Toby Jones grew up in and around Oxford. After studying at the University of Manchester and then at the Jacques Lecoq drama school in Paris, he gradually built a career in acting that sees him now established as one of the most talented British actors of his generation.
Toby’s versatility as an actor is astonishing – across the stage, radio, TV and film. You will have heard Toby’s voice work in films such as Tintin, and as Dobby in the Harry Potter series, and across a whole host of BBC Radio dramas. On television you will have seen Toby recently in Doctor Who and Sherlock, in adaptations of work by Joseph Conrad and Agatha Christie; and in Mackenzie Crook’s award-winning, gentle, rural comedy Detectorists for which he won a BAFTA for the Best Male Performance in a Comedy.
Arthouse directors have cast Toby in films such as the horrors Berberian Sound Studio and Kaleidoscope; in the fantastical Italian Tale of Tales, and in Leave to Remain, a poignant, timely work about immigrant life in Britain.
Toby is hugely popular with blockbuster and Hollywood directors too: you will have seen him in Captain America, Atomic Blonde, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and Hunger Games. Earlier this year Toby was part of the ensemble cast in a film version of the RC Sherriff’s WW1 play Journey’s End, and right now you can see him being chased by scary things in Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. Very recently, Toby starred in a widely celebrated production of Pinter’s The Birthday Party in the West End.
He repeatedly demonstrates that he can adapt brilliantly to the requirements of any genre – comedy, tragedy, melodrama, fantasy, science fiction… His remarkable career is a magical journey to follow and looks set to continue to reach new heights, and we’ve been very lucky to have him visit and inspire our Drama students the last few years.