RSC Actor Alex Jennings Awarded Honorary Degree by University of Warwick
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RSC actor Alex Jennings has been awarded an honorary degree (an Honorary Doctor of Letters - Hon DLitt) by the University of Warwick. This is Alex's second degree from the University as he was actually once a student of English and Theatre studies at Warwick (1975-8).
He is now one of the Royal Shakespeare Company's (RSC) most accomplished actors. After graduating from Warwick he trained for two years at Bristol Old Vic Drama School and went to a range of roles in regional repertory theatre including Robespierre in The Scarlet Pimpernel, and Gloumov in Too Clever by Half at the Old Vic, for which he won the Olivier Award for Best Comedy Performance in 1988. He was nominated in the same category the following year for portraying Dorante in The Liar. He has also performed for the Royal National Theatre as Kittel in Ghetto and Captain Plume in The Recruiting Officer.
His RSC roles include the title role in Peer Gynt, (for which he won an Olivier Award 1995/6 for Best Actor), Theseus/Oberon in A Midsummer Night's Dream (UK, American tour and Broadway), Angelo in Measure for Measure, Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing, and the title role in Hamlet. His film appearances include War Requiem, the RSC's film version of A Midsummer Night's Dream and most recently as Lord Mark in the Oscar-nominated movie The Wings of the Dove. His television appearances include Smiley's People, The Franchise Affair, Inspector Morse, Alfonso Bonzo, the title role in Ashenden, Dead Poets' Society, Inspector Alleyn, and Hard Times.