# Jonathan Pryce
**Jonathan Pryce** (born 1947) is a Welsh actor of stage, film, and television whose career spans 50 years, from a Tony-winning breakthrough in *Comedians* (1977) and an Olivier-winning *Hamlet* (1980) to the central role in the *Miss Saigon* casting controversy of 1990, screen work from *[Brazil](https://www.edgepedia.org/brazil-1985-film)* to *The Two Popes*, and his turn as Prince Philip in *The Crown*.
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1947, Holywell, Flintshire, Wales; birth name recorded as John Price by BBC Wales and as Joe Price by the Golden Globes authority[1](https://www.bbc.com/wales/arts/sites/jonathan-pryce/index.shtml) • [2](https://goldenglobes.com/person/jonathan-pryce/) |
| Training | Teacher training in art at Edge Hill College, Ormskirk, then a scholarship to RADA[1](https://www.bbc.com/wales/arts/sites/jonathan-pryce/index.shtml) |
| Stage landmarks | Tony Award 1977 for *Comedians*; Olivier Award 1980 for *Hamlet* at the Royal Court; created the Engineer in *Miss Saigon* (1989)[3](https://kids.britannica.com/students/article/Jonathan-Pryce/313086) • [4](http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/514551/index.html) • [1](https://www.bbc.com/wales/arts/sites/jonathan-pryce/index.shtml) |
| Miss Saigon dispute | US Actors' Equity barred him from the Broadway transfer on 7 August 1990, reversed itself on 16 August, and the show opened in spring 1991, earning him a second Tony[3](https://kids.britannica.com/students/article/Jonathan-Pryce/313086) |
| Film honors | Cannes Best Actor 1995 for *Carrington*[1](https://www.bbc.com/wales/arts/sites/jonathan-pryce/index.shtml) |
| Honours | CBE for services to drama (2009); knighted in the 2021 Queen's Birthday Honours[4](http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/514551/index.html) • [5](https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-57445743) |
## Early life and training
Pryce was born John Price in Holywell, Flintshire, in 1947, the son of a coal miner and shopkeeper, and was educated at Holywell Grammar School[1](https://www.bbc.com/wales/arts/sites/jonathan-pryce/index.shtml). The Library of Congress authority record confirms the birth date of 1947 and the birthplace of Holywell, Wales[6](https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n83009537.html). BFI Screenonline describes the family background as a miner turned grocer, with Pryce driving the family van during school holidays[4](http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/514551/index.html).
From the age of 16 he attended art school and trained as a teacher at Edge Hill College in Ormskirk, where a friend suggested he apply to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art; he was awarded a scholarship to study there[1](https://www.bbc.com/wales/arts/sites/jonathan-pryce/index.shtml). BFI records the same route, a teacher-training course in art at a college in Ormskirk followed by the RADA scholarship[4](http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/514551/index.html).
The birth name is recorded differently by credible sources: BBC Wales gives John Price[1](https://www.bbc.com/wales/arts/sites/jonathan-pryce/index.shtml), while the Golden Globes biography gives Joe Price[2](https://goldenglobes.com/person/jonathan-pryce/). Both agree on the Welsh birthplace and the 1947 date.
## Stage career
Pryce began his professional career at the Liverpool Everyman and the Nottingham Playhouse, where his breakthrough role was Gethin[7](http://www.oxfordreference.com/viewbydoi/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803100351779). BBC Wales records that he became Artistic Director of Liverpool's Everyman Theatre Company[1](https://www.bbc.com/wales/arts/sites/jonathan-pryce/index.shtml).
**Comedians and the first Tony.** One of his first major roles, Gethin Price in the play *Comedians*, earned him a Tony Award and a Theatre World Award in 1977[3](https://kids.britannica.com/students/article/Jonathan-Pryce/313086). The Television Academy credits the Tony to his Broadway debut in *Comedians*[8](https://www.televisionacademy.com/bios/jonathan-pryce).
**Hamlet, 1980.** In 1980 Pryce won an Olivier Award for his performance in the title role of *Hamlet* at the [Royal Court Theatre](https://www.edgepedia.org/royal-court-theatre)[1](https://www.bbc.com/wales/arts/sites/jonathan-pryce/index.shtml). The Golden Globes stage listing places *Hamlet* in 1980 alongside *Comedians* (1976) and *Miss Saigon* (1991)[2](https://goldenglobes.com/person/jonathan-pryce/).
**Later musical and stage roles.** After creating the lead role of the Engineer in *Miss Saigon* (1989), he went on to play Fagin in *Oliver!* (1994) and Henry Higgins in *My Fair Lady* (2001)[4](http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/514551/index.html).
## Miss Saigon and the casting controversy
Pryce created the role of the Engineer, the Eurasian character at the center of *Miss Saigon*, an adaptation of Puccini's *Madama Butterfly* set in Vietnam in 1975[4](http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/514551/index.html) • [3](https://kids.britannica.com/students/article/Jonathan-Pryce/313086).
On 7 August 1990, US Actors' Equity, a union representing about 40,000 actors and stage managers, barred Pryce from reprising his award-winning performance as the Engineer on Broadway, saying it could not "appear to condone the casting of a Caucasian actor in the role of a Eurasian"[3](https://kids.britannica.com/students/article/Jonathan-Pryce/313086). BBC Wales records Equity's initial position as that "the casting of a Caucasian actor made up to appear Asian is an affront to the Asian community"[1](https://www.bbc.com/wales/arts/sites/jonathan-pryce/index.shtml).
