Hugh Bonneville trivia: 45 amazing facts about the “Downton Abbey” star

Hugh Bonneville is a British actor. He is best known for playing Robert Crawley in the ITV hit series Downton Abbey.

So let’s dive into some trivia and facts about his life and career.

1. His full name is Hugh Richard Bonneville Williams, DL
2. He was born on 10 November 1963
3. He is an English film and television actor
4. He is best known for playing Robert Crawley, Earl of Grantham in the ITV historical drama series Downton Abbey
5. His performance on the show earned him a nomination at the Golden Globes
6. And two consecutive Primetime Emmy Award nominations
7. Bonneville was born in Paddington, London
8. His mother was a nurse
9. His father was a urological surgeon
10. He was educated at Dulwich College Preparatory School
11. And at Sherborne School, an independent school in Dorset
12. Following secondary education, Bonneville read theology at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge
13. He studied acting at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art in London
14. He left Cambridge with a 2:2 in theology
15. He has since said that he tended to do more acting than academic work
16. Bonneville is also an alumnus of the National Youth Theatre
17. Bonneville married Lucinda “Lulu” Evans in 1998
18. The couple have a son, Felix
19. In 2009, Bonneville was the voice of Justice Fosse in Joseph Crilly’s British premiere of Kitty and Damnation for the Giant Olive Theatre Company at the Lion & Unicorn Theatre in Kentish Town
20. Shortly thereafter he became Giant Olive’s first patron
21. Bonneville is also a patron of the London children’s charity Scene & Heard
22. And an ambassador for WaterAid
23. Bonneville’s first professional stage appearance was at the Open Air Theatre, Regent’s Park
24. In 1987, he joined the National Theatre
25. There he appeared in several plays, then the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1991
26. He played Laertes to Kenneth Branagh’s Hamlet (1992–1993)
27. He played Valentine in The Two Gentlemen of Verona, Bergetto in ‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore, Kastril
28. And later Surly in The Alchemist
29. In 1991, Bonneville made his television debut
30. He was billed as Richard Bonneville
31. His debut film was 1994’s Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein with Robert De Niro and Kenneth Branagh
32. His early roles were usually good-natured bumbling characters
33. Like Bernie in Notting Hill (1999) and Mr Rushworth in Mansfield Park (1999)
34. In the BBC television series, Take A Girl Like You (2000) and Armadillo (2001), he played more villainous characters
35. Leading up to the domineering Henleigh Grandcourt in Daniel Deronda (2002) and the psychopathic killer James Lampton in The Commander (2003) series
36. In Love Again, he played the poet Philip Larkin
37. From 2010 until 2015, he appeared in the ITV period drama Downton Abbey, as Robert, Earl of Grantham
38. From 2011 until 2014, Bonneville was the narrator of the Channel 4 show The Hotel
39. Bonneville played Mr. Brown in the 2014 film Paddington and its 2017 sequel Paddington 2
40. He has appeared in the singing comedic role of The Pirate King in the ABC fairy tale-themed musical comedy extravaganza series Galavant during its 2015 and 2016 seasons
41. He also narrated the ITV series The Cruise
42. In 2017, Bonneville portrayed Lord Louis Mountbatten in director Gurinder Chadha’s film Viceroy’s House
43. The film depicted the tumult and violence surrounding the Partition of India during the final days of British rule
44. Also in 2017, it was announced that Bonneville would play Roald Dahl in an upcoming biopic about the author
45. In 2018, Bonneville began yearly appearances as the host and narrator of the annual “From Vienna: The New Year’s Celebration” episode of Great Performances