Tommaso Antonio Conti (born 22 November 1941) is a Scottish actor. Conti has received numerous accolades including a

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...

and a

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

as well as nominations for an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

, a

BAFTA Award The British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTAs or BAFTA Awards, is an annual film award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to honour the best British and international contributions to f ...

and two

Golden Globe Awards The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual Awards ceremony, award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally ...

. He won the

Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play The Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play is an honor presented at the Tony Awards, a ceremony established in 1947 as the Antoinette Perry Awards for Excellence in Theatre, to actors for quality leading roles in a Broadway ...

and the Laurence Olivier Award for Actor of the Year in a New Play in role in '' Whose Life Is It Anyway?'' which he performed on Broadway and the West End in 1978 and 1979. He also directed the Frank D. Gilroy play ''Last Licks'' (1979) on Broadway. Conti returned to the West End portraying

Jeffrey Bernard Jeffrey Joseph Bernard (; 27 May 1932 – 4 September 1997) was an English journalist, best known for his weekly column "Low Life" in ''The Spectator'' magazine, and also notorious for a feckless and chaotic career and life of alcohol abus ...

in the

Keith Waterhouse Keith Spencer Waterhouse Order of British Empire, CBE (6 February 1929 – 4 September 2009) was a British novelist and newspaper columnist and the writer of many television series. He was also a noted arbiter of newspaper style and journalisti ...

play ''

Jeffrey Bernard Is Unwell ''Jeffrey Bernard Is Unwell'' is a play by Keith Waterhouse about real-life journalist Jeffrey Bernard. Bernard was still alive at the time the play was first performed in the West End in 1989. Background Bernard wrote the "Low Life" column in ...

'' (1989). Conti received an

Academy Award for Best Actor The Academy Award for Best Actor is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It has been awarded since the 1st Academy Awards to an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance in a leading ...

nomination for '' Reuben, Reuben'' (1983). Conti also acted in such films as ''

The Duellists ''The Duellists'' is a 1977 British historical drama film directed by Ridley Scott and produced by David Puttnam. Set in France during the Napoleonic Wars, the film focuses on a series of duels between two rival officers, the obsessive Bonapar ...

'' (1977), ''

Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence , also known as , is a 1983 war film co-written and directed by Nagisa Ōshima, co-written by Paul Mayersberg, and produced by Jeremy Thomas. The film is based on the experiences of Sir Laurens van der Post (portrayed by Tom Conti as Lt. Col. J ...

'' (1983), '' Saving Grace'' (1986), '' The Quick and the Dead'' (1987), '' Shirley Valentine'' (1989), ''

The Tempest ''The Tempest'' is a Shakespeare's plays, play by William Shakespeare, probably written in 1610–1611, and thought to be one of the last plays that he wrote alone. After the first scene, which takes place on a ship at sea during a tempest, th ...

'' (2010), ''

The Dark Knight Rises ''The Dark Knight Rises'' is a 2012 superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan, who co-wrote the screenplay with his brother Jonathan Nolan, and the story with David S. Goyer. Based on the DC Comics character Batman, it is the final instal ...

'' (2012), and ''

Paddington 2 ''Paddington 2'' is a 2017 live-action animated comedy film directed by Paul King and written by King and Simon Farnaby, based on the stories of Paddington Bear, created by Michael Bond (to whom the film is also dedicated, Bond having died th ...

'' (2017). He portrayed

Albert Einstein Albert Einstein (14 March 187918 April 1955) was a German-born theoretical physicist who is best known for developing the theory of relativity. Einstein also made important contributions to quantum mechanics. His mass–energy equivalence f ...

Christopher Nolan Sir Christopher Edward Nolan (born 30 July 1970) is a British and American filmmaker. Known for his Cinema of the United States, Hollywood Blockbuster (entertainment), blockbusters with complex storytelling, he is considered a leading filmma ...

's '' Oppenheimer'' (2023).

Early life

Conti was born on 22 November 1941 in

Paisley, Renfrewshire Paisley ( ; ; ) is a large town situated in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. Located north of the Gleniffer Braes, the town borders the city of Glasgow to the east, and straddles the banks of the White Cart Water, a tributary of the River ...

