Karl Johnson
Birthday: Born in 1948-03-01 in Wales, UK
Deathday: Alive
Karl Johnson is a Welsh actor, appearing on stage, film and television. His most notable role to date is the title role in Derek Jarman's 1993 film Wittgenstein.
TV Credits
Midsomer Murders
Character: Derek Lockwood
The peacefulness of the Midsomer community is shattered by violent crimes, suspects are placed under suspicion, and it is up to a veteran DCI and his young sergeant to calmly and diligently eliminate the innocent and ruthlessly pursue the guilty. ...
Rome
Character:
A down-to-earth account of the lives of both illustrious and ordinary Romans set in the last days of the Roman Republic....
The Bill
Character:
The daily lives of the men and women at Sun Hill Police Station as they fight crime on the streets of London. From bomb threats to armed robbery and drug raids to the routine demands of policing this ground-breaking series focuses as much on crime as it does on the personal lives of its characters....
Shoestring
Character:
Shoestring was a BBC television show set in Bristol. It featured a private detective with his own show on Radio West, the local radio station. The programme ran between 30 September 1979 and 21 December 1980, in two series with 21 one hour-long episodes. Star Trevor Eve decided not to return to the role after two series, as he wanted to diversify into theatre roles, so the same production team changed the format to be based in Jersey and created Bergerac, also about a detective returning to wor...
Atlantis
Character: Itheus
A fantasy drama set in a world of legendary heroes and mythical creatures. Far from home and desperate for answers, Jason washes up on the shores of an ancient land. A mysterious place; a world of bull leaping, of snake haired goddesses and of palaces so vast it was said they were built by giants - this is the city of Atlantis. Aided by his two new friends, Pythagoras and Hercules, Jason embarks on a voyage of discovery, and salvation, which sees him brush shoulders with Medusa, come face to fac...
Dalziel & Pascoe
Character:
British crime drama based on the "Dalziel and Pascoe" series of books by Reginald Hill, set in the fictional Yorkshire town of Wetherton. The unlikely duo of politically incorrect elephant-in-a-china-shop-copper Detective Superintendent Andrew Dalziel (pronounced Dee-ell) and his more sensitive and university educated sidekick Detective Sargent, later Detective Inspector, Peter Pascoe is always on hand to solve the classic murder mystery, while maintaining a down to earth wit and humour....
Lark Rise to Candleford
Character: Twister Turrill
Set in the small hamlet of Lark Rise and the wealthier neighbouring market town, Candleford, the series chronicles the daily lives of farm-workers, craftsmen and gentry at the end of the 19th Century. Lark Rise to Candleford is a love letter to a vanished corner of rural England and a heart-warming drama series teeming with wit, wisdom and romance....
Agatha Christie's Poirot
Character: Saunders
From England to Egypt, accompanied by his elegant and trustworthy sidekicks, the intelligent yet eccentrically-refined Belgian detective Hercule Poirot pits his wits against a collection of first class deceptions....
New Tricks
Character:
New Tricks is a British comedy-drama that follows the work of the fictional Unsolved Crime and Open Case Squad of the Metropolitan Police Service. Originally led by Detective Superintendent Sandra Pullman, it is made up of retired police officers who have been recruited to reinvestigate unsolved crimes....
The Mysteries
Character: Jesus / Abel
National Theatre Cottesloe production filmed for Channel 4...
Mum
Character: Reg
A comedy about a mother at a milestone in her life. We follow her and her family through a year of new beginnings as she rebuilds her life following the death of her husband. Mum is joined by her supportive life-long friend Michael. Through a year of new beginnings she rebuilds her life surrounded by her family: son Jason and his girlfriend Kelly; her brother Derek and his new partner, Pauline; and her in-laws....
Vanity Fair
Character:
Becky Sharp is a beautiful, clever and poor girl determined to earn a higher place in society at any cost....
Rainbow
Character: Himself (singer)
Children's puppet programme featuring music and stories. Join George, Bungle, Zippy, and all their friends at the Rainbow House, always an exciting place to be....
The Sooty Show
Character: Himself
The Sooty Show is a British children's Puppet series which aired on the BBC from 1955 to 1967 and ITV from 1968 to 1992. It follows the adventures and comedic day to day life of puppets Sooty, Sweep and Soo with their owner Harry Corbett, and in later years, his son Matthew....
