Biography

Simon Chandler (born Simon Timothy Chandler, 4 June 1953 in Luton, Bedfordshire, England) – British film, television, and theatre actor, educated at Bedford School, active since 1976. Often cast as senior establishment figures such as Members of Parliament, civil servants, and officials. His most notable film roles include Private Simmonds in A Bridge Too Far (1977), Merry Brandybuck (voice) in The Lord of the Rings (1978), David Nelson in The Bounty (1984), Hawkins in The Man Who Knew Too Little (1997), Mr. Wells in Vera Drake (2004), Mayor of Grasse in Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (2006), Lord Dawson in The King's Speech (2010), a Cabinet Minister in The Iron Lady (2011), Sir Augustus Wall Callcott in Mr. Turner (2014), John Taylor in The Theory of Everything (2014), and Sidney Rawle in The Mercy (2018). On television he is best known for Clement Attlee in The Crown (2016), Septon Eustace in House of the Dragon (2022), Mr. Hobbs in Jonny Briggs (1985, 28 episodes), and appearances in Hitler: The Rise of Evil (2003), The Thick of It (2009), Midsomer Murders, Coronation Street (2008), and The Diplomat (2023). On stage he has appeared in Hamlet, Macbeth, King Lear, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, and High Noon (2025, West End).