, the son of hairdressers Mary McGoldrick and Alfonso Conti. After being raised

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

, he described himself as

antireligious Antireligion is opposition to religion or traditional religious beliefs and practices. It involves opposition to organized religion, religious practices or religious institutions. The term ''antireligion'' has also been used to describe oppos ...

in 2011. His father was Italian, while his mother was born and raised in Scotland to Irish parents. Conti was educated at independent Catholic boys' school Hamilton Park

St Aloysius' College, Glasgow St Aloysius' College is a Public school (UK), selective fee-paying, Private schools in the United Kingdom, private, Society of Jesus, Jesuit day school in Glasgow, Scotland. It was founded in 1859 by the Jesuits, who previously staffed the coll ...

; and at the

Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (), formerly the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama () is a conservatoire of dance, drama, music, production, and film in Glasgow, Scotland. It is a member of the Federation of Drama Schools. Founde ...

Career

Conti is a theatre, film, and television actor. He began working with the Dundee Repertory in 1959. He appeared on Broadway in '' Whose Life Is It Anyway?'' in 1979, and in London, he played the lead in ''

'' at the

Garrick Theatre The Garrick Theatre is a West End theatre, located in Charing Cross Road, in the City of Westminster, named after the stage actor David Garrick. It opened in 1889 with ''The Profligate'', a play by Arthur Wing Pinero, and another Pinero play, ...

. Besides taking the leading role in the TV versions of

Frederic Raphael Frederic Michael Raphael Royal Society of Literature, FRSL (born 14 August 1931) is an American-born British novelist, biographer, journalist and Academy Awards, Oscar-winning screenwriter, known for writing the screenplays for Darling (1965 fi ...

's '' The Glittering Prizes'' and

Alan Ayckbourn Sir Alan Ayckbourn (born 12 April 1939) is a prolific British playwright and director. As of 2025, he has written and produced 90 full-length plays in Scarborough and London and was, between 1972 and 2009, the artistic director of the Stephen ...

's '' The Norman Conquests'', Conti appeared in the " Princess and the Pea" episode of the family television series ''

Faerie Tale Theatre ''Faerie Tale Theatre'' (also known as ''Shelley Duvall's Faerie Tale Theatre'') is an American award-winning live-action fairytale fantasy drama anthology television series created and presented by actress Shelley Duvall. The series originally ...

'', guest-starred on ''

Friends ''Friends'' is an American television sitcom created by David Crane (producer), David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994, to May 6, 2004, lasting List of Friends episodes, ten seasons. With an ensemble cast ...

'' and '' Cosby'', and played opposite

Nigel Hawthorne Sir Nigel Barnard Hawthorne (5 April 1929 – 26 December 2001) was an English actor. He is known for his stage acting and his portrayal of Sir Humphrey Appleby, the permanent secretary in the 1980s sitcom ''Yes Minister'' and the Cabinet Secre ...

in a long-running series of

Vauxhall Astra The Vauxhall Astra is a compact car/small family car (C-segment) that has been sold by Vauxhall Motors, Vauxhall since 1980. Over its eight generations, it has been made at several GM/Opel/Stellantis plants around Europe - however most versio ...

car advertisements in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

from the early to the mid-1990s. Conti has appeared in such films as ''

'', '' Reuben, Reuben'', '' American Dreamer'', '' Shirley Valentine'', ''

Miracles A miracle is an event that is inexplicable by natural or scientific lawsOne dictionary define"Miracle"as: "A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divin ...

'', '' Saving Grace'', '' Dangerous Parking'', and '' Voices Within: The Lives of Truddi Chase''. Conti's novel ''The Doctor'', about a former secret operations pilot for intelligence services, was published in 2004. According to the foreword, his friend

Lynsey De Paul Lynsey de Paul (born Lyndsey Monckton Rubin; 11 June 1948 – 1 October 2014) was an English singer-songwriter and record producer. After initially writing hits for others, she had her own chart hits in the UK and Europe in the 1970s, starting ...

recommended the manuscript to publisher Jeremy Robson. He appeared 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 ...

sitcom '' Miranda'' alongside

Miranda Hart Miranda Katherine Hart Dyke (born 14 December 1972) is an English actress, comedian and writer. She has won three Royal Television Society awards, four British Comedy Awards, and four BAFTA nominations for her self-driven semi-autobiographical ...

and

Patricia Hodge Patricia Ann Hodge (born 29 September 1946) is an English actress. She is known on-screen for playing Phyllida Erskine-Brown in '' Rumpole of the Bailey'' (1978–1992), Jemima Shore in '' Jemima Shore Investigates'' (1983), Penny in '' Miranda ...

