Stunning British actor Richard Armitage has starred in several Period Dramas. His rugged good looks, deep voice, charming personality and awesome acting ability have won him large numbers of fans (especially fangirls) over the last few years.
And today is his 40th birthday!
Take a look at some of his Period Drama roles:
John Thornton - North & South (2004)
His best role ever! I read the book before I watched the miniseries and he is the quintessential Mr. Thornton! And just look at that expression in the photo above!
Claude Monet in The Impressionists (2006)
This miniseries has a few inappropriate scenes and themes but Richard was good in it and the series depicts the lives of the Impressionist Painters fairly accurately.
Philip Durrant in Marple: Ordeal by Innocence (2007)
He was brilliant but after reading the book his character could have been so much better!
Guy of Gisborne in BBC TV series Robin Hood (2006-2009)
(I've never seen this series but some of my friends enjoy it)
Thorin Oakenshield in The Hobbit (filming)
I can't wait to see this!
Although I’m not a crazy fangirl, he does have a way of drawing the viewer in as they watch. I’d definitely be star struck if I saw him in real life! And after reading and loving North & South I was very pleased by his portrayal of hero John Thornton.
I really wish he could star as one of my favorite Jane Austen heroes but I can't think of an appropriate role for him right now.
Simply put, he is completely charming!
Which of Mr. Armitage's roles have you seen? Which is your favorite?
Can you think of a role in a Jane Austen story that would suit him?
Very Truly Your's,
20 comments:
I have not seen Richard Armitage act in any movie yet. But I really, really want to watch North and South. And I am so excited to see him act as Thorin in The Hobbit!
Firstly I LOVE the Margaret Hale signature! pure genius!!! hehe :)
I loved all the pictures that you had acompaning this post...I think I am almost all Armitaged-out...well for today haha :)
I loved him as Mr. Thornton because he just WAS Mr.Thornton. He was everything I imagined that the character in the book should be. He was great.
But...I also loved him as Guy. I thought that he really shows his acting talent in that series. I don't think it is easy to be loved as both a villian (Guy) and a hero (Thornton) so I admire him for that.
I would also love to see him portray a hero in a Jane Austen film adaptation. I always thought he could pull off a convincing Mr. Darcy but I wouldn't really want to see him do it, for some reason.
Mel
I've never seen him in any other films but North and South-- he is awesome as Mr. Thornton!!
I can't imagine Richard Armitage as a hobbit.
LOL
Richard Armitage is my favorite actor because of what an amazing actor he is! I love all the things that I have seen him in. I have been kind of wanting to see the Impressionists, but have not been sure. Thank you for the warning! If I get around to watching it I will keep that in mind!
I love Guy of Gisborne I have to say that I think that that is perhaps his best(it is a tie between Guy and Mr. Thornton), because Guy has so much depth of character and is such a wonderful compelling character that you cannot help like, and feel for.
I would love to see him in more period drama!
Elizabeth
Hey!
Great post!
I've seen him in North and South and he is totally charming. Going to watch more of his movies now, he is a good actor.
Ah! Forgot to include this in the last comment..Jane Austen role suiting him best would be Mr. Darcy from Pride and Prejudice!
@ella - he's actually going to be Thorin Oakenshield, a dwarf in the Hobbit. Trust in Peter Jackson and Richard, it will work.
Ohmygoodness, YES!! I don't usually get super excited over actors, but Richard Armitage is just one of those...those... I dunno...really awesome actors that I just like. :P One of the few I get really excited about. :-)
I've seen him as Mr. Thornton in "North and South" (who, I don't think I'd like so much except that Richard Armitage is so amazing ;-) ), and as the suicidal spy in Captain America (I was still sad when he died even though he was a bad guy :-P He had far too little screen time. :-P ) Come to think of it, that's all I've seen him in. Except that according to IMDb, he played an uncredited fighter pilot in Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace... hm... I'm gonna have to go back and re-watch that even though I absolutely hate that movie! ;-P
I can't WAIT for "The Hobbit"!!! I think he's going to be aMAzing as Thorin!! :-D :-D
I really liked RA in "Robin Hood" and "North and South." I am glad to have seen him in the latter first though as I don't like seeing an actor play a bad dude and then play a hero. =D
Jane Austen character, hmmm... would he be any good in "Persausion?"
I think he would make an excellent Willoughby (sp?) from sense and Sensibility, but he's too old now. :( Although it's not Jane Austen, I would LOVE to see him as Rochester. :) But in my opinion, no one can beat Toby Stephens.
Rachel
I Love, love, love Richard Armitage. So much so that I had to dedicate a page to him on my own blog. I first saw him in North & South when I streamed it on Netflix this past January. I have been a huge fan of Richard Armitage ever since. He is very talented and handsome.
I saw him in Robin Hood & Spooks, but did not really like either shows because of the violence. I only watched them because RA is in them, but I am done with doing that. I cannot bring myself to watch him in Strike Back. I just do not care for anything with violence in it. I wish RA would star in more period dramas and not always choose such violent films. The BBC should do a sequel to North & South. I would love to see John & Margaret get married and have a child.
I cannot picture Richard Armitage as a dwarf in The Hobbit, but I guess I will just have to trust Peter Jackson. The trailers do look good.
I would love to see Mr. Armitage as Mr. Darcy and that charatcer in Sense & Sensibility that ended up marrying Kate Winslet's character. I forgot their names at the moment.
I would have liked Pride & Prejudice so much better if Richard Armitage, rather than Colin Firth, had played Mr. Darcy. After reading the book, and watching Richard Armitage in North & South, I thought he would have fit the role of Darcy perfectly.
I loved reading this! Richard is probably my favorite actor ever :) I've seen him in North and South, Robin Hood (which is wonderful, by the way :) and Captain America. I'm so excited about the Hobbit, too! (Haha mostly because he's in it :)
Oh wouldn't it be wonderful to see him in a Jane Austen movie? ;) Of course I'd want him to play the hero, but he's usually more of a bad guy. I could kinda see him as Darcy since he plays a similar role in North and South....
Thanks for this post!
-mal
P.S. I just found your blog, and I'm going to go through and read your old posts, so that's why you're going to see a lot of comments on old posts :)
I just saw Richard in a modern BBC retelling of Shakespeare's Macbeth! He played MacDuff :)
-mal :)
Loved him in North And South. And obviously The Hobbit.
I would love to see him as Henry Tilney in Northanger Abbey:)
I just found you blog and I am really enjoying it.
Richard Armitage would be an awesome Captain Wentworth from Persuasion. I love that book and I think he would be amazing
Your blog is awesome. I just found it and I will definitely be checking back for more news on Period Dramas. The way your site is laid out is so informative. Thanks for sharing your common interest with us all.
LOVE Richard in North and South and in The Hobbit. I think I will try watching him in the Robin Hood series.
Lovely post...thanks. To answer your question, I think it would be great to see Richard Armitage as Capt. Wentworth from Persuasion, as there is no recent production of that book. Also, would love to see him as Darcy!
Richard is my favorite actor. He's so kind in real life too (and even more handsome in person) *sigh*
Post a Comment