Aidan Turner
Aidan Turner (born 19 June 1983)[1][2] is an Irish actor. He played the roles of Ross Poldark in the 2015–2019 BBC adaptation of The Poldark Novels by Winston Graham, Dante Gabriel Rossetti in Desperate Romantics,[3] Ruairí McGowan in The Clinic,[4] and John Mitchell in the supernatural drama series Being Human.[5][6] He played Kíli in The Hobbit film series.[7][8]
Aidan Turner | |
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![]() Turner in 2013 | |
Born | Clondalkin, Dublin, Ireland | 19 June 1983
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 2005–present |
Early life
Turner was born at home in Clondalkin, a suburban town of Dublin, Ireland. The family moved later to Walkinstown.[9] Turner attended secondary school at St Mac Dara's Community College in Templeogue before leaving to join his older brother at Firhouse Community College. Turner has stated: “I probably wasn’t a great student. I had a car when I was 17, so I used to just run out of school when I could, jump in the car and go play pool in Tallaght. I don’t know how I knew, but I convinced myself that my [final exam] results were never going to matter to me."[10]
Before becoming an actor, Turner was a successful ballroom dancer, placing as high as third in the adult section of the Irish National Championships. [11] After finishing secondary school, Turner briefly worked as an apprentice electrician, alongside his father. After he saw a notice up in Dublin's Gaiety School of Acting, and having become interested in acting while working in a cinema, he applied.[12][13][14] He graduated from the Gaiety School of Acting in 2004.[12]
Career
After graduating, Turner appeared in several theatre plays, including The Plough and the Stars, Romeo and Juliet, and A Cry from Heaven.[12][15][16]
![](../I/m/Crichlow%2C_Turner%2C_Tovey%2C_Whithouse.jpg)
Turner's television acting career began in 2007 with an uncredited appearance on the first episode of The Tudors.[17] In the same year he produced and starred in the film Porcelain, directed by Gavin Cleland, which was shot in a convent in Dublin. However only a trailer of the movie was ever released.[18] Between 2008 and 2009, he appeared in a recurring role on The Clinic.[19] Appearing in 18 episodes as Ruairí McGowan, he followed The Clinic with a BBC production, Desperate Romantics.[17] He portrayed Dante Gabriel Rossetti in all six episodes of the show, which aired in 2009.[17][20][21] Turner played the vampire John Mitchell on the supernatural drama programme Being Human during the first three series from 2009 to 2011.[22][23][24]
His film career began with two short films, The Sound of People and Matterhorn, both in 2007. He later played Mal in the thriller feature film Alarm (2008).[25][26]
His role on Being Human brought Turner to the attention of Peter Jackson, who cast him as the dwarf Kíli in The Hobbit trilogy (2012–2014).[12] In 2014, he won the Empire Award for Best Male Newcomer for the second film in the series, The Desolation of Smaug, which had been released the previous year.[14] In 2013, he also played shadowhunter-turned-werewolf Luke Garroway in The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones.[17]
In the 2015 BBC TV miniseries And Then There Were None, based on the Agatha Christie novel, he plays the cynical mercenary Philip Lombard.[27]
Turner performs the title role of Ross Poldark in the 2015 revival of the BBC series Poldark.[12][28][29] At the National Television Awards ceremony in 2016, Turner was presented with the "Impact Award" for his performance in Poldark.[30]
Filmography
Film
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2007 | The Sound of People | Father | Short film |
2007 | Matterhorn | Theodoro | Short film |
2007 | Porcelain | Kevin[31] | Unreleased[32] |
2008 | Alarm | Mal | |
2012 | The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey | Kíli | |
2013 | The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones | Luke Garroway | |
2013 | The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug | Kíli | |
2014 | The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies | Kíli | |
2016 | The Secret Scripture | Jack Conroy | [12] |
2017 | Loving Vincent | Boatman | |
2018 | The Man Who Killed Hitler and Then the Bigfoot | Young Calvin Barr | |
2019 | Love Is Blind | Russell | |
2019 | The Last Planet | André |
Television