, as Miranda's father, in the 2010 seasonal episode "The Perfect Christmas". Most recently he portrayed

's 2023 thriller-drama ''Oppenheimer''. The film had one of the most successful opening weekends of 2023, and received wide critical acclaim.

Personal life

Conti has been married to Scottish actress Kara Wilson since 1967 and their daughter Nina is an actress and performs as a

ventriloquist Ventriloquism or ventriloquy is an act of stagecraft in which a person (a ventriloquist) speaks in such a way that it seems like their voice is coming from a different location, usually through a puppet known as a "dummy". The act of ventrilo ...

. According to Nina, her parents have an open marriage.Tom Conti: there are worse things than being unfaithful
a 12 December 2009, article from ''

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British Sunday newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of N ...

'' Conti is a resident of

Hampstead Hampstead () is an area in London, England, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, located mainly in the London Borough of Camden, with a small part in the London Borough of Barnet. It borders Highgate and Golders Green to the north, Belsiz ...

in northwest London, having lived in the area for several decades. Conti was part of a campaign against the opening of a

Tesco Tesco plc () is a British multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in the United Kingdom at its head offices in Welwyn Garden City, England. The company was founded by Jack Cohen (businessman), Sir Jack Cohen in ...

supermarket in nearby

Belsize Park Belsize Park is a residential area of Hampstead in the London Borough of Camden, in the Inner London, inner North West London, north-west of London, England. The residential streets are lined with Georgian and Victorian villas and mews houses. ...

. Conti put his Hampstead house up for sale in 2015 for £17.5 million after his long-running opposition to the building plans of his neighbour, the footballer

Thierry Henry Thierry Daniel Henry (; born 17 August 1977) is a French professional football coach, pundit, sports broadcaster and former player. He is considered one of the greatest players of all time and widely regarded as the greatest player in Premi ...

. Conti had also opposed development plans for Hampstead's Grove Lodge, the 18th-century

Grade II listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

former home of novelist

John Galsworthy John Galsworthy (; 14 August 1867 – 31 January 1933) was an English novelist and playwright. He is best known for his trilogy of novels collectively called '' The Forsyte Saga'', and two later trilogies, ''A Modern Comedy'' and ''End of th ...

. Conti participated in a genetic-mapping project conducted by the company ScotlandsDNA (now called BritainsDNA). In 2012, Conti and the company announced that Conti shares a

genetic marker A genetic marker is a gene or DNA sequence with a known location on a chromosome that can be used to identify individuals or species. It can be described as a variation (which may arise due to mutation or alteration in the genomic loci) that can ...

with

Napoléon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

. Conti said that he "burst out laughing" when told he was related to Napoléon on his father's side.

Political views

Conti considered running as the

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

candidate in the

2008 London mayoral election The 2008 London mayoral election for the office of Mayor of London, England, was held on 1 May 2008. Conservative Party (UK), Conservative candidate Boris Johnson defeated incumbent Labour Party (UK), Labour Mayor Ken Livingstone. It was the t ...

, but did not, and in the following election in 2012, he supported unsuccessful independent candidate Siobhan Benita. In the run up to the 2015 general election, Conti said in an interview published in several newspapers that he was once a Labour supporter but had come to view socialism as a “religion” with a "vicious, hostile spirit".

Work

Film

* ''

Galileo Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de' Galilei (15 February 1564 – 8 January 1642), commonly referred to as Galileo Galilei ( , , ) or mononymously as Galileo, was an Italian astronomer, physicist and engineer, sometimes described as a poly ...

'' (1975) as Andrea Sarti (man) * ''

Slade in Flame ''Slade in Flame'' (also known as ''Flame'') is a 1975 musical film starring the British rock band Slade. It was directed by Richard Loncraine and written by Andrew Birkin with additional dialogue by Dave Humphries. The film includes supporting ...