Born to Kill
Character: Mr. Williams
A haunting exploration of the mind of Sam, a teenager who's on the verge of acting out hidden psychopathic desires....
Wolf
Character: Colonel Frink
DI Jack Caffery is a young man searching for himself. Obsessed with the neighbour he believes murdered his 10 year-old brother in the 90s, Jack finds himself trying to right the wrongs of others - but at what cost? In an isolated house in Monmouthshire, the wealthy Anchor-Ferrers family find themselves the victims of a psychopath’s cruel games, trapped and terrorised. When the two narratives collide, it’s a thrilling, nail-biting and deeply disturbing race against time....
The Following Events are Based on a Pack of Lies
Character: Bill
Two very different women, Alice a formidable PA and Cheryl a best-selling fantasy author, become trapped in a triangle of epic proportions with Rob an eccentric and celebrated 'ecopreneur' who may or may not be trying to destroy them both....
Suspicion
Character: Eric Cresswell
Five ordinary Brits are accused of kidnapping the son of a prominent U.S. media mogul. They embark on a desperate race against time to prove their innocence, but will anyone believe them—and are they telling the truth?...
Halo
Character: Hierarch Truth (voice)
Depicting an epic 26th-century conflict between humanity and an alien threat known as the Covenant, the series weaves deeply drawn personal stories with action, adventure and a richly imagined vision of the future....
A Tale of Two Cities
Character: Barsad
A pair of lookalikes, one a former French aristocrat and the other an alcoholic English lawyer, fall in love with the same woman amongst the turmoil of the French Revolution....
Bergerac
Character: Henry Morant
Bergerac is a British television show set on Jersey. Produced by the BBC in association with the Seven Network, and first screened on BBC1, it stars John Nettles as the title character Detective Sergeant Jim Bergerac, a detective in Le Bureau des Étrangers, part of the States of Jersey Police....
Truelove
Character: Tom
A group of old friends reunited at a funeral make a drunken pact. Rather than let each other suffer a slow and painful decline they would engineer a dignified death. But what starts out as a fanciful idea soon morphs into shocking reality....
Night Court
Character: Dave Costanza
An eccentric fun-loving judge presides over an urban night court and all the silliness going on there....
Too Close
Character: James de Cadenet
A dedicated forensic psychiatrist, Emma Robertson, is assigned to assess the sanity of Connie Mortensen, a “yummy mummy” accused of a despicable crime....
The Play on One
Character: Charles
A series of plays specially written for television....
Merlin
Character: Taliesin
The unlikely friendship between Merlin, a young man gifted with extraordinary magical powers, and Prince Arthur, heir to the crown of Camelot....
Lovesick
Character: Richard
After finding out he has an STI, Dylan must get back in touch with every girl he has ever had sex with to let them know the bad news....
Sons and Lovers
Character: Paul Morel
Sons and Lovers is a 1981 BBC television serial based on the D. H. Lawrence book Sons and Lovers. It starred Eileen Atkins, Tom Bell, Karl Johnson and Lynn Dearth. It was adapted by Trevor Griffiths and directed by Stuart Burge. It aired in the US as part of the PBS's Masterpiece Theatre program in 1982....
David Copperfield
Character: Tungay
The tale of David Copperfield from his birth and idyllic upbringing through hardship and adventure leading to his eventual discovery of his vocation as a novelist. On his journey David encounters a gallery of Dickens' most memorable characters, including Mr. Micawber, Uriah Heep, Steerforth, and others....
Movie Credits
The Illusionist
Character: Doctor / Old Man
With his eye on a lovely aristocrat, a gifted illusionist named Eisenheim uses his powers to win her away from her betrothed, a crown prince. But Eisenheim's scheme creates tumult within the monarchy and ignites the suspicion of a dogged inspector....
Love Is the Devil: Study for a Portrait of Francis Bacon
Character: John Deakin
In the 1960s, British painter Francis Bacon surprises a burglar and invites him to share his bed. The burglar, a working class man named George Dyer, accepts. After the unique beginning to their love affair, the well-connected and volatile artist assimilates Dyer into his circle of eccentric friends, as Dyer's struggle with addiction strains their bond....
