadder Goes Forth'' - plus several one-off instalments, which originally aired on BBC1 from 19 ...

'' director Richard Boden and Mikey in Elsa O'Tooles's ''

Blasted ''Blasted'' is the first play by the British author Sarah Kane. It was first performed in 1995 at the Royal Court Theatre Upstairs in London. Synopsis The play is set in an expensive hotel room in Leeds. Ian, a foul-mouthed middle-aged tablo ...

'' nominated for best short at both

Cannes film festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...

and

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...

. In 2013 Aldridge starred as Spencer in the multi nominated British

Broadcast Awards ''Broadcast'' is a monthly magazine for the United Kingdom television and radio industry, owned by Media Business Insight. History ''Broadcast'' was started in 1973 by Rod Allen, who went on to work at LWT, HTV and HarperCollinsInteractive. ...

online comedy series '' The Support Group'' produced by the creators of ''

The Inbetweeners ''The Inbetweeners'' is a British coming-of-age television sitcom, which originally aired on E4 from 2008 to 2010 and was created and written by Damon Beesley and Iain Morris. The series follows the misadventures of suburban teenager Willi ...

'' -

Bwark Productions ''The Inbetweeners'' is a British coming-of-age television sitcom, which originally aired on E4 from 2008 to 2010 and was created and written by Damon Beesley and Iain Morris. The series follows the misadventures of suburban teenager William ...

. Most recently he has appeared as Mark Thomas in the groundbreaking

drama '' This is Going to Hurt'' written by Adam Kay and starring

Ben Wishaw Benjamin John Whishaw (born 14 October 1980) is an English actor. He has received various accolades, including three British Academy Television Awards, two Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe. Beginning his career in the 2000s, he played the title ...

Theatre

In the West End, Aldridge created the role of Barry in the original West End cast of

Made in Dagenham ''Made in Dagenham'' is a 2010 British comedy-drama film directed by Nigel Cole, written by William Ivory, and starring Sally Hawkins, Bob Hoskins, Miranda Richardson, Geraldine James, Rosamund Pike, Andrea Riseborough, Jaime Winstone, ...

at the

Adelphi Theatre The Adelphi Theatre is a West End theatre, located on the Strand in the City of Westminster, central London. The present building is the fourth on the site. The theatre has specialised in comedy and musical theatre, and today it is a receiv ...

directed by

Rupert Goold Rupert Goold (born 18 February 1972) is an English director who works primarily in theatre. He is the artistic director of the Almeida Theatre, and was the artistic director of Headlong Theatre Company (2005–2013). Since 2010, Goold has be ...

and starring

Gemma Arterton Gemma Christina Arterton (born 2 February 1986) is a British actress. After her stage debut in Shakespeare's ''Love's Labour's Lost'' at the Globe Theatre (2007), Arterton made her feature-film debut in the comedy '' St Trinian's'' (2007). She p ...

. Written by

Richard Bean Richard Anthony Bean (born 11 June 1956) is an English playwright. Early years Born in East Hull, Bean was educated at Hull Grammar School, and then studied social psychology at Loughborough University, graduating with a 2:1 BSc Hons. He the ...

, with music written by

James Bond The ''James Bond'' franchise focuses on James Bond (literary character), the titular character, a fictional Secret Intelligence Service, British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels ...

and ''

Independence Day An independence day is an annual event memorialization, commemorating the anniversary of a nation's independence or Sovereign state, statehood, usually after ceasing to be a group or part of another nation or state, or after the end of a milit ...

'' composer

David Arnold David Arnold (born 23 January 1962) is an English film composer whose credits include scoring five James Bond films (1997-2008), as well as ''Stargate'' (1994), ''Independence Day'' (1996), ''Godzilla'' (1998), '' Shaft'' (2000), '' 2 Fast 2 F ...

and lyrics by

Richard Thomas Richard Thomas or Dick Thomas may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Dick Thomas (singer) (1915–2003), American singing cowboy and actor * Richard Thomas (actor) (born 1951), American actor * Richard Thomas (author) (born 1967), America ...

