Newbury and Hobbes Dream Casting: Ben Miles as Sir Charles Bainbridge
Name: Ben Miles
"Dream" Character Casting for the George Mann Newbury and Hobbes Miniseries: Sir Charles Bainbridge
First Impression: Berkeley Square... only it wasn't him! OK, I'm totally confused. I would have put money on the fact that he was the soldier that Hermione Norris was fooling around with... I think I must re-watch the entire series to see why I got it wrong. Really, I'm doing it for us, not just for me. So I guess that means The Forsyte Saga and Dartie it is for my first impression. Which is really a shitty first impression, because the character doesn't have anything redeeming about him till he dies...
Why they'd be the perfect actor for the Newbury and Hobbes Miniseries: In recent years he's gotten very good at being cast as either a gentleman or a cop, and I can't think of a better way to describe Bainbridge then as a gentleman cop. Also he looks good with a big bushy moustache.
Lasting Impression: I want to say Coupling, because yes, he did make an impression on me... but really it's Zen! Why? Because for the first time I really saw the depth in his acting and saw that he was more then just a womanizing ass.
What else you've seen them in: More a TV actor then a film actor, though he has starred in some big name movies like Speed Racer, Ninja Assassin, and The Affair of the Necklace, if you're a BBC miniseries addict you sure know who he is. He spent many years perfecting the womanizing ass until he transitioned to elder statesman with perhaps a little bit of darkness thrown in. Just look at his role in the newer tv adaptation of Dracula or even the aforementioned Zen! Though personally my favorite of all his roles was as Sir Timothy Midwinter in Lark Rise to Candleford. Why couldn't he and Dorcas have worked it out? Or at least she could have ended up with someone better then Gabriel. Yes, I am still bitter.
Can't believe it's them: V for Vendetta. Really, that's him! I mean a lot of that movie is, OMG, look who it is because it's peopled with British actors I know and love, but still, V for Vendetta man!
Wish they hadn't: Under the Greenwood Tree because I literally can not think of a more forgettable miniseries of all the miniseries I have ever watched. Though as the Parson this does mark his transition out of being a womanizer, and for that I am very happy.
Bio: Ben started acting on television in the mid-90s after training at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, but it wasn't until 2000 when he was cast as Patrick in Coupling that he got his big break. Which begs the question as to why he hasn't appeared on Doctor Who! I mean come on Steven Moffat, you gave him his start, get on this! End rant. After this many roles followed in numerous miniseries. He is married to a fellow actress, Emily Raymond, and among his theatre credits is a stint in Richard II opposite his father-in-law. Lately he has been starring more and more onstage and can be seen as Thomas Cromwell on Broadway when Wolf Hall transfers there next year. Though I'm still bitter that my friend Mike got to see him and a plethora of my other favorite actors on Broadway a few years back in the revival of The Norman Conquests which went on to win a Tony. Perhaps I might go and see Wolf Hall to level the playing field...
