Biography
Oliver Robert Ford Davies is an English actor, theatre historian, director, playwright and writer. Born on 12 August 1939 in Ealing, London, he read history at Merton College, Oxford, where he was president of the Oxford University Dramatic Society, before lecturing at the University of Edinburgh and turning to acting professionally in 1967.
Davies has had a long association with the Royal Shakespeare Company, beginning in 1975. His breakthrough came in 1990 with the lead role in David Hare’s Racing Demon at the National Theatre, for which he received the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor. He is also known for screen roles including Governor Sio Bibble in the Star Wars prequel trilogy (Episode I – The Phantom Menace, 1999; Episode II – Attack of the Clones, 2002; Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, 2005), Maester Cressen in Game of Thrones (2011), and the Archbishop of Canterbury in Johnny English (2003). He was appointed OBE in 2024 for services to drama.