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2007 | The Tudors | Bedoli | Episode: "In Cold Blood" |
2008–09 | The Clinic | Ruairí McGowan | Main role, 18 episodes |
2009 | Desperate Romantics | Dante Gabriel Rossetti | Main role, 6 episodes |
2009–11 | Being Human | John Mitchell | Main role, 22 episodes |
2010 | Resonance | TT | Pilot |
2011 | Hattie | John Schofield | TV movie |
2015 | And Then There Were None | Philip Lombard | TV mini series |
2015–2019 | Poldark | Ross Poldark | Lead role |
2020 | Leonardo | Leonard da Vinci | Lead role |
Theatre
Year | Title[15][33] | Role | Theatre | Location |
---|---|---|---|---|
2005 | The Plough and the Stars | Corp. Stoddard | Barbican Theatre | London, United Kingdom |
2005 | Suddenly Last Summer | Focus Theatre | Dublin, Ireland | |
2005 | A Cry from Heaven | Ardan | Abbey Theatre | Dublin, Ireland |
2005 | Yokohama Delegation | Hercules | Kilkenny Arts Festival | Kilkenny, Ireland |
2005 | Titus Andronicus | Demetrius | Project Arts Theatre | Dublin, Ireland |
2006 | The Crock of Gold | Pan | Olympia Theatre On tour |
Dublin, Ireland On tour |
2006–2007 | Drive-by | Cork Mid-Summer Festival Dublin Fringe Festival 2006 Canterbury Arts Festival 2007 |
Cork, Ireland Dublin, Ireland Canterbury, United Kingdom | |
2007 | La Marea | Bedrock Theatre Co/DTF | Dublin, Ireland | |
2007 | Cyrano | Christian | Project Arts Centre | Dublin, Ireland |
2008 | Romeo and Juliet | Paris | Abbey Theatre | Dublin, Ireland |
2018 | The Lieutenant of Inishmore | Padraic | Noël Coward Theatre | London, England |
Awards and nominations
Year | Award | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2011 | SFX Awards | Best Sci-Fi Actor | Being Human | Nominated | [34][35] |
2011 | SFX Awards | Sexiest Male | Being Human | Nominated | [36] |
2012 | Online Film & Television Association | Best Original Song Shared with cast | The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey | Nominated | |
2012 | SFX Awards | Best Sci-Fi Actor | Being Human | Nominated | [37] |
2012 | SFX Awards | Sexiest Male | Being Human | Nominated | [38] |
2013 | SFX Awards | Sexiest Male | The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey | Nominated | |
2014 | Empire Awards | Best Male Newcomer | The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug | Won | |
2015 | Radio Times Champion | Drama Champion | Poldark | Won | |
2015 | TV Choice Awards | Best Actor | Poldark | Nominated | |
2016 | Broadcasting Press Guild Awards | Breakthrough Award | Poldark – And Then There Were None | Won | |
2016 | GQ Men of the Year | Best TV Actor | Poldark | Won | |
2016 | Irish Film and Television Awards | Best Actor in Lead Role | Poldark | Nominated | |
2016 | Monte-Carlo Television Festival | Outstanding Actor in a TV Series-Drama | Poldark | Nominated | |
2016 | National Television Awards | Impact Award | Poldark | Won | |
2016 | National Television Awards | Drama Performance | Poldark | Nominated | |
2016 | Radio Times Champion | Drama Champion | Poldark | Won | |
2017 | Irish Film and Television Awards | Best Actor in Lead Role | Poldark | Nominated | |
2017 | Radio Times Champion | Drama Champion | Poldark | Won | |
2018 | Stage Debut Awards | Joe Allen Best West End Debut Award | The Lieutenant of Inishmore | Won |
References
- "Aidan Turner Biography". TV.com. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
- "Aidan Turner Date of Birth". BuddyTV.com. Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
- Walton, James (24 July 2009). "Desperate Romantics (BBC Two): TV Review". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
- "The Clinic Character Bio". Raidió Teilifís Éireann. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
- "'Being Human's Aidan Turner Won't Let Other Vamps Stand in His Way". XfinityTV.comcast.net. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
- "Being Human [TV Series] Cast and Crew". Fandango.com. Archived from the original on 22 December 2012. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
- "The Hobbit Starts Filming Next Month". FilmBuffOnline.com. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
- "Aidan Turner filmography". The New York Times (All Movie Guide and Baseline). Archived from the original on 14 December 2014. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
- McMenamy, Emma (12 September 2016). "Poldark star Aidan Turner's incredible journey from dance sensation to international acting star".
