# Tim McInnerny
**Tim McInnerny** (Timothy L. McInnerny) is an English actor known for his stage and television work, most famously as Lord Percy Percy and Captain Kevin Darling in the 1980s BBC sitcom *Blackadder*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0570570/bio/) Born in 1956 in [Cheadle Hulme](https://www.edgepedia.org/cheadle-hulme), Cheshire, he has worked across television, film, radio, and theater for more than four decades, with screen credits ranging from *Notting Hill* and *101 Dalmatians* to *Game of Thrones*, *Peterloo*, and *Gladiator II*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0570570/bio/) • [2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0570570/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1956, Cheadle Hulme, Cheshire, England, to Mary Joan (née Gibbings) and William Ronald McInnerny[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0570570/bio/) |
| Education | Marling School, Stroud; English at Wadham College, Oxford, matriculating in 1976 after a gap year backpacking around the world[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0570570/bio/) |
| Signature roles | Lord Percy Percy in *The Black Adder* (1983) and *Blackadder II* (1986); Captain Kevin Darling in *Blackadder Goes Forth* (1989)[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0570570/bio/) |
| Blackadder distinction | One of only three actors, with Rowan Atkinson and Tony Robinson, to appear in all four *Blackadder* series[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0570570/bio/) |
| Film debut | *Wetherby* (1985), a mystery drama directed by the playwright David Hare[3](https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/tim-mcinnerny-48789.php) |
| Recent screen work | Senator Thraex in *Gladiator II* and Butler in *The End* (both 2024); Stephen in *One Day* (2024); D in *Bookish* (2025)[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0570570/) |
| Television volume | 30 credited TV shows on Metacritic, with an average career score of 73[4](https://www.metacritic.com/person/tim-mcinnerny/) |
## Early life and education
McInnerny was born in Cheadle Hulme, Cheshire, and was brought up there and in Stroud, Gloucestershire, where his mother was from.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0570570/bio/) • [5](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2018/oct/25/tim-mcinnerny-peterloo-mike-leigh-important-prince-regent-blackadder) His father was a civil servant attached to the RAF, moved between sites looking after transport for the Ministry of Defence, and the family lived in rented civil-service accommodation; McInnerny has described the household as "upwardly mobile lower-middle class," with six children and a father who cycled to work.[5](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2018/oct/25/tim-mcinnerny-peterloo-mike-leigh-important-prince-regent-blackadder) His mother insisted the children speak received pronunciation, and because the family moved around he did not pick up a regional accent, a neutral voice he calls useful for an actor.[5](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2018/oct/25/tim-mcinnerny-peterloo-mike-leigh-important-prince-regent-blackadder)
After spending a year off traveling the globe with a backpack, he enrolled at Oxford's Wadham College in 1976 to study English, having previously attended Stroud's grammar school, Marling School.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0570570/bio/) His sister Lizzy McInnerny is also an actress.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0570570/bio/)
## Blackadder
McInnerny's television debut came as Lord Percy Percy, companion to [Rowan Atkinson](https://www.edgepedia.org/rowan-atkinson)'s Edmund, in *The Black Adder* (1983); he reprised a version of the same foppish character as Lord Percy Percy in *Blackadder II* (1986).[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0570570/bio/) • [6](https://n2w.me/personnalites/tim-mcinnerny) After the second series he declined to continue playing Percy as a regular in *Blackadder the Third* (1987), feeling the possibilities of the bumbling fool had been exhausted and wanting to avoid being typecast as a toff; he did appear in one episode of that series, playing the Scarlet Pimpernel among other parts.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0570570/bio/) • [5](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2018/oct/25/tim-mcinnerny-peterloo-mike-leigh-important-prince-regent-blackadder) • [6](https://n2w.me/personnalites/tim-mcinnerny)