. In 2016 Aldridge joined the cast of the record breaking musical ''

Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' (, ) is a 19th-century French literature, French Epic (genre), epic historical fiction, historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published on 31 March 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. '' ...

'' at the Queens Theatre playing the role of Grantaire. He was also part of the original London cast of the

Cole Porter Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became Standard (music), standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway the ...

musical ''

High Society High society, sometimes simply Society, is the behavior and lifestyle of people with the highest levels of wealth, power, fame and social status. It includes their related affiliations, social events and practices. Upscale social clubs were open ...

'', which starred

Jerry Hall Jerry Faye Hall (born July 2, 1956) is an American model and actress. She began modeling in the 1970s and became one of the most sought-after models in the world. She transitioned into acting, appearing in the 1989 film ''Batman''. Hall was the ...

, at the

Shaftesbury Theatre The Shaftesbury Theatre is a West End theatre, located in Shaftesbury Avenue, in the London Borough of Camden. It opened in 1911 as the New Prince's Theatre, with a capacity of 2,500. The current capacity is 1,416. The title "Shaftesbury Theat ...

, after appearing in the UK tour. Also in the West End, he appeared alongside

Sheridan Smith Sheridan Caroline Sian Smith (born 25 June 1981) is an English actress and singer. She came to prominence after playing a variety of characters in sitcoms, including '' The Royle Family'' (1999–2000), ''Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Cri ...

and

Michael Medwin Michael Hugh Medwin (18 July 1923 – 26 February 2020) was an English actor and film producer. Life and career Medwin was born in London. He was educated at Canford School, Dorset, and the Institute Fischer, Montreux, Switzerland. He first ...

in the 2006 season at the

Open Air Theatre Regent's Park Open Air Theatre is an open-air theatre in Regent's Park in central London, established in 1932. Originally known for its Shakespearean productions, the theatre now features a wide variety of performances, including musicals, ope ...

Regent's Park Regent's Park (officially The Regent's Park) is one of the Royal Parks of London. It occupies in north-west Inner London, administratively split between the City of Westminster and the London Borough of Camden, Borough of Camden (and historical ...

playing

Francis Flute Francis Flute is a character in William Shakespeare's ''A Midsummer Night's Dream''. His occupation is a bellows-mender. He is forced to play the female role of Thisbe in " Pyramus and Thisbe", a play-within-the-play which is performed for Thes ...

in ''

A Midsummer Night's Dream ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a Comedy (drama), comedy play written by William Shakespeare in about 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One s ...

'', Curtis in ''

The Taming of the Shrew ''The Taming of the Shrew'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1590 and 1592. The play begins with a framing device, often referred to as the induction, in which a mischievous nobleman tricks a drunke ...

'' and Pup in ''Babe''. Aldridge played the Munchkin Mayor in the

RSC RSC may refer to: Arts * Royal Shakespeare Company, a British theatre company * Reduced Shakespeare Company, a touring American acting troupe * Richmondshire Subscription Concerts, a music society in Richmond, North Yorkshire, England * Rock Ste ...

production of ''

The Wizard of Oz ''The Wizard of Oz'' is a 1939 American Musical film, musical fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM). Based on the 1900 novel ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' by L. Frank Baum, it was primarily directed by Victor Fleming, who left pro ...

'' and also 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 ...

, created the role of Bruce Bogtrotter in the development workshops of ''

Matilda Matilda or Mathilda may refer to: Animals * Matilda (chicken) (1990–2006), World's Oldest Living Chicken record holder * Mathilda (gastropod), ''Mathilda'' (gastropod), a genus of gastropods in the family Mathildidae * Matilda (horse) (1824–1 ...

'' with music written by Australian comedian

Tim Minchin Timothy David Minchin Order of Australia#Levels of membership, AM (born 7 October 1975) is an Australian comedian, actor, writer, musician, poet, composer, and songwriter. Minchin has released six CDs, five DVDs, and live comedy shows that he ...

. On tour, Aldridge played Billy Kostecki in the first ever national tour of the musical ''

Dirty Dancing ''Dirty Dancing'' is a 1987 American romance film, romantic drama film, drama Dance in film, dance film written by Eleanor Bergstein, produced by Linda Gottlieb, and directed by Emile Ardolino. Starring Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey, it tel ...