- Harrington, Katy (1 September 2016). "Aidan Turner: 'It would be embarrassing if Poldark bombed'".
- McMenamy, Emma (12 September 2016). "Poldark star Aidan Turner's incredible journey from dance sensation to international acting star".
- Tate, Gabriel (2 March 2015). "'Being a sex symbol is a little awkward' – Aidan Turner on his rise to fame, and redefining Poldark". Irish Independent. Retrieved 12 March 2015.
- Anna Pukas. "Aidan Turner reveals his feelings about new show Poldark". Daily Express.
- Gordon, Bryony (27 November 2015). "Aidan Turner: 'I don't want to play it safe'". The Telegraph. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
- "Aidan Turner". LisaRichards.ie. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
- "Irish People and Celebrity Central – Aidan Turner". Irishcentral.com. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
- Ward, Rachel (29 December 2015). "Aidan Turner: his life and work". The Telegraph. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
- "hooting Wraps on 'Porcelain'". 26 April 2007. Retrieved 16 October 2018.
- "John Mitchell (Aidan Turner)". BBCAmerica.com. Archived from the original on 20 September 2011. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
- "Desperate Romantics". BBC. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
- Dempster, Sarah (22 July 2009). "A date with Desperate Romantics". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
- "'Being Human' creator Toby Whithouse on the shocking finale – Exclusive". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
- "'Being Human' Week: Q&A with Aidan Turner". Digital Spy. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
- "Aidan Turner, Russell Tovey, Lenora Crichlow and Sinead Keenan Interview Being Human". Collider.com. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
- "Aidan Turner Filmography". Reelz.com. Archived from the original on 8 November 2011. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
- "featured cast". MSN. Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
- "One: And then there were none". BBC. Retrieved 26 December 2015.
- "Brushing up for Poldark's return: Irish actor Aidan Turner gets his tan topped up by an assistant". evoke.ie. 6 March 2015.
- "It took a lot of work: Aidan's Poldark co-star reveals how he got those abs". evoke.ie. 21 June 2015. Archived from the original on 26 June 2015. Retrieved 24 June 2015.
- https://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/video-pics-poldark-star-aidan-turner-happy-but-baffled-by-impact-award-win-at-ntas-377534.html
- "Porcelain (2007)". aidan-turner.com. Archived from the original on 3 January 2014. Retrieved 2 January 2014.
- "Porcelain Movie Trailer – Aidan Turner". firstpost.com. Archived from the original on 21 April 2014. Retrieved 2 January 2014.
- "Theatre". Aidan-turner.com. Archived from the original on 24 December 2014. Retrieved 22 March 2014.
- "The WFB Gazette – Results of SFX Awards 2011". Thewinchesterfamilybusiness.com. Retrieved 5 April 2014.
- SFX Magazin (2011): WINNER! Best Sci-Fi Actor. Edition: April 2011. S.94
- "'SFX Sci-Fi Awards 2011' adayları belli oldu!". derinkirmizi.blogspot.de. 25 September 2010. Archived from the original on 10 February 2016. Retrieved 5 April 2014.
- "SFX Awards 2012". Doctorwhonews.net. Retrieved 5 April 2014.
- "Aidan And Being Human Nominated For SFX SciFi Awards". Aidan-turner.com. Archived from the original on 7 April 2014. Retrieved 5 April 2014.