Dexter Fletcher

Last updated

Dexter Fletcher
Philip Sinden photographer portrait photo of Dexter Fletcher.jpg
Fletcher in 2019
Born (1966-01-31) 31 January 1966 (age 58)
Enfield, Greater London, England
Occupations
  • Film director
  • actor
Years active1976–present
Spouse
​
(m. 1997)​

Dexter Fletcher (born 31 January 1966) is an English film director and actor. He has appeared in Guy Ritchie's Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels , as well as in television shows such as the comedy drama Hotel Babylon and the HBO series Band of Brothers and, earlier in his career, starred as Spike Thomson in the comedy drama Press Gang . His earliest acting role was playing Baby Face in the 1976 film Bugsy Malone .

Contents

Fletcher made his directorial debut with Wild Bill (2011), and also directed Sunshine on Leith (2013) and Eddie the Eagle (2015). He replaced Bryan Singer as director of Bohemian Rhapsody , a biopic about the band Queen, released in October 2018; due to DGA rules, he received executive producer credit. In 2019, he directed Rocketman , a biographical film based on the life and music of performer Elton John.

Career

Fletcher trained at the Anna Scher Theatre. [1] His first film part was as Baby Face in Bugsy Malone (1976). He made his stage début the following year in a production of A Midsummer Night's Dream. As a youth actor he was regularly featured in British productions in the early 1980s, including The Long Good Friday , The Elephant Man and The Bounty . In 1987 Fletcher was cast in Lionheart . As an adult he appeared on television as the rebellious teenager Spike Thomson in Press Gang and in Murder Most Horrid (1991) with Dawn French. He has also starred in the films Caravaggio (1986), The Rachel Papers (1989), Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998), Layer Cake (2004), AffirmFilm's Solomon as Rehoboam and Universal's Doom . [2]

He appeared as Puck in Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream in 1981 at Glyndebourne Opera and on their autumn tour, [3] and then again in 1990 in an Opera London production at Sadler's Wells, [4] subsequently recorded by Virgin Classics. [5]

On television Fletcher has appeared in the major HBO drama, Band of Brothers and in a supporting role in the BBC One historical drama The Virgin Queen (US PBS 2005, UK 2006). He also appeared in Kylie Minogue's music video for "Some Kind of Bliss" (1997). He starred on BBC One in a series based on Imogen Edwards-Jones's book Hotel Babylon that ran for four series before being cancelled in 2009. [1] He also appeared in "The Booby and the Beast", an episode in the second series of the BBC's series Robin Hood and in the 2008 radio series The Way We Live Right Now . He appeared in the Bo' Selecta! spinoff A Bear's Tail as The Scriptwriter. He played a brief role in the BBC series New Tricks , in the episode "Final Curtain", as an actor named Tommy Jackson. In 2009, he also appeared in Misfits as Nathan Young's dad, reprising the role in 2010 for the second series.

Fletcher has been the voice for McDonald's television adverts and (feigning a US accent) is the narrator of The Game audio book written by Neil Strauss. He also narrated the Five series Airforce Afghanistan, as well as the Chop Shop: London Garage series on the Discovery Channel. In 1993, he was the voice of Prince Cinders in the short animated comedy of the same name. Also in 1993, he was the uncredited UNIT soldier narrator of the UNIT Recruiting Film – a five-minute spoof piece that preceded a BBC1 repeat of the sixth and final episode of Doctor Who story Planet of the Daleks . [6] In 2014 he narrated the BBC1 show Del Boys and Dealers. In 1998, Fletcher featured on the song "Here Comes the Flood" from the album Fin de Siecle by The Divine Comedy.

Directing

Fletcher's debut as a director was for a script he co-wrote, Wild Bill , [7] which was released on 20 March 2012. His second film as director is a musical film by Stephen Greenhorn, Sunshine on Leith based around the popular Proclaimers songs which were released on 4 October 2013. [8] In 2015, he directed the feature film Eddie the Eagle . In December 2017, Fletcher was announced as Bryan Singer's replacement director on the Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody . The film was released in November 2018. While Fletcher had helped finish the film, Singer received sole directing credit and he received executive producer credit. [9] Fletcher directed the 2019 biopic Rocketman about the life and music of Elton John. In February 2020, he signed on to direct a reboot of The Saint for Paramount Pictures. [10] He also directed the Apple TV+ feature film Ghosted, which was released in April 2023. [11] [12]