''. He also played

Roger Parslow This is a list of characters from the two Philip Pullman trilogies ''His Dark Materials'' and ''The Book of Dust''. Introduced in ''Northern Lights'' Lyra Belacqua Lyra Belacqua, later known as Lyra Silvertongue, is the central character of ...

in the National Tour of the

Philip Pullman Sir Philip Nicholas Outram Pullman (born 19 October 1946) is an English writer. He is best known for the fantasy trilogy ''His Dark Materials''. The first volume, ''Northern Lights'' (1995), won the Carnegie Medal

trilogy ''

His Dark Materials ''His Dark Materials'' is a trilogy of fantasy novels by Philip Pullman consisting of '' Northern Lights'' (1995; published as ''The Golden Compass'' in North America), '' The Subtle Knife'' (1997), and '' The Amber Spyglass'' (2000). It follo ...

'',

Dickon Dickon is an English masculine given name. The name "Dickon" is derived from the old English name for Richard. Unlike Richard, Dickon is rarely shortened to Dick or Dickie, as it is already commonly considered a short form of the same name. The ...

in the

West Yorkshire Playhouse Leeds Playhouse is a theatre in the city centre of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It opened in 1990 in the Quarry Hill area of the city as the West Yorkshire Playhouse, successor to the original Leeds Playhouse, and was rebranded in June 2018 ...

production of ''

The Secret Garden ''The Secret Garden'' is a children's novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett first published in book form in 1911, after serialisation in ''The American Magazine'' (November 1910 – August 1911). Set in England, it is seen as a classic of English c ...

'' as well as the role of Tootles in the original cast of George Stiles and

Anthony Drewe Anthony Drewe is a British lyricist and book writer for Broadway and West End musicals. He is best known for his collaborations with George Stiles. Education He was educated at Maidstone Grammar School between 1974–1980. He studied Zoolog ...

's musical adaptation of J.M Barrie's ''

Peter Pan Peter Pan is a fictional character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie. A free-spirited and mischievous young boy who can fly and never grows up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood having adventures on the mythical ...

'' at the

Birmingham Repertory Theatre Birmingham Repertory Theatre, commonly called Birmingham Rep or just The Rep, is a producing theatre based on Centenary Square in Birmingham, England. Founded by Barry Jackson, it is the longest-established of Britain's building-based theatre ...

and the

, for which he features on the original cast recording album. He also appears on the original cast recording of

''. In 2017, Aldridge took on the role of

in the West End play

at the

Palace Theatre, London The Palace Theatre is a West End theatre in the City of Westminster in London. Its red-brick facade dominates the west side of Cambridge Circus, London, Cambridge Circus behind a small plaza near the intersection of Shaftesbury Avenue and Chari ...

. That year

was nominated for a record breaking eleven

Laurence Olivier Awards The Laurence Olivier Awards, or simply The Olivier Awards, are presented annually by the Society of London Theatre to recognize excellence in professional theatre in London. The awards were originally known as the Society of West End Theatre Aw ...

, winning nine. Making it the most awarded and most nominated show in the history of the

. A record it still holds today. Thomas Aldridge remains one of the longest serving cast members in the shows history.

Commercials

Aldridge has featured in numerous commercials, including those for

Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun. It is also known as the "Red Planet", because of its orange-red appearance. Mars is a desert-like rocky planet with a tenuous carbon dioxide () atmosphere. At the average surface level the atmosph ...

Gamestation Gamestation was a chain of retail shops in the United Kingdom selling used and new video games. It was the second largest specialist video game retailer in the United Kingdom until it was acquired by Game in May 2007, a group which owns many d ...

and most notably fronting the adverts for

Paddy Power Paddy Power is an Irish gambling company founded in 1988. Its product offering includes sports betting, online casino, online poker, and online bingo. Business operations are led from its headquarters in Dublin, alongside a satellite office ...

throughout 2011 and 2012.

References

External links

*
Bio at Birmingham Rep
*

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Aldridge, Thomas 1982 births Alumni of the Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts English male television actors Living people People from Great Dunmow Male actors from Essex Actors from Uttlesford