'' (1975) as Robert Seymour * ''

'' (1977) as Dr. Jacquin * '' Full Circle'' (1977) as Mark Berkeley * ''Eclipse'' (1977) as Tom / Geoffrey * ''

'' (1983) as Col. John Lawrence * '' Reuben, Reuben'' (1983) as Gowan McGland * '' American Dreamer'' (1984) as Alan McMann * ''

'' (1986) as Roger * '' Saving Grace'' (1985) as Pope Leo XIV * '' Heavenly Pursuits'' (1986) as Vic Mathews * '' The Quick and The Dead'' (1987) as Duncan McKaskel * '' Beyond Therapy'' (1987) as Stuart * '' Two Brothers Running'' (1988) as Moses Bornstein * '' That Summer of White Roses'' (1989) as Andrija Gavrilovic * '' Shirley Valentine'' (1989) as Costas * ''Caccia Alla Vedova'' (1991) as Conte Angelo di Bosconero * ''

Someone Else's America ''Someone Else's America'' ( sr-Cyrl, Туђа Америка) is a 1995 drama film directed by Goran Paskaljević. The film presents the story of two people, one from Spain, the other from Montenegro, both living in Brooklyn. The film won the G ...

'' (1995) as Alonso * ''Sub Down'' (1997) as Harry Rheinhartdt * '' Something to Believe In'' (1998) as Monsignor Calogero * ''Out of Control'' (1998) as Eddie * ''

Don't Go Breaking My Heart "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" is a duet by English musician Elton John and English singer Kiki Dee, released by The Rocket Record Company on 25 June 1976. It was written by John with Bernie Taupin under the pseudonyms "Ann Orson" and "Carte B ...

'' (1999) as Dr. Fiedler * ''The Enemy'' (2001) as Insp. John Cregar * '' Derailed'' (2005) as Eliot Firth * ''Rabbit Fever'' (2006) as Prof Rosenberg * '' Paid'' (2006) as Rudi * ''Almost Heaven'' (2006) as Bert Gordon * '' O Jerusalem'' (2006) as Sir Cunningham * '' Dangerous Parking'' (2007) as Doc Baker * ''Deeply Irresponsible'' (2007) as Nate * '' A Closed Book'' (2009) as Sir Paul * ''

'' (2010) as Gonzalo * ''Rekindle'' (2011) as Dr. Monty Adams * '' Streetdance 2'' (2012) as Manu * '' Run for Your Wife'' (2012) * ''

'' (2012) as Prisoner * ''City Slacker'' (2012) as Ray * ''

'' (2017) as Judge Gerald Biggleswade * '' Oppenheimer'' (2023) as

Television

* ''Boy Meets Girl'' (1969) as Frank * ''Thirty-Minute Theatre - Revolutions: Fidel Castro'' (1970) as

Che Guevara Ernesto "Che" Guevara (14th May 1928 – 9 October 1967) was an Argentines, Argentine Communist revolution, Marxist revolutionary, physician, author, Guerrilla warfare, guerrilla leader, diplomat, and Military theory, military theorist. A majo ...

* ''

Adam Smith Adam Smith (baptised 1723 – 17 July 1790) was a Scottish economist and philosopher who was a pioneer in the field of political economy and key figure during the Scottish Enlightenment. Seen by some as the "father of economics"——— or ...

'' (1972) as Dr. Calvi * '' Z Cars'' (1973) as Gordon Morley * ''

Barlow at Large ''Barlow at Large'', later ''Barlow'', is a British police procedural television programme broadcast in the 1970s, starring Stratford Johns in the titular role. Johns had previously played Barlow in the ''Z-Cars'', '' Softly, Softly'' and '' ...

'' (1973) as Myers * '' Sam'' (1974) as David Ellis * ''

Fall of Eagles Autumn, also known as fall (especially in US & Canada), is one of the four temperate seasons on Earth. Outside the tropics, autumn marks the transition from summer to winter, in September (Northern Hemisphere) or March (Southern Hemisphere ...

'' (1974) as Glazkov * '' Thriller'' (1975) as Bruno Varella * ''

Madame Bovary ''Madame Bovary: Provincial Manners'' (; ), commonly known as simply ''Madame Bovary'', is the début novel by France, French writer Gustave Flaubert, originally published in 1856 and 1857. The eponymous character, Emma Bovary, lives beyond he ...

'' (1975, TV mini-series) as Charles Bovary * '' The Glittering Prizes'' (1976, TV mini-series) as Adam Morris * '' The Norman Conquests'' (1977, TV mini-series) as Norman * ''

Blade on the Feather ''Blade on the Feather'' is a television drama by Dennis Potter, broadcast by ITV on 19 October 1980 as the first in a loosely connected trilogy of plays exploring language and betrayal. A pastiche of the John Le Carré spy thriller and tran ...

