Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Thursday Thirteen - 120 - 13 Characters Played by Richard Armitage

This is a Happy Birthday shout-out to one of my favorite actors. On Saturday, Aug. 22nd, he'll celebrate his 38th birthday.

Writers everywhere will celebrate the man who has inspired countless characters in their own fiction - including mine.

Here's what Richard had to say recently on the subject of being our muse:

"Much as I would love to take credit for ‘launching writing careers’ the credit is Gaskell’s [for creating the character of John Thornton.]" - Richard Armitage at Vulpes Libris

Methinks he is mistaken...

Here's a look at 13 roles he's played.



1 - North & South - Victorian-era mill owner John Thornton








2 - BBC's Robin Hood - Medieval strongarm for the Sheriff of Nottingham, Guy of Gisborne








3 - Spooks / MI-5 - Returned prisoner of the Russians, British spy Lucas North







4 - The Vicar of Dibley - 'Townie bastard' Harry Kennedy







5 - Spark house - Painfully shy farmhand John Standring







6 - The Impressionists - Painter Young Claude Monet







7 - Between the Sheets - Probation officer Paul Andrews, under investigation for inappropriate conduct with a client







8 - Cold Feet - Flirty lifeguard Lee Richards







9 - George Gently - 50's biker Ricky Deeming







10 - Ultimate Force - Captain Ian McAlwaine






11 - Inspector Lynley Mysteries - In Divine Proportion - Recovering upper-class gambler Philip Turner







12 - Shakes peare Retold / MacBeth - Head waiter Peter Macduff







13 - CBeebies - I'm Not Going Out There narrator



Janet says I loved The Vicar of Dibley!!! And I remember that episode :-)

Americanising Desi says Your #1 makes me drooooooooooool!

Sandy Carlson says And a handsome dude he is! I hope he has a happy.

23 comments:

Janet said...

I loved The Vicar of Dibley!!! And I remember that episode :-)

Betty said...

Wow! Thanks for sharing! Richard Armitage is one of those actors whose faces I recognize, but I never know their names.

He looks great in the short clips you posted though! I'm going to start looking out for his works! Thanks!

jenn said...

I have never heard of him...I need to check out some of these.

life's journey said...

wow that is amazing i need to check him out...Happy TT! Am playing too.

Shelley Munro said...

He's certainly a versatile actor. We watched the Vicar of Dibley recently. The wedding always makes me laugh. I like him in Robin Hood too.

Americanising Desi said...

your #1 makes me drooooooooooool!

Dear God, I love YOU!

SandyCarlson said...

And a handsome dude he is! I hope he has a happy.

Akelamalu said...

Such a fabulously versatile actor and so dishy! I loved him in Spooks. :)

Miranda said...

Whoa, he's cute. Why have I never heard of him before? I've never even heard of these movies. I must be under a rock LOL.

Paige Tyler said...

I don't think I've ever heard of him! LOL! He's good looking!

*hugs*
Paige

My TT is at http://paigetylertheauthor.blogspot.com/

HeatherK said...

fascinating -where do you find the time to put together such fantastic blogging.

Amy Ruttan said...

That VofD episode was the best.

"Townie bastard." Alice stealing his coffee urn and other assorted electric appliances.

And of course the proposal. LOL! The best!

Susan Helene Gottfried said...

Is it possible I've not seen a single movie of his? That idea scares me.

Mia Celeste said...

I've missed Richard Armitage in some of those listed. Think I'll have to make a trip to video library. Happy TT!

Anna Campbell said...

Julia, wow, what a way for me to start a hard day at the computer. Um, do you think he does house calls? Lovely pics! Lovely tribute. Happy birthday, dear Richard, happy birthday to you!

Actually do you remember the 'Shoulda been me' scene from the Vicar of D? Absolutely hilarious!

Cate Masters said...

Oh, Julia - what a lovely feast for the eyes! And ears, I love his accent. I didn't know he had such a wide array of characters, very interesting. Wish he'd read me a bedtime story! Tee hee.

Julia Phillips Smith said...

Janet - When Dawn French realizes he's asking her to marry him, I nearly expire from laughing too hard. Every time I watch it!

Betty - Richard Armitage is too wonderful not to share.

Jenn - All of these productions are British television productions. I gravitate toward British shows. I find them so well-written.

Life's Journey - Do check him out. You'll wonder what you ever did before discovering him!

Shelley - It wasn't hard to find examples of his wide range. I do find he plays gray characters a lot - not the hero, not the villain, but somewhere in between.

Americanising Desi - I love #1, too! It was the first thing I saw with Richard in it.

Sandy - Very handsome dude! ;-)

Akelamalu - Definitely dishy! I love that word. As handsome as he is, it's his voice that really does it to me.

Just Me Again - This is all British television. Spooks is called MI-5 in North America and airs on BBC America. The other series or made-for-television films are likely available through the library or Netflix or some other way of renting DVDs.

Paige Tyler - I'm sure he could give you some inspiration...

Heather - I knew I wanted to do this in time for his birthday, so I started it ahead of time. Did a little bit here, a little bit there.

Amy - The proposal nearly kills me with laughing every time I see it. When she runs all through the town, it's a killer.

Susan - He's been a British TV actor only, so far, except for a small film which I haven't seen. I tend to watch a lot of British telly. He can be very addictive...

Brenda ND - Get thee to the video library and enjoy!

Anna - I hope Richard's history of inspiring writers worked wonders for you today ;-)

Cate - He actually read four stories on that show. You can find them all on You Tube. Click here for the link.

Celticangel said...

Very cool! It makes me want to do something similar over at my personal blog at some point. (For...say...Christopher Eccleston) :)

Travis Cody said...

I found my BBC channel! Maybe I'll be able to check out some of this programming now.

Susan said...

*sigh*

a lovely tribute for a lovely actor and man. Be still, my heart! It's been a long time since anyone makes my knees go weak (other than my husband!) but Richard Armitage is one.

Wonderful job, Julia! And i got to see some clips I haven't seen before :-D

Now i have to go back and gaze at him some more *drool*

Jennifer McKenzie said...

It's amazing but I remember him in all those roles!
Excellent TT, Julia.
He's so handsome and an EXCELLENT actor.

Julia Phillips Smith said...

Celticangel - Christopher Eccleston has been in some really exceptional work.

Travis - I love my BBC Canada channel. Once having been a colony of Britain has its perks. It means we get a lot of British programming on CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation - CBC purchases the rights to broadcast, which is cheaper than producing original shows and strangely makes money available to produce Canadian shows. Ah, the joys of financing...) So I've always been able to enjoy top-notch British television, between CBC, American PBS and when I lived in Ontario, TVO.

Susan - Glad you made it over for the Richard fun!

Jennifer - He proves that you can be gorgeous AND talented. Lucky us!

Thomma Lyn said...

Excellent T13, Julia! Richard Armitage is very talented and versatile. :)