I Know You Know
Character: Ernie
Jamie, an 11-year-old boy, is fascinated by his father Charlie’s espionage work until the world of spies becomes all too real. Charlie lives in his own reality—an undercover agent, always on an important mission, always on the move. Life for Charlie is highly charged and on the edge. He is unpredictable, explosive, yet kind hearted and fiercely protective of his Jamie who hero-worships his father....
National Theatre Live: Under Milk Wood
Character: Richard Jenkins
A community is sleeping. If you listen closely, you can hear their dreams. The retired sea captain yearning for his lost love. The landlady living in terror of her guests. A father who can no longer access his memories. A son in search of redemption. As they awake to boiled eggs and the postman, the residents of a small Welsh village juggle old secrets and new realities....
Sons and Lovers
Character: Paul Morel
An adaptation for television by Trevor Griffiths of DH Lawrence's classic novel...
Jubilee
Character: Sphinx
Queen Elizabeth I visits late 1970s England to find a depressing landscape where life has changed since her time....
The Shawl
Character: Charles
Miss A, troubled by problems, consults a clairvoyant. Can he solve them for her by summoning the spirits? Or is he just a fraud, out to steal her money?...
The Deep Blue Sea
Character: Mr. Miller
The wife of a British Judge is caught in a self-destructive love affair with a Royal Air Force pilot....
Close My Eyes
Character: Colin
After some years of tension, Richard begins a sexual relationship with his sister Natalie. Now married, the relationship proves dangerously obsessional....
Wittgenstein
Character: Ludwig Wittgenstein
A dramatization, in modern theatrical style, of the life and thought of the Viennese-born, Cambridge-educated philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein, whose principal interest was the nature and limits of language. A series of sketches depict the unfolding of his life from boyhood, through the era of the first World War, to his eventual Cambridge professorship and association with Bertrand Russell and John Maynard Keynes. The emphasis in these sketches is on the exposition of the ideas of Wittgenstein, ...
National Theatre Live: Frankenstein
Character: De Lacey
Childlike in his innocence but grotesque in form, Frankenstein’s bewildered creature is cast out into a hostile universe by his horror-struck maker. Meeting with cruelty wherever he goes, the friendless Creature, increasingly desperate and vengeful, determines to track down his creator and strike a terrifying deal. Urgent concerns of scientific responsibility, parental neglect, cognitive development and the nature of good and evil are embedded within this thrilling and deeply disturbing tale....
The Pier
Character: Larry McCarthy
After 20 years of no contact with his father, Jack McCarthy (played by Hurley) travels from New York to his father Larry's death bed in Cork. Upon arrival he is furious to find his father alive and well and even more so when he then discovers he can't leave. Soon, father and son are forced to deal with a painful history. At the core of their conflict is Larry's denial about the death of his wife, Jack's mother. The story explores the difficult and painful, but often very hilarious ways they try ...
Saint-Ex
Character: Didier Daurat
Poetic biography of author Antoine de Saint-Exupéry....
The Tempest
Character: Ariel, an airy spirit
Prospero, a potent magician, lives on a desolate isle with his virginal daughter, Miranda. He's in exile, banished from his duchy by his usurping brother and the King of Naples. Providence brings these enemies near; aided by his vassal the spirit Ariel, Prospero conjures a tempest to wreck the Italian ship. The king's son, thinking all others lost, becomes Prospero's prisoner, falling in love with Miranda and she with him. Prospero's brother and the king wander the island, as do a drunken cook a...
Under Milk Wood
Character: Drowned / Voice
An all star cast unite to perform a distinctive BBC Wales Television adaptation of Dylan Thomas's radio play, presented in collaboration with National Theatre Wales, to mark the centenary of Dylan Thomas' birth. The plot reveals the innermost thoughts of the residents of the small, Welsh fishing village Llareggub as it delves into the dreams of various townspeople including blind sailor Captain Cat, who is haunted by visions of drowned shipmates, Mog Edwards and Myfanwy Price, who dream of each...
Dog Altogether
Character: Jack
Joseph is a man plagued by a violence and rage who is driving him to self destruction. As he falls further into turmoil, Joseph scours the landscape in search of a single grain of redemption that might restore hope to his fractured life....
Four Last Songs
Character: Erico
A comic drama set on a Mediterranean island, where a motley collection of characters is seeking musical redemption....