Writers [Richard Curtis](https://www.edgepedia.org/richard-curtis) and [Ben Elton](https://www.edgepedia.org/ben-elton) persuaded him back into the regular cast for *Blackadder Goes Forth* (1989) by offering a differently named and differently tempered character, Captain Kevin Darling, the administrative adversary of Atkinson's Blackadder and a frequent target of his verbal attacks.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0570570/bio/) • [6](https://n2w.me/personnalites/tim-mcinnerny) This makes him the only member of the cast to play differently named regular characters in different series, and, along with Atkinson and [Tony Robinson](https://www.edgepedia.org/tony-robinson), one of only three actors to appear in all four *Blackadder* series.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0570570/bio/) He also appeared in the short film *Blackadder: Back and Forth*.[3](https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/tim-mcinnerny-48789.php)
The role has followed him: at a charity event, a woman arrived with her own "green" (her child's plasticine) to be photographed with Percy, a reference to the character's alchemy in *Blackadder II*.[5](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2018/oct/25/tim-mcinnerny-peterloo-mike-leigh-important-prince-regent-blackadder)
## Film career
McInnerny's film debut was in *Wetherby* (1985), David Hare's mystery drama starring [Vanessa Redgrave](https://www.edgepedia.org/vanessa-redgrave), Ian Holm, and [Judi Dench](https://www.edgepedia.org/judi-dench).[3](https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/tim-mcinnerny-48789.php) Through the late 1980s and 1990s he accumulated supporting parts in British and international productions: Sven the Berserk in [Terry Jones](https://www.edgepedia.org/terry-jones)'s *Erik the Viking* (1989), Sir William Catesby in *Richard III* (1995), Alonzo in *101 Dalmatians* (1996), a role he repeated in *102 Dalmatians* (2000), and Max in *Notting Hill* (1999).[3](https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/tim-mcinnerny-48789.php) • [7](https://www.kinobox.cz/osobnosti/40033-tim-mcinnerny) • [8](https://www.fandango.com/people/tim-mcinnerny-439529/film-credits)
Later film work includes the Doge in *Casanova* (2005), Richard in the horror-comedy *Severance* (2006), Hob in *Black Death* (2010), Quartermain in *Johnny English Reborn* (2011), Mace in *MI-5* (2015), and roles in *Eddie the Eagle* (2016) and *Sometimes Always Never* (2018).[3](https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/tim-mcinnerny-48789.php) • [8](https://www.fandango.com/people/tim-mcinnerny-439529/film-credits)
**Peterloo.** In Mike Leigh's historical epic *Peterloo* (2018), about the 1819 massacre at St Peter's Field, Manchester, McInnerny played the Prince Regent, the dissolute future [George IV](https://www.edgepedia.org/george-iv), in a heavily made-up performance under a lead-weighted fat suit.[5](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2018/oct/25/tim-mcinnerny-peterloo-mike-leigh-important-prince-regent-blackadder) He prepared extensively, reading widely (he noted the books were "all of which are completely contradictory"), making 50 foolscap pages of notes, and rehearsing with Leigh eight hours a day to build the character's walk and speech.[5](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2018/oct/25/tim-mcinnerny-peterloo-mike-leigh-important-prince-regent-blackadder) He has said it is rare for an actor to feel proud of being in something and that it is important, and that he feels that way about *Peterloo* because it depicts a history lesson not taught in school.[5](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2018/oct/25/tim-mcinnerny-peterloo-mike-leigh-important-prince-regent-blackadder)
His recent films include Calvin in *Killers Anonymous* and [George Biddell Airy](https://www.edgepedia.org/george-biddell-airy) in *The Aeronauts* (both 2019), Senator Thraex in [Ridley Scott](https://www.edgepedia.org/ridley-scott)'s *Gladiator II* (2024), and the Butler in [Joshua Oppenheimer](https://www.edgepedia.org/joshua-oppenheimer)'s *The End* (2024).[3](https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/tim-mcinnerny-48789.php) • [2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0570570/)
## Television career
Beyond *Blackadder*, McInnerny's television work has been extensive and varied. Early credits include the BBC political thriller *Edge of Darkness* (1985) and *A Very British Coup*; later ones include *The Line of Beauty* (2006), *Doctor Who* (as Mr Halpen, 2005), *Sherlock* (as Sir Eustace Carmichael), *Hustle*, *National Treasure* (2017), and *Midsomer Murders*.[3](https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/tim-mcinnerny-48789.php) • [4](https://www.metacritic.com/person/tim-mcinnerny/) • [9](https://www.talitha.org.uk/post/tim-mcinnerny-our-new-patron-on-talitha-arts-it-does-change-people-s-lives)