Personal life

Fletcher was born in Enfield, the youngest of three boys, in North London, and grew up with his brothers in Woodford Green and Palmers Green; his parents were teachers. [13]

In 1997 he married Lithuanian film and theatre director Dalia Ibelhauptaitė in Westminster. [14] His best man was fellow actor Alan Rickman. [1] Dexter's brothers were also actors; Graham Fletcher-Cook [15] and Steve Fletcher. [16] Fletcher is a dual British and Lithuanian citizen, having been granted Lithuanian citizenship in recognition of his work promoting Lithuanian cultural affairs. [17]

Filmography

Acting credits

Key
†Denotes works that have not yet been released
Films
YearTitleRoleNotes
1973 Steptoe and Son Ride Again Small Boy
1976 Bugsy Malone Babyface
1979 The Long Good Friday The boy who asks for money to watch Harold's car
1980 The Elephant Man Bytes' Boy
1984 The Bounty Able Seaman Thomas Ellison
1985 Revolution Ned Dobb
1986 Caravaggio Young Caravaggio
1988 Didn't You Kill My Brother? Bike thief
The Raggedy Rawney Tom
1989 The Rachel Papers Charles Highway
Twisted Obsession Malcolm Greene
1991All OutAngelo
1993Prince CindersPrince Cinders
1996 Jude Priest
1997 The Man Who Knew Too Little Otto
1998 Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels Soap
1999 Topsy-Turvy Louis
Tube Tales JoeSegment: Mr Cool
2000 The Patriot Cornwallis' tailor/valet
2002 Below Kingsley
2003 Stander Lee McCall
2004The Secret of Year SixMike
Layer Cake Cody
2005 Doom Marcus "Pinky" Pinzerowski
2006 Tristan & Isolde Orick
2007 Stardust Skinny Pirate
2008 Autumn Michael
2010 Kick-Ass Cody
Amaya Frenchman
Dead Cert Eddie Christian
2011 Jack Falls Detective Edwards
Fedz Hunter
The Three Musketeers D'Artagnan's father
Wild Bill Mysterious Barry
2012CovenMr. Sheers
St George's Day Levi
2014 Muppets Most Wanted Cameo; deleted scenes
Respectable: The Mary Millington StoryNarrator
2016Smoking GunsPaul McVeigh
2018 Terminal Vince
Sherlock Gnomes ReggieVoice role
2023 Ghosted Raoul
2023 Love at First Sight Val
Television
YearTitleRoleNotes
1978 Les Miserables Gavroche TV film
1989 Press Gang James (Spike) Thomson
The Bill Tony GillespieEpisode: "The Strong Survive"
1993–1994 GamesMaster PresenterSeason 3
1997 The Famous Five Lou
Solomon Rehoboam
2001 Band of Brothers John Martin
2003 The Deal Charlie Whelan TV film
2004 The Virgin Queen Thomas Radclyffe, 3rd Earl of Sussex
2006–2009 Hotel Babylon Tony Casemore32 episodes
2007 Robin Hood Count Friedrich1 episode
2008 New Tricks Tommy JacksonEpisode: "Final Curtain"
2009 Misfits Mike Young
2011 White Van Man Ian
2013 Death in Paradise Grant, The Cabin Barman
2014 Rev. Mike TobinEpisode: 3.3
Mount Pleasant Gus
2020 I Hate Suzie Benjamin

Filmmaking credits

YearTitleDirectorExecutive
producer		WriterNotes
1999Let the Good Times RollNoNoYesShort film
2010Just for the RecordNoYesNo
Dead Cert NoYesNo
2011 Wild Bill YesNoYes
2013 Sunshine on Leith YesNoNo
2015 Eddie the Eagle YesNoNo
2018 Bohemian Rhapsody NoYesNoReplaced Bryan Singer as director for the final two weeks of filming;
Received credit as executive producer in accordance with DGA rules
2019 Rocketman YesNoNo
2022 The Offer YesYesNoDirected 2 episodes
2023 Ghosted YesNoNo

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ben Kingsley</span> English actor (born 1943)

Sir Ben Kingsley is an English actor. He has received accolades throughout his career spanning five decades, including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, a Grammy Award, and two Golden Globe Awards as well as nominations for four Primetime Emmy Awards and two Laurence Olivier Awards. Kingsley was appointed Knight Bachelor in 2002 for services to the British film industry. He was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2010 and received the Britannia Award in 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stanley Tucci</span> American actor (born 1960)

Stanley Oliver Tucci Jr. is an American actor. Known as a character actor, he has played a wide variety of roles ranging from menacing to sophisticated. Tucci has earned numerous accolades, including six Emmy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards as well as nominations for an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, and a Tony Award.