Producer [Cameron Mackintosh](https://www.edgepedia.org/cameron-mackintosh) responded by announcing the cancellation of the Broadway production, nullifying a 25-million-dollar advance sale, the largest in Broadway history, and removing more than 30 roles for minority actors from the Broadway season[3](https://kids.britannica.com/students/article/Jonathan-Pryce/313086). After protests from union members, producers, and theatergoers, Equity reversed its decision on 16 August 1990 and invited [Mackintosh](https://www.edgepedia.org/mackintosh) to resume plans for the show; a formal agreement was reached on 18 September 1990 for a spring 1991 opening[3](https://kids.britannica.com/students/article/Jonathan-Pryce/313086). Pryce then won a Tony Award for the role[1](https://www.bbc.com/wales/arts/sites/jonathan-pryce/index.shtml), the second of his two Tonys as credited by the Television Academy[8](https://www.televisionacademy.com/bios/jonathan-pryce).
## Film career
Pryce's big-screen breakthrough came in 1985 as the protagonist Sam Lowry in [Terry Gilliam](https://www.edgepedia.org/terry-gilliam)'s *Brazil*, which won two BAFTAs and received two Academy Award nominations[1](https://www.bbc.com/wales/arts/sites/jonathan-pryce/index.shtml).
In 1995 he won the Best Actor Award at the Cannes Film Festival for his portrayal of the gay writer [Lytton Strachey](https://www.edgepedia.org/lytton-strachey) in *Carrington*[1](https://www.bbc.com/wales/arts/sites/jonathan-pryce/index.shtml). He sang on screen as [Juan Perón](https://www.edgepedia.org/juan-peron) in *Evita* (1996)[4](http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/514551/index.html), a role the Golden Globes listing places with [Alan Parker](https://www.edgepedia.org/alan-parker) and Madonna[2](https://goldenglobes.com/person/jonathan-pryce/). Later franchise and prestige work includes *Pirates of the Caribbean*[5](https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-57445743) and Pope Francis in Fernando Meirelles's *The Two Popes* (2019), opposite Anthony Hopkins as Pope Benedict XVI[2](https://goldenglobes.com/person/jonathan-pryce/).
## Television career
His first television appearance was as a policeman in *Doomwatch* (BBC, 1970–72)[4](http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/514551/index.html). Decades later, the Television Academy lists his television work as HBO's *Game of Thrones*, Netflix's *The Crown*, and Apple TV+'s spy thriller *Slow Horses*[8](https://www.televisionacademy.com/bios/jonathan-pryce). The Golden Globes record dates *Game of Thrones* to 2015–2016, *The Crown* to 2022, in which he played Prince Philip, and *Slow Horses* to 2022, with [Gary Oldman](https://www.edgepedia.org/gary-oldman)[2](https://goldenglobes.com/person/jonathan-pryce/).
## By the numbers
- **Two Tony Awards**, one for his Broadway debut in *Comedians* and one for the Engineer in *Miss Saigon*[8](https://www.televisionacademy.com/bios/jonathan-pryce).
- **One Olivier Award**, for *Hamlet* at the Royal Court in 1980[1](https://www.bbc.com/wales/arts/sites/jonathan-pryce/index.shtml).
- **One Cannes Best Actor Award**, for *Carrington* in 1995[1](https://www.bbc.com/wales/arts/sites/jonathan-pryce/index.shtml).
- **$25 million**, the *Miss Saigon* advance sale nullified when Mackintosh canceled the Broadway transfer in August 1990, then the largest in Broadway history[3](https://kids.britannica.com/students/article/Jonathan-Pryce/313086).
- **About 40,000**, the number of actors and stage managers Equity represented at the time of the dispute[3](https://kids.britannica.com/students/article/Jonathan-Pryce/313086).
- **CBE (2009)** for services to drama[4](http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/514551/index.html) and **knighthood (2021)** in the Queen's Birthday Honours, heading the Welsh recipients at age 74[5](https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-57445743).
## Personal life and honors
Pryce married the Irish actress [Kate Fahy](https://www.edgepedia.org/kate-fahy) in 1974, and the couple have three children[1](https://www.bbc.com/wales/arts/sites/jonathan-pryce/index.shtml). He was appointed CBE for services to drama in 2009[4](http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/514551/index.html) and was knighted in the 2021 Queen's Birthday Honours, leading the Welsh list of recipients[5](https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-57445743). Of the knighthood he said: "After almost 50 years as an actor, I am proud to think that the work and ideals that I have shared with my friends and colleagues is being honoured in this way"[5](https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-57445743).
## References
1. [Jonathan Pryce, BBC Wales Arts profile](https://www.bbc.com/wales/arts/sites/jonathan-pryce/index.shtml)
2. [Jonathan Pryce, Golden Globes biography](https://goldenglobes.com/person/jonathan-pryce/)
3. [Jonathan Pryce, Britannica Kids](https://kids.britannica.com/students/article/Jonathan-Pryce/313086)
4. [Pryce, Jonathan (1947–), BFI Screenonline](http://www.screenonline.org.uk/people/id/514551/index.html)
5. [Queen's Birthday Honours: Jonathan Pryce is knighted, BBC News](https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-57445743)
6. [Pryce, Jonathan, Library of Congress authority record](https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n83009537.html)
7. [Jonathan Pryce, Oxford Reference](http://www.oxfordreference.com/viewbydoi/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803100351779)
8. [Jonathan Pryce, Television Academy biography](https://www.televisionacademy.com/bios/jonathan-pryce)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › Welsh actors*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license