Mr. Turner
Character: Mr. Booth
Eccentric British painter J.M.W. Turner lives his last 25 years with gusto and secretly becomes involved with a seaside landlady, while his faithful housekeeper bears an unrequited love for him....
National Theater Live: The Crucible
Character:
A witch hunt is beginning in Arthur Miller's captivating parable of power with Erin Doherty (The Crown) and Brendan Cowell (Yerma). Raised to be seen but not heard, a group of young women in Salem suddenly find their words have an almighty power. As a climate of fear, vendetta and accusation spreads through the community, no one is safe from trial. Lindsey Turner (Hamlet) directs this contemporary new staging, design by Tony award winner Es Devlin. Captured live from the Olivier stage of the n...
Third Star
Character: Ticket Seller
James and his three closest lifelong friends go on an ill-advised trip to the stunning coastal area of Barafundle Bay in West Wales. What follows is a touching and comical adventure dealing with friendship, heroism and love....
The Gospel According to St Derek
Character: Self
Using interviews with close family, friends and collaborators, The Gospel According to St. Derek bears witness to Derek Jarman’s unique approach to low-budget film-making (his near-alchemical ability to turn the base components of film-making in to artistic gold, his placing of himself at the heart of all his work and his need to be part of a repertory company-type set-up). The Gospel… also promotes Derek Jarman’s importance as one of Britain's finest film-makers and acts, therefore, as a rally ...
The Black and Blue Lamp
Character:
Satirical and surreal play by Arthur Ellis, dealing with the manner in which the British police force has been represented on TV for four decades. In 1949 Tom Riley is arrested for the murder of PC George Dixon. As he awaits interrogation at the station he is mysteriously transported into an episode of The Filth - a 1988 police series where the hard men rule, where he is told by the local CID that he'll be confessing to the murder or else his genitals are getting cut off ! This black comedy que...
Tomorrow La Scala!
Character: Sydney
Members of a British opera troupe mount a production of "Sweeney Todd" within a maximum-security prison....
Hot Fuzz
Character: PC Bob Walker
Former London constable Nicholas Angel finds it difficult to adapt to his new assignment in the sleepy British village of Sandford. Not only does he miss the excitement of the big city, but he also has a well-meaning oaf for a partner. However, when a series of grisly accidents rocks Sandford, Angel smells something rotten in the idyllic village....
The Carer
Character: Joseph
Dorottya is a young Hungarian actress with a burning desire: to make it on the English stage. Legendary actor, Sir Michael Gifford suffers from an incurable disease, and has one desire: be left alone. When Dorottya becomes his carer they both hope their wish will be fulfilled....
A Prayer for the Dying
Character: Fitzgerald
Martin, an I.R.A. hitman, is seen by a Catholic priest while carrying out a hit. He grows a bond with the priest and his niece. But his past and his former employers put all their lives in danger....
Is Anybody There?
Character: Arthur (uncredited)
A young boy who lives in an old folks' home strikes up a friendship with a retired magician....
Prick Up Your Ears
Character: Douglas Orton
When the young, attractive Joe Orton meets the older, more introverted Kenneth Halliwell at drama school, he befriends the kindred spirit and they start an affair. As Orton becomes more comfortable with his sexuality and starts to find success with his writing, Halliwell becomes increasingly alienated and jealous, ultimately tapping into a dangerous rage....
Frozen
Character: Coastguard Bill
It's two years since the mysterious disappearance of Kath Swarbrick's older sister Annie, but Kath remains haunted by a need to know what happened. When police investigations wind down, Kath continues the search herself. She gets nowhere until she steals some CCTV footage of her sister on her final day. Visiting the spot where Annie was filmed, Kath becomes convinced she has found a portal to another reality and from this portal Kath is trying to say something....
National Theatre Live: Hamlet
Character: Ghost / Gravedigger
As a country arms itself for war, a family tears itself apart. Forced to avenge his father's death but paralyzed by the task ahead, Hamlet rages against the impossibility of his predicament, threatening both his sanity and the security of the state....
Let Him Have It
Character: Parris
In 1950s England, slow-witted Derek Bentley falls in with a group of petty criminals led by Chris Craig, a teenager with a fondness for American gangster films. Chris and Derek's friendship leads to their involvement in the true case which would forever shake England's belief in capital punishment....
Pure
Character: Granddad
A young boy trying to deal with his mother's heroin addiction befriends a waitress who helps him cope with the tough situation....
