Robert Stephens

Was nominated for Broadway's 1959 Tony Award as Best Actor (Dramatic) for "Epitaph for George Dillon."

Variety Club of Great Britain Stage Actor Award for 1965 for his performances at the National Theatre, notably in Royal Hunt of the Sun and Trelawney of the Wells.

Appeared with his then-wife, Maggie Smith, in Much Ado About Nothing (1967), which was, at least, the second film based on a William Shakespeare play, featuring a real-life husband and wife, that was later remade with another real-life husband and wife. The Taming of the Shrew (1929) starred then-husband-and-wife, Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford, and was remade in 1967 with then-husband-and-wife Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor. The Taming of the Shrew (1967) was directed by Franco Zeffirelli, who also directed the stage "Much Ado" with Stephens and Smith which was adapted for television in the same year, with only one recorded change from the stage cast. The 1993 remake of "Much Ado" starred Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson. Stephens worked jointly with Branagh and Thompson in Fortunes of War (1987) and Henry V (1989), while Smith worked with them both separately in the "Harry Potter" films. He and Smith also appeared opposite Laurence Olivier in (possibly separate) productions of "Othello", in which they played "Iago" and "Desdemonda", respectively. In the 1943 American production, those roles were played by then husband-and-wife José Ferrer and Uta Hagen.

Sir Robert's career fell into two distinct parts. In the '60s, he was widely regarded as the heir of Laurence Olivier. But, after his departure from Britain's National Theatre in 1970 and the breakup of his marriage with Maggie Smith three years later, he suffered a slump made worse by heavy drinking. In the '90s, the Royal Shakespeare Company invited him to play first Falstaff in "Henry IV" and then Lear in "King Lear", and this re-established Stephens's career.

Provided the voice of Aragorn in the acclaimed 1981 BBC Radio serialization of "The Lord of the Rings".

Considered for the roles of Dr. Hans Fallada, Dr. Bukovsky, Sir Percy Heseltine and Dr. Armstrong in Lifeforce (1985).

Ironic that in Fortunes of War (1987), his character (Bill Castlebar, a famous poet) dies during surgery for a perforated intestine, as Stephens himself later died from complications during surgery.

One of eight actors profiled by Roger Lewis in his 1989 book, "Stage People": the interview with Stephens takes place in the Dirty Duck pub in Stratford-on-Avon.

He was awarded the Laurence Olivier Theatre Award in 1993 (1992 season) for Best Actor for his performance as Falstaff in "Henry IV, Parts I & II" at the Royal Shakespeare Company.

He was awarded the Knight Bachelor of the Order of the British Empire in the 1995 Queen's New Years Honours List for his services to drama.