Acting
Stanley Townsend
Stanley Townsend (born August 1961) is an Irish actor. Townsend was born and brought up in Dublin. After attending Wesley College, Dublin, he studied mathematics and civil engineering at Trinity College. While there he joined the Dublin University Players, the college's Amateur Dramatic Society. He later co-founded co-operative theatre company Rough Magic with writer/director Declan Hughes and theatre director Lynne Parker, performing in numerous productions including The Country Wife, Nightshade, and Sexual Perversity in Chicago. He subsequently went on to perform in several productions at The Gate and The Abbey Theatres in Dublin. In London, he has worked with such directors as Sam Mendes in The Plough and the Stars, Richard Eyre in Guys and Dolls and Rufus Norris in Under the Blue Sky. Theatre appearances at the Royal Court include The Alice Trilogy directed by Ian Rickson and Shining City directed by Conor McPherson, for which he won an Irish Theatre Award and was nominated for the Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Actor in 2004. Townsend's television work began on a number of shows for RTÉ in Dublin. Since moving to London, television appearances have included Spooks, The Commander, Hustle, Waking the Dead, and Omagh Bombing. ilm credits include Mike Newell's Into the West, Jim Sheridan's In the Name of the Father with Daniel Day-Lewis, The Van by Stephen Frears, Peter Greenaway's The Tulse Luper Suitcases, The Libertine with Johnny Depp, Paul Morrison's Wondrous Oblivion with Delroy Lindo, John Boorman's The Tiger's Tale and Michael Radford's Flawless. He currently lives in London.
Filmography
Once Upon a Time in a Cinema
Film · 2026
The Uprising
Film · 2026
National Theatre Live: Golden Boy
Film · 2026
National Theatre Live: Retrograde
Film · 2025
Jay Kelly
Film · 2025
The Teacher
Film · 2024
Blackshore
Series · 2024
The Regime
Series · 2024
KAOS
Series · 2024
The Gentlemen
Series · 2024
Kinked
Film · 2023
Phil Lynott: The Long Goodbye
Film · 2022
Becoming Elizabeth
Series · 2022
Andor
Series · 2022
National Theatre Live: All About Eve
Film · 2019
A Girl from Mogadishu
Film · 2019
The Song of Names
Film · 2019
Agatha and the Curse of Ishtar
Film · 2019
Resistance
Series · 2019
The Spy
Series · 2019
Traitors
Series · 2019
Psychomanteum
Film · 2018
The Current War
Film · 2018
Florence Foster Jenkins
Film · 2016
Galavant
Series · 2015
Standby
Film · 2014
The Voices
Film · 2014
National Theatre Live: King Lear
Film · 2014
Quirke
Series · 2014
Fleming
Series · 2014
New Worlds
Series · 2014
Der Medicus
Series · 2014
Burton and Taylor
Film · 2013
Lovely Louise
Film · 2013
The Physician
Film · 2013
One Chance
Film · 2013
Toast of London
Series · 2013
Titanic: Blood and Steel
Series · 2012
Ripper Street
Series · 2012
Call the Midwife
Series · 2012
The Hollow Crown
Series · 2012
Killing Bono
Film · 2011
Cars 2
Film · 2011
Zen
Series · 2011
Fresh Meat
Series · 2011
The Pizza Miracle
Film · 2010
Sherlock
Series · 2010
National Theatre Live: Phèdre
Film · 2009
Holy Water
Film · 2009
Hilde
Film · 2009
Happy-Go-Lucky
Film · 2008
Whistleblower
Series · 2008
Ashes to Ashes
Series · 2008
Flawless
Film · 2007
Saddam's Tribe
Film · 2007
The Nativity Story
Film · 2006
Thin Lizzy: Outlawed - The Real Phil Lynott
Film · 2006
Dot.Kill
Film · 2005
Isolation
Film · 2005
Omagh
Film · 2005
The Libertine
Film · 2004
Wondrous Oblivion
Film · 2004
Fallen
Film · 2004
Inside I'm Dancing
Film · 2004
Murder City
Series · 2004
Hustle
Series · 2004
Monsieur N.
Film · 2003
Mystics
Film · 2003
Byron
Film · 2003
What a Girl Wants
Film · 2003
The Commander
Series · 2003
Coming Up
Series · 2003
Spooks
Series · 2002
Wire in the Blood
Series · 2002
Foyle's War
Series · 2002
Station Jim
Film · 2001
Waking the Dead
Series · 2001
24
Series · 2001
Best of Both Worlds
Series · 2001
Altmann's Tongue
Film · 2000
Rat
Film · 2000
The Ambassador
Series · 1998
Jonathan Creek
Series · 1997
My Friend Joe
Film · 1996
The Van
Film · 1996
Ballykissangel
Series · 1996
Beyond Reason
Film · 1995
Jake's Progress
Series · 1995
In the Name of the Father
Film · 1993
The Snapper
Film · 1993
Peak Practice
Series · 1993
Heartbeat
Series · 1992
The Miracle
Film · 1991
Parnell & the Englishwoman
Series · 1991
Taffin
Film · 1988
Ink
Film · 1988
Hallmark Hall of Fame
Series · 1951
Another Turn of the Screw
Film
The Life of Reilly
Film