Steve Toussaint
Stephen Toussaint (born 22 March 1965) is a British actor and writer. He first gained prominence through his role in the ITV crime drama The Knock (1994–2000). As of 2022, he plays Corlys Velaryon in the HBO fantasy series House of the Dragon.
Steve Toussaint | |
|---|---|
 Toussaint at the 2022 German Comic Con Dortmund | |
| Born | 22 March 1965 Birmingham, England |
| Alma mater | University of Sussex |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1994–present |
| Height | 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) |
| Website | stevetoussaint |
His films include Shooting Dogs (2005) and Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2010). On television, he appeared in the second series of Line of Duty (2014), the ninth series of Lewis (2015), the Australian series Pine Gap (2018), and Small Axe: Red, White and Blue (2020).
Early life
Toussaint was born in Birmingham to Barbadian parents and grew up on an estate in the New Cross[1] area of South London,[2] where his father worked for the London Underground and his mother worked as a nurse. His first taste of acting came in a school nativity play as a Roman Centurian in a suit of Armour made from cardboard.[1] He studied Politics at the University of Sussex.[1] During his time there, he was scouted for a role in a play and joined the drama society.[1] After graduating, he briefly worked in merchant banking and hospital administration before deciding to try acting again. He took evening drama classes.[3]
Toussaint changed his surname to Toussaint because his birth name conflicted with a pre-existing member of his actors' union. He chose the name from Toussaint Louverture, the Haitian revolutionary leader (as at the time he had been reading about him in The Black Jacobins by C. L. R. James).[4]
Career
Toussaint's first professional role in acting, was as the Genie in the Lamp in Aladdin at the Churchill Theatre in 1990 in a cast that included John Inman, Paul Shane, Susan Maughan, Eli Woods and David Janson.[1] His other extensive theatre career included performances in A Doll's House at the Young Vic, Macbeth and The Merchant of Venice for the Royal Shakespeare Company, Twelfth Night at the Nottingham Playhouse, and more.[5]
Toussaint's big break on television was starring as Barrie Christie in all 37 episodes of the ITV crime drama The Knock from 1994 to 2000.[1] He appeared in Waking the Dead in 2002,[1] My Dad's the Prime Minister in 2004,[5] and Mutant Chronicles in 2008.[5]
In 2010, Toussaint starred in the Mike Newell-directed film Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time alongside Jake Gyllenhaal, Gemma Arterton and Ben Kingsley.[1] Toussaint appeared as CS Ray Mallick in the second season of the BBC2 police drama series Line of Duty in 2014.[1] In 2015 he starred in Lewis,[5] In 2018 he starred in 6 episodes of Pine Gap.[5]
In 2022, Toussaint began starring as Corlys Velaryon, the head of House Velaryon, in the HBO fantasy series House of the Dragon, a Game of Thrones spin-off.[1] He then appeared in the BBC One series Rain Dogs as the Duke.
Personal life
Toussaint's favourite drink is a Vodka tonic.[6]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | I.D. | Shadwell Fan | |
| Judge Dredd | Hunter Squad Leader | ||
| You'll Soon Get the Hang of It: The Technique of One to One Training | Camera Operator | Documentary short | |
| 2000 | Circus | Black | |
| 2001 | Dog Eat Dog | Darcy | |
| 2002 | The Perfect Moment | News Anchor | Short Film |
| 2003 | The Order | New York Detective | |
| 2005 | Shooting Dogs | Roland | |
| 2007 | Flight of Fury | Col. Ratcher | |
| Roadblock | Sgt Garret Young | Short Film | |
| 2008 | Mutant Chronicles | Capt John McGuire | |
| Broken Lines | Physio | ||
| 2010 | Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time | Seso | |
| 2012 | A Doll's House | Dr. Rank | Recording |
| 2014 | Asylum | Powell | |
| Darkness | Short Film | ||
| 2015 | Point Break | FBI Dept. Director #1 | |
| 2016 | A Viable Candidate | Sylvan Bradshaw | Short Film
Also credited as writer [7] |
| 2018 | Forgive Me, Father | Father Matthew | Short Film |
| 2019 | Masters of Love | Dad | |
| 2023 | Gassed Up | Roy | Amazon Prime film[8] |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes | Steve Dixie | Episode: The Three Gables |
| 1994–2000 | The Knock | Barrie Christie | 37 episodes |
| 1994–2005 | The Bill | Clive Isley / Mike Hurley / Nick Austin | 11 episodes |
| 1995 | Backup | Ralf Johnson | Episode: "Toleration Zone" |
| 1996 | Crucial Tales | Robert | Episode: "Spiders and Flies" |
| 1998 | Macbeth | Lennox | Television Film |
| Dangerfield | P.C. Lyle | Episode: "Harvest Time" | |
| 1999 | Maisie Raine | Barry Wills | Episode: "The Witness" |
| Jack of Hearts | Joe | 5 episodes | |
| Doomwatch: Winter Angel | Luke | Television Film | |
| Casualty | Martin Devern | Episode: "Peace on Earth" | |
| 1999–2009 | Holby City | Charles Harrison / Sean Horton / Martin Devern | 4 episodes |
| 2002 | Waking the Dead | Charlie Bellows | 2 episodes |
| 2002–2010 | Doctors | D.I. Mike Trent / Tom Dumasai / D.I. Mike Trent | 16 episodes |
| 2003 | Murder in Mind | DC Chris Hewson | Episode: "Suicide" |
