Introduction
Conleth Seamus Eoin Croiston Hill (born 24 November 1964) is an Irish film, stage and television actor. He has performed on stage in productions in the United Kingdom and the United States. He won the 2001 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor and has received two Tony Award nominations. He is best known for his role as Varys in the HBO series Game of Thrones.
Biography
Conleth Hill was born in Ballycastle, County Antrim, Northern Ireland.
His siblings are also in the entertainment business. His older brother is a cameraman, his sister is a producer and his younger brother Ronan Hill has won two Emmy Awards for his sound mixing on Game of Thrones.
Hill graduated from the acting program of Guildhall School of Music and Drama in 1988.
He maintains a full head of hair when he is on hiatus from Game of Thrones, which he is required to shave during filming.
He has never been married.
Career
Hill made his Broadway debut in Marie Jones' Stones in His Pockets.
Hill played German professor Max Staefel in a 2002 television adaptation of Goodbye, Mr Chips (2002). He played "Mum" to Peter Kay's character "Geraldine McQueen" in Peter Kay's Britain's Got the Pop Factor... and Possibly a New Celebrity Jesus Christ Soapstar Superstar Strictly on Ice, a spoof on the talent show genre of programmes.
Since April 2011, he has appeared as Lord Varys in the television series Game of Thrones, based on the novel series A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin. Martin hinted, in a February 2013 post on his website, that he thought Hill would be a good choice to play the title character in a TV show based on Martin's science fiction novel Tuf Voyaging.
Filmography
Film
| Year(s) | Film | Character | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Whatever Works | Brockman | |
| 2009 | Perrier's Bounty | Russ | |
| 2011 | Salmon Fishing in the Yemen | Bernard Sugden | |
| 2011 | The Shore | Paddy | Short film |
| 2012 | Keith Lemon: The Film | Delivery Man | |
| 2014 | Serena | Dr. Chaney | Uncredited |
| 2015 | A Patch of Fog | Sandy Duffy |
Television
| Year(s) | Series | Character | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Boon | Second Pupil | Episode: "Honourable Service" |
| 1988–1995 | Casualty | Theo/Rob | 2 episodes |
| 1990 | Medics | Liam McGuinness | Episode: "Niall" |
| 1992 | Screen One | Neil | Episode: "Trust Me" |
| 1992–1994 | Blue Heaven | Roache | 7 episodes |
| 1993 | The Bill | Michael White | Episode: "Hard Evidence" |
| 1995 | Crown Prosecutor | Neville Osborn | |
| 2000 | Meaningful Sex | Carl | TV short |
| 2002 | Goodbye Mr. Chips | Max Staefel | TV movie |
| 2007 | The Life and Times of Vivienne Vyle | Jared | 6 episodes |
| 2011–present | Game of Thrones | Varys | |
| 2013 | Suits | Edward Darby | 6 episodes |
| 2014 | Inside No. 9 | Steve | Episode: "Tom & Gerri" |
| 2015 | Foyles War | Sir Ian Woodhead | Episode: "Elise" |
| 2015 | Arthur & George | Sergeant Upton | 3 episodes |
Radio
| Date | Title | Role | Author | Director | Station |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 December 2000 | The Man Who Came to Dinner | Moss Hart and George S Kaufman adapted for radio by Marcy Kahan | Ned Chaillet | BBC Radio 4 | |
| 7 November 2002 | Tricycles | Colin Teevan | Toby Swift | BBC Radio 3 The Wire | |
| 18 February 2004 | The Travels of Marco Polo | Philip Palmer | Toby Swift | BBC Radio 4 Afternoon Play | |
| 24 April 2012 | The Biggest Issues | Jerry Cartwright | Annie McCartney | Eoin O'Callaghan | BBC Radio 4 Afternoon Drama |
Theatre
Stage productions
- Uncle Vanya as Uncle Vanya, Lyric Theatre (Belfast)
- All's Well that Ends Well as Parolles, National Theatre (London) (2009)
- Philistines as Teterev, National Theatre (London) (2007)
- The Producers as Roger DeBris, Theatre Royal, Drury Lane (London)
- The Seafarer, as Ivan Curry, National Theatre (London); Booth Theatre (New York)
- Democracy, National Theatre (London)
- Stones in His Pockets, Lyric Theatre (Belfast); Gaiety Theatre (Dublin); Traverse Theatre (Edinburgh); Tricycle, New Ambassadors, Duke of York's (London); Winter Garden Theatre (Toronto); Golden Theater, (New York)
- Shoot the Crow, Trafalgar Studios (London); Royal Exchange Theatre (Manchester)
- Endgame, Prime Cut (Belfast)
- After Darwin, Prime Cut (Dublin and Belfast)
- The Chance, Prime Cut (Belfast)
- Criminal Genius, Prime Cut (Belfast)
- The Suicide, Communicado (Scotland)
- Tall Tales, Communicado (Scotland)
- Playboy of the Western World, Communicado (Scotland)
- Juno and the Paycock, Royal Lyceum (Edinburgh)
- Shining Souls, Old Vic (London)
- School for Wives, Arts Theatre (Belfast)
- Too Late to Talk to Billy, Arts Theatre (Belfast)
- The Picture of Dorian Gray, Arts Theatre (Belfast)
- Northern Star, Field Day/Tinderbox
- Conversations on a Homecoming, Lyric Theatre (Belfast)
- Waiting for Godot, Lyric Theatre (Belfast)
- A Whistle in the Dark, Lyric Theatre (Belfast)
- Little Shop of Horrors, Lyric Theatre (Belfast)
- The Iceman Cometh, Lyric Theatre (Belfast)
- The Importance of Being Earnest, Lyric Theatre (Belfast)
- Christmas Eve Can Kill You, Lyric Theatre (Belfast)
- Playboy of the Western World, Lyric Theatre (Belfast)
- A Midsummer Night's Dream, Lyric Theatre (Belfast)
- The Cherry Orchard, as Lopakhim, National Theatre, London, 2011
- Quartermaine's Terms, as Henry, Wyndham's Theatre, London, 2013
- Macbeth, as Macbeth, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Berkeley, 2016
- Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, as George, Wyndham's Theatre, London, 2017
Awards and nominations
- Olivier Awards, for Stones in His Pockets, and for The Producers
- Irish Times, for Stones in His Pockets
- Critics' Circle, for Stones in His Pockets
- 2001 Drama Desk Award, Special Award, Stones in His Pockets
- Theatre League, for Stones in His Pockets
- Whatsonstage, for Stones in His Pockets
- Dora Awards, for Stones in His Pockets
- 2001 Tony Award nomination, for Stones in His Pockets
- 2008 Tony Award nomination, Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play, The Seafarer
- 2008 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play, The Seafarer
- 2011 – 2016 Nominated – Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series
- 2008 Tony Award Nominations. The New York Times, 13 May 2008.