Alex Michael Jennings is an English actor of the stage and screen, who worked extensively with the Royal Shakespeare Company and National Theatre. For his work on the London stage, Jennings received three Olivier Awards, winning for Too Clever by Half (1988), Peer Gynt (1996), and My Fair Lady (2003). He is the only performer to have won Olivier awards in the drama, musical, and comedy categories.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aidan Gillen</span> Irish actor (born 1968)

Aidan Murphy, better known as Aidan Gillen, is an Irish actor. He is the recipient of three Irish Film & Television Awards and has been nominated for a British Academy Television Award, a British Independent Film Award, and a Tony Award.

Edward Peel is an English television and stage actor. He was described by The Times in 2010 as a "veteran star of TV dramas" and "a familiar face on television for the past 40 years".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Hollander</span> British actor (born 1967)

Thomas Anthony Hollander is a British actor who has gained success for his roles on stage and screen, winning a BAFTA Award and two Screen Actors Guild Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sean Harris</span> British actor

Sean Harris is an English actor. He played Ian Curtis in 24 Hour Party People (2002), Micheletto Corella in The Borgias (2011–2013), Fifield in Prometheus (2012), Solomon Lane in Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation (2015) and Mission: Impossible – Fallout (2018), Philip in Possum (2018), William Gascoigne in The King (2019) and Henry Peter Teague / Peter Morley in The Stranger (2022).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bryan Singer</span> American filmmaker (born 1965)

Bryan Jay Singer is an American filmmaker. He is the founder of Bad Hat Harry Productions and has produced almost all of the films he has directed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joseph Mazzello</span> American actor (born 1983)

Joseph Francis Mazzello III is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Tim Murphy in Jurassic Park, Roarke Hartman in The River Wild, Eugene Sledge in the HBO miniseries The Pacific, Dustin Moskovitz in The Social Network, and Queen bass player John Deacon in the biopic Bohemian Rhapsody.

John Reid is a music manager, known for being the manager and former partner of singer Elton John, as well as for managing the British rock band Queen.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Ottman</span> American film composer and editor (born 1964)

John Ottman is an American film composer, director, and editor. He is best known for collaborating with director Bryan Singer, composing and/or editing many of his films, including Public Access (1993), The Usual Suspects (1995), Superman Returns (2006), Valkyrie (2008) and Jack the Giant Slayer (2013), as well as the X-Men film series. For his work on Singer's 2018 Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody, Ottman won the Academy Award for Best Film Editing.

Aaron McCusker is a Northern Irish actor. He is best known for his portrayal of Jamie Maguire in the Channel 4's television series Shameless and Jim Hutton, Freddie Mercury's boyfriend, in the 2018 feature film Bohemian Rhapsody.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Pyros</span> British-Australian actor (born 1987)

Richard Pyros is a British-Australian actor, who first achieved fame in the hit Australian Channel Seven TV show, Big Bite whilst still studying at drama school. Pyros was selected to create an array of characters including the memorably disheveled newsreader, 'Tee Pee Moses', and for his impersonation of personalities such as Rob Sitch, Michael Caton, Harry Potter and Detective Lennie Briscoe from Law & Order.

Dalia Ibelhauptaitė is a Lithuanian opera and theatre director and producer, a television producer and former playwright.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lucy Boynton</span> British-American actress (born 1994)

Lucy Boynton is a British and American actress. Raised in London, she made her professional debut as the young Beatrix Potter in Miss Potter (2006). She appeared in television productions Ballet Shoes (2007), Sense and Sensibility (2008) and Mo (2010), making guest appearances on Lewis, Borgia, Endeavour, and Law & Order: UK. Boynton portrayed writer Angelica Garnett on Life in Squares, which aired on BBC. She appeared as an isolated popular girl in The Blackcoat's Daughter (2015) and starred as a bold aspiring model in Sing Street (2016). She also appeared in horror films I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House (2016) and Don't Knock Twice (2016).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michelle Duncan</span> Scottish-Canadian actress (born 1978)

Michelle Duncan is a Scottish-Canadian actress, known for Driving Lessons (2006), Atonement (2007) and The Broken (2008). She portrayed Shelley Stern in the biographical drama film Bohemian Rhapsody (2018).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ben Hardy (actor)</span> English actor (b. 1991)

Ben Hardy is an English actor. He is known for playing Peter Beale in the BBC soap opera EastEnders (2013–2015). Hardy made his film debut as Archangel in the superhero film X-Men: Apocalypse (2016) and played Roger Taylor in the biographical film Bohemian Rhapsody (2018).