'' (1980, TV film) as Daniel Young * ''The Wall'' (1982, TV film) as Dolek Berson * ''

'' (1984, " Princess and the Pea") as Prince Richard * '' Nazi Hunter: The Beate Klarsfeld Story'' (1986, TV film) as Serge Klarsfeld * ''

The Dumb Waiter ''The Dumb Waiter'' is a one-act play by Harold Pinter written in 1957. Plot Two Hitman, hit-men, Ben and Gus, are waiting in a basement room for their assignment. As the play begins, Ben, the senior member of the team, is reading a newspaper ...

'' (1987) * '' The Quick and the Dead'' (1987, TV film) as Duncan McKaskel * ''

Roman Holiday ''Roman Holiday'' is a 1953 American romantic comedy film directed and produced by William Wyler. It stars Audrey Hepburn as a princess out to see Rome on her own and Gregory Peck as a reporter. Hepburn won an Academy Award for Best Actress f ...

'' (1987, TV film) as Joe Bradley * ''Fatal Judgement'' (1988, TV film) as Pat Piscitelli * '' Voices Within: The Lives of Truddi Chase'' (1990, TV film) as Doctor 'Stanley' Phillips * '' The Old Boy Network'' (1992) as Lucas Frye * '' The Wright Verdicts'' (1995) as Charles Wright * ''The Inheritance'' (1997, TV film) as Henry Hamilton * ''

'' (1998, " The One After Ross Says Rachel", and "

The One with Ross's Wedding "The One with Ross's Wedding" is the two-part fourth-season finale of the American television sitcom ''Friends'', comprising the 96th and 97th episodes of the series overall. Originally broadcast by NBC on May 7, 1998, the episode features Ross ...

") as Stephen Waltham * '' Cosby'' (1999) as

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

* '' Deadline'' (2000–2001) as Si Beekman * '' I Was a Rat'' (2001, TV mini-series) as Bob Jones * '' Andy Pandy'' (2002) as Narrator (voice) * ''

DNA Deoxyribonucleic acid (; DNA) is a polymer composed of two polynucleotide chains that coil around each other to form a double helix. The polymer carries genetic instructions for the development, functioning, growth and reproduction of al ...

'' (2004) as Joe Donovan * ''Four Seasons'' (2008–2009) as Charles Combe * '' Lark Rise to Candleford'' (2010) as William Bourne / Mr. Reppington * '' Miranda'' (2010) as Charles * ''

Parents A parent is either the progenitor of a child or, in humans, it can refer to a caregiver or legal guardian, generally called an adoptive parent or step-parent. Parents who are progenitors are first-degree relatives and have 50% genetic meet. ...

'' (2012) as Len Miller * '' Rosemary's Baby'' (2014) * ''

Doc Martin ''Doc Martin'' is a British medical comedy-drama television series starring Martin Clunes as Doctor Martin Ellingham. It was created by Dominic Minghella developing the character of Dr Martin Bamford from the Nigel Cole comedy film '' Saving ...

'' (2019) as Dr Bernard Newton (Series 9 episode 8)

Stage

* ''

'' * '' Whose Life is it Anyway?'' * '' Savages'' * '' The Devil's Disciple'' * '' They're Playing Our Song'' * '' The Real Thing'' * '' An Italian Straw Hat'' (1986) * '' The Ride Down Mt. Morgan'' * '' Chapter Two'' * '' Jesus, My Boy'' (1998–99, 2009) * '' Present Laughter'' * ''

Romantic Comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a sub-genre of comedy and Romance novel, romance fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount all obstacles. Ro ...

'' * ''Rough Justice'' (2012–13) * '' Twelve Angry Men'' (2014)

Stage directing

*'' The Last of the Red Hot Lovers'' *'' Present Laughter'' *'' Otherwise Engaged''

Awards

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Conti, Tom 1941 births Living people 20th-century Scottish male actors 21st-century Scottish male actors Alumni of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland 21st-century Scottish novelists Former Roman Catholics Laurence Olivier Award winners Male actors from Paisley, Renfrewshire Scottish atheists Scottish male film actors Scottish male stage actors Scottish male television actors Scottish people of French descent Scottish people of Irish descent Scottish people of Italian descent Tony Award winners Writers from Paisley, Renfrewshire 20th-century atheists 21st-century atheists Actors from the London Borough of Camden People from Hampstead Male actors from London