| Murphy's Law | Sammy | Episode: "Kiss and Tell" | |
| Rosemary & Thyme | D.I. Scott | Episode: "Sweet Angelica" | |
| 2004 | Family Affairs | Caleb Andrew | 3 episodes |
| England Expects | Pete | Television Film | |
| My Dad's the Prime Minister | Transport Secretary | 7 episodes | |
| 2005 | Broken News | Adam Lockwood - PVS | 6 episodes |
| 2007 | Them | Uriah Selleck | Television Film |
| 2007–2008 | CSI: Miami | Judge Hugo Kemp | 3 episodes |
| 2007–2014 | Silent Witness | Richard Parkwood / Pastor Funmi Lambo | 4 episodes |
| 2009 | New Tricks | Grant Lindon | Episode: "The Last Laugh" |
| 2010 | Skins | Father Babajide | Episode: "Thomas" |
| Spooks | Felix Osuba | Season 9 Episode 2 | |
| 2014 | Line of Duty | CS Ray Mallick | 3 episodes |
| Scott & Bailey | DSI Will Pemberton | 4 episodes | |
| 2015 | Banana | Pete Monroe | 1 episode |
| DCI Banks | Michael Osgood | 2 episodes | |
| A.D. The Bible Continues | Julius | 1 episode | |
| Tut | King Tushratta | 3 episodes | |
| Lewis | CS Joseph Moody / Ch. Supt. Moody / Ch. Supt. Joe Moody | 6 episodes | |
| 2016 | Midsomer Murders | Victor Campbell | Episode: "The Incident at Cooper Hill" |
| Grantchester | Dicky Evans | 1 episode | |
| Berlin Station | Benjamin Taylor | 3 episodes | |
| 2017 | Fortitude | Lamont Bailey | 2 episodes |
| Upstart Crow | Otello | Episode: "The Green-Eyed Monster" | |
| 2018 | Death in Paradise | Steadman King | Episode: "The Healer" |
| Killed by My Debt | Bentley Duncan | ||
| Our Girl | Roger Mendez | 2 episodes | |
| Pine Gap | Ethan James | 6 episodes | |
| 2019 | Deep Water | Adam | 3 episodes |
| 2020 | Doctor Who | Feekat | Episode: "Ascension of the Cybermen" |
| In the Long Run | Charles Lander / Charles Quigley | 3 episodes | |
| Small Axe | Kenneth Logan | Episode: "Red, White and Blue" | |
| 2021 | It's a Sin | Alan Baxter | 2 episodes |
| Before We Die | Kane | 3 episodes | |
| 2022–present | House of the Dragon | Lord Corlys Velaryon | Main Role |
| 2023 | Rain Dogs | The Duke | |
Video games
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Jurassic World Evolution | George Lambert | voice |
| World of Warcraft: Battle for Azeroth | voice | ||
| 2021 | Jurassic World Evolution 2 | George Lambert | voice |
| 2022 | Battlefield 2042 | Charlie Crawford | Season 2 |
Stage
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | The No Boys Cricket Club | Michael | Theatre Royal Stratford East |
| 2000–2001 | The Servant to Two Masters | Florindo | Royal Shakespeare Company tour |
| 2002 | 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea | Ned | Theatre Royal Stratford East |
| 2003 | Urban Afro-Saxons | Dennis | Talawa Theatre Company, Theatre Royal Stratford East |
| 2004 | Fix Up | Kwesi | Cottesloe at the National Theatre, London |
| 2008 | Hapgood | The American | Birmingham Repertory Theatre, Birmingham West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds |
| 2010 | Ruined | Commander Osembenga | Almeida Theatre, London |
| Twelfth Night | Orsino | Nottingham Playhouse, Nottingham | |
| 2011 | The Merchant of Venice | Salerio | Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon |
| Macbeth | Banquo | ||
| 2011–2012 | The Riots | Stafford Scott | Tricycle Theatre / Bernie Grant Arts Centre, London |
| 2012–2014 | A Doll's House | Dr. Rank | Young Vic / Duke of York's Theatre, London BAM Harvey Theater, New York |
| 2016 | Father Comes Home from the Wars | Hero | Royal Court Theatre, London |
References
- Cheesman, Neil (23 January 2014). "Interview with Steve Toussaint star of Line of Duty and A Doll's House". London Theatre. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
- "Steve Toussaint – interview Father Comes Home From the Wars, Royal Court Theatre". Afridiziak Theatre News. 2016. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
- Heritage, Stuart (19 August 2022). "'Nothing is too big to fail': Steve Toussaint on starring in the Game of Thrones prequel". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
- Toussaint, Steve [@StevieToussaint] (9 December 2021). "@TheTonyTeflon Toussaint was the name I chose, as my own legal name would have clashed with an existing member of our actors' union. I was reading "The Black Jacobins" by CLR James at the time. You're right, a real hero" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 2 September 2022. Retrieved 12 September 2022 – via Twitter.
- "Steve Toussaint, Royal Court Theatre". royalcourttheatre.com/. Retrieved 27 October 2022.
- Steve Toussaint & Eve Best Get To Know Me | House of The Dragon | HBO Max. HBO Max. 1 September 2022. Archived from the original on 2 September 2022. Retrieved 12 September 2022 – via YouTube.
- A Viable Candidate Interview, retrieved 2 September 2022
- "Steve Toussaint on Instagram: "So. There's a film. It's called "Gassed Up". It's gonna be exclusively on @primevideouk. It's got these lovely people in it. And a bit of me! @steviegambles @taz_skylar @officiallymagic @tobiasjowett @mohammed_mansaray @maemuller @jelenagavrilovicofficial @yungfilly @harrypinero @arrdeegram @msbanks @tomi.may @rxwdat @davidmonteith"". Instagram. Retrieved 2 September 2022.