<i>Bohemian Rhapsody</i> (film) 2018 biopic about Freddie Mercury

Bohemian Rhapsody is a 2018 biographical musical drama film that focuses on the life of Freddie Mercury, the lead singer of the British rock band Queen, from the formation of the band in 1970 to their 1985 Live Aid performance at the original Wembley Stadium. It was directed by Bryan Singer from a screenplay by Anthony McCarten, and produced by Graham King and Queen manager Jim Beach. It stars Rami Malek as Mercury, with Lucy Boynton, Gwilym Lee, Ben Hardy, Joe Mazzello, Aidan Gillen, Tom Hollander, and Mike Myers in supporting roles. Queen members Brian May and Roger Taylor also served as consultants. A British-American venture, it was produced by Regency Enterprises, GK Films and Queen Films, and was distributed by 20th Century Fox.

<i>Rocketman</i> (film) 2019 film based on the life of Elton John

Rocketman is a 2019 biographical jukebox musical drama film based on the life, music, and career of British musician Elton John. The film focuses on the story of John in his early days in England as a prodigy at the Royal Academy of Music through his musical partnership with Bernie Taupin. The story is told through his music and is titled after John's 1972 song "Rocket Man". Directed by Dexter Fletcher and written by Lee Hall, the film stars Taron Egerton as John, with Jamie Bell as Taupin, Richard Madden as John Reid, and Bryce Dallas Howard as Sheila Eileen, John's mother. A British-American venture, the film was produced by New Republic Pictures, Marv Films and Rocket Pictures, and was distributed by Paramount Pictures.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jamie Demetriou</span> English comedian and actor (born 1987)

Jamie Demetriou is an English comedian, actor and screenwriter. He is best known for his role as Bus Rodent in Fleabag and for creating, co-writing, and starring in Stath Lets Flats. For the latter, he won Best Male Actor in a Comedy, Best Writer of a Comedy, and Best Scripted Comedy at the 2020 BAFTA Awards.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Dexter Fletcher". BBC Drama. Retrieved 2 December 2007.
  2. ↑ "Dexter Fletcher". IMDb.
  3. ↑ Blyth, Alan. Review of A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Apollo Theatre in Oxford. Opera , December 1981, Vol.32 No.12 p1294.
  4. ↑ Goodwin, Noel. Review of A Midsummer Night's Dream. Opera, Vol.41 No.12 p1502-03.
  5. ↑ CD Review Benjamin Britten, A Midsummer Night’s Dream Op. 64, Virgin Classics 3818322. accessed 4 March 2024.
  6. ↑ "UNIT Recruiting Film". Doctor Who Guide. Retrieved 8 June 2018.
  7. ↑ acast (21 May 2019). "Dexter Fletcher • Distraction Pieces Podcast with Scroobius Pip #269 | Distraction Pieces Podcast with Scroobius Pip on acast". acast. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
  8. ↑ "Curtis Brown". www.Curtis brown.co.uk.
  9. ↑ Dexter Fletcher Replaces Bryan Singer On 'Bohemian Rhapsody' Deadline. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  10. ↑ Justin Kroll (18 February 2020). "'Rocketman' Filmmaker Dexter Fletcher to Direct 'The Saint' Reboot (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
  11. ↑ "'Ghosted' Director Implies That Apple Used Algorithm Data Instead of His Own Vision". World of Reel. 19 August 2019.
  12. ↑
  13. ↑ "Fame and fortune: Dexter Fletcher". Daily Telegraph. 14 February 2008. ISSN   0307-1235 . Retrieved 22 May 2019.
  14. ↑ "Marriages England and Wales 1984–2005". Archived from the original on 4 November 2015. Retrieved 8 January 2009.
  15. ↑ Graham Fletcher-Cook at IMDb [ unreliable source? ]
  16. ↑ Steve Fletcher at IMDb [ unreliable source? ]
  17. ↑ "Lietuvos pilietybę gavęs Dexteris Fletcheris: tai įkvepia stengtis, siekiant, kad Lietuvos vardas būtų dar svarbesnis pasaulio kontekste". Lithuanian Radio and Television. 20 May 2021.

Bibliography

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.