The Sea
Character: Blunden
A man returns to the sea where he spent his childhood summers in search of peace following the death of his wife....
Good Vibrations
Character: George Hooley
The story of music legend Terri Hooley, a key figure in Belfast's punk rock scene. Hooley founded the Good Vibrations store from which a record label sprung, representing bands such as The Undertones, Rudi and The Outcasts....
Kaleidoscope
Character: John
A psychological thriller about the destructive relationship between a middle-aged man and his mother....
The Death of Stalin
Character: Dr. Lukomsky
When dictator Joseph Stalin dies, his parasitic cronies square off in a frantic power struggle to become the next Soviet leader. As they bumble, brawl and back-stab their way to the top, the question remains — just who is running the government?...
King Lear
Character: Fool
An aging King invites disaster, when he abdicates to his corrupt, toadying daughters, and rejects his loving and honest one....
Peterloo
Character: Lord Sidmouth, the Home Secretary
An epic portrayal of the events surrounding the infamous 1819 Peterloo Massacre, where a peaceful pro-democracy rally at St Peter’s Field in Manchester turned into one of the bloodiest and most notorious episodes in British history. The massacre saw British government forces charge into a crowd of over 60,000 that had gathered to demand political reforms and protest against rising levels of poverty....
When I'm Sixty-Four
Character: Billy
When widowed cabbie Ray and retired teacher Jim meet by chance, they discover they long for the same things from life: adventure, challenge and love. Together Ray and Jim discover that being 64 means a new beginning: it's time to try the things they never dared in their youth....
The Magic Shop
Character:
A father and son enter a magic shop that may contain real magic....
Winter Thaw
Character: Stepanovich
In late nineteenth-century Russia, Martin Avdeitch is a humble shoemaker whose life has been characterized by grief. Martin must find the courage to look outside himself and trust in the goodness of God. This BYUtv original holiday special is based on Leo Tolstoy's short story, "Martin the Cobbler," and stars John Rhys-Davies....
Dream Horse
Character: Kerby
The inspiring true story of Dream Alliance, an unlikely race horse bred by small town bartender, Jan Vokes. With very little money and no experience, Jan convinces her neighbors to chip in their meager earnings to help raise Dream and compete with the racing elites. Their investment pays off as Dream rises through the ranks and becomes a beacon of hope in their struggling community....
Heidi
Character: Old Man
Swiss girl Adelheid 'Heidi' is orphaned young. Aunt Detie brings her to grandpa Alp and his wife, who live isolated in the Alps since his murder charge. Heidi soon takes to the wild country, especially accompanying young goatherd Peter. Grandpa refuses to send her to school in the city, but aunt Detie returns and forces him to give in. She's sent to a posh lady in Frankfurt, where she'll be a companion for crippled daughter Clara after school hours....
Copying Beethoven
Character: Stefan Holtz
A fictionalised exploration of Beethoven's life in his final days working on his Ninth Symphony. It is 1824. Beethoven is racing to finish his new symphony. However, it has been years since his last success and he is plagued by deafness, loneliness and personal trauma. A copyist is urgently needed to help the composer. A fictional character is introduced in the form of a young conservatory student and aspiring composer named Anna Holtz. The mercurial Beethoven is skeptical that a woman might bec...
The Edge of Love
Character: Dai Fred
When the Welsh poet Dylan Thomas and his flirtatious wife Caitlin sweep into war-torn London, the last thing they expect is to bump into Dylan's childhood sweetheart Vera. Despite her joy at seeing Dylan after so many years, Vera is swept off her feet by a dashing officer, William Killick, and finds herself torn between the open adoration of her new found beau and the wily charms of the exotic Welshman....
Endgame & Rough for Theatre II
Character: Nagg
Hamm is an ageing, blind tyrant who is confined to a wheelchair – but soon becomes locked in a bleakly funny and subversively devastating stalemate. Endgame forms the first half of a double bill, performed alongside Samuel Beckett’s rarely-seen short play Rough for Theatre II....
The Last Vermeer
Character: Bernard Bakker
A soldier and member of the Dutch resistance investigates stolen art in the wake of the Second World War, including a Vermeer sold to the Nazis by a flamboyant forger....
Mother
Character: Old Man in Café
In the aftermath of his mother's death, Edwin reaches out to his extended family for support....