He played the northern lord Robett Glover in *Game of Thrones* in 2016 and 2017, appearing in five episodes.[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0570570/) In a 2018 interview he said he had not been called back since series six, with no on-screen death or explanation, and called the silent disappearance disrespectful to the audience.[5](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2018/oct/25/tim-mcinnerny-peterloo-mike-leigh-important-prince-regent-blackadder)
More recent television includes Paul Siemons in *The Serpent* (2021), Simon Gould in *Ten Percent* (2022), Apron Man in *Mrs. Davis* (2023), Stephen in the Netflix adaptation *One Day* (2024), and D in [Mark Gatiss](https://www.edgepedia.org/mark-gatiss)'s murder-mystery series *Bookish* (2025).[4](https://www.metacritic.com/person/tim-mcinnerny/) • [2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0570570/) On Metacritic, of his 30 credited TV shows, 20 rate as positive and two as mixed, with the highest score of 88 for *Sherlock* and the lowest of 52 for *Houdini & Doyle*.[4](https://www.metacritic.com/person/tim-mcinnerny/)
## Stage career
McInnerny has played leading roles at the National Theatre and with the [Royal Shakespeare Company](https://www.edgepedia.org/royal-shakespeare-company), starred in *What the Butler Saw* and *The Rocky Horror Show* in the West End, and played Iago in *Othello* at [Shakespeare's Globe](https://www.edgepedia.org/shakespeares-globe).[9](https://www.talitha.org.uk/post/tim-mcinnerny-our-new-patron-on-talitha-arts-it-does-change-people-s-lives) The Globe *Othello*, first performed there on 4 May 2007 with Eamonn Walker in the title role, drew a review in *The Independent on Sunday* praising "the seriously disturbed side of Tim McInnerny's Iago," whose pushiness morphs in soliloquies into manic fury.[10](https://walnutcreekmovietheater.blogspot.com/2011/09/othello-shakespeare-globe-theatre.html?m=0)
Documented stage credits include Arnholm in *The Lady from the Sea* at the Almeida Theatre (2003), Judge Brack in *Hedda Gabler* at the Theatre Royal, Bath (2010), and Dr Prentice in *What the Butler Saw* at the Vaudeville Theatre (2012).[11](https://theatricalia.com/person/4yt/tim-mcinnerny) He has also performed in productions of *The Caretaker* and *Twelfth Night*.[3](https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/tim-mcinnerny-48789.php)
## Other work and recognition
McInnerny has done extensive radio work alongside his screen and stage careers, was for a time the advertising voice of Renault, and appeared in a pop video for Kate Bush, whom he describes as a hero of his.[7](https://www.kinobox.cz/osobnosti/40033-tim-mcinnerny) • [5](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2018/oct/25/tim-mcinnerny-peterloo-mike-leigh-important-prince-regent-blackadder) In 2020 he became the first patron of Talitha Arts, a UK charity delivering therapeutic arts workshops for people in need of wellbeing support.[9](https://www.talitha.org.uk/post/tim-mcinnerny-our-new-patron-on-talitha-arts-it-does-change-people-s-lives) His long-term partner is the art director Annie Gosney.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0570570/bio/)
## References
1. [Tim McInnerny – Biography, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0570570/bio/)
2. [Tim McInnerny, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0570570/)
3. [Tim McInnerny Biography – Facts, Childhood, Family Life & Achievements, The Famous People](https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/tim-mcinnerny-48789.php)
4. [Tim McInnerny, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/person/tim-mcinnerny/)
5. [Tim McInnerny on Peterloo: 'It's rare to feel that something is so important', The Guardian (25 October 2018)](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2018/oct/25/tim-mcinnerny-peterloo-mike-leigh-important-prince-regent-blackadder)
6. [Tim McInnerny (70 ans) – Biographie et carrière, n2w.me](https://n2w.me/personnalites/tim-mcinnerny)
7. [Tim McInnerny, Kinobox.cz](https://www.kinobox.cz/osobnosti/40033-tim-mcinnerny)
8. [Tim McInnerny Filmography and Movies, Fandango](https://www.fandango.com/people/tim-mcinnerny-439529/film-credits)
9. [Tim McInnerny: Talitha Arts New Patron, Talitha Arts (18 September 2020)](https://www.talitha.org.uk/post/tim-mcinnerny-our-new-patron-on-talitha-arts-it-does-change-people-s-lives)
10. [Othello (Shakespeare's Globe Theatre Production) review notes quoting The Independent on Sunday](https://walnutcreekmovietheater.blogspot.com/2011/09/othello-shakespeare-globe-theatre.html?m=0)
11. [Tim McInnerny, Theatricalia](https://theatricalia.com/person/4yt/tim-mcinnerny)
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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 › English actors: 1970s to 1990s › Surnames L to M*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license