Hugh Quarshie

Hugh Quarshie
Born Hugh Anthony Quarshie
(1954-12-22) 22 December 1954
Accra, Gold Coast (now Ghana)
Nationality British
Education Bryanston School
Dean Close School
Alma mater Christ Church, Oxford
Occupation Actor
Years active 1979–present
Organization Royal Shakespeare Company
Spouse(s) Annika Sundström (? – present)
Children 3

Hugh Anthony Quarshie (born 22 December 1954) is a Ghanaian-born British actor. Some of his best-known roles include his appearances in the films Highlander (1986), The Church (1989), Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999), and the Doctor Who episodes "Daleks in Manhattan" and "Evolution of the Daleks" (2007) as well as his long-running role as Ric Griffin in the BBC medical drama Holby City (2001–present). Quarshie has played the role of Ric for over 15 years and is the longest serving cast member in Holby City.

Early and personal life

Quarshie is of mixed Ghanaian, English and Dutch ancestry. He was born in Accra, Ghana, to Emma Wilhelmina (née Philips; 1917–2004) and Richard Quarshie (1913–2006), an African of chiefly ancestry, emigrating with his family to the United Kingdom at the age of three.[1] He was educated at Bryanston School in Dorset and Dean Close School in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire (during which time he played the role of Othello at the Tuckwell Theatre), before reading PPE at Christ Church, Oxford.

Career

Quarshie had considered becoming a journalist before taking up acting. He is a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, and has appeared in many stage productions and television programmes, including the serial Behaving Badly with Judi Dench. He is well known for playing the roles of Sunda Kastagir in Highlander, Captain Panaka in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, and Ric Griffin on the television series Holby City. He attended the Star Wars fan event "Star Wars Celebration" in 1999. He portrayed Lieutenant Obutu in Wing Commander.

He appeared in the 2007 two-part Doctor Who episode "Daleks in Manhattan"/"Evolution of the Daleks" as Solomon, the leader of the shanty town Hooverville. He headed the cast of Michele Soavi's The Church (1989) as Father Gus, and played Aaron the Moor in the BBC Television Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus.

Quarshie has also narrated for television. His work includes the 2006 documentary Mega Falls of Iguacu (about the Iguaçu Falls), the 2009 adaptation of Small Island, and the 2010 BBC Wildlife series Great Rift: Africa's Wild Heart. In September 2010, he featured in an episode of Who Do You Think You Are?, in which he traced his Ghanaian and Dutch origins.[2][3] The episode revealed one of his ancestors to be Pieter Martinus Johannes Kamerling, a Dutch official on the Gold Coast, making Quarshie a distant relative of Dutch actor Antonie Kamerling.[4]

Politics

Quarshie is a supporter of the Women's Equality Party.[5]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
1980 The Dogs of War Zangaron Officer
1985 Baby: Secret of the Lost Legend Kenge Obe
1986 Highlander Sunda Kastagir
1989 La Chiesa Father Gus
1990 Nightbreed Detective Joyce
1999 Wing Commander Lieutenant Obutu
Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace Captain Panaka
2003 Conspiracy of Silence Fr. Joseph Ennis, S.J.
2017 Red Sparrow Simon Benford

Television

Year Title Role Notes
1968 Scene Episode ("Wide Games")
1979 The Knowledge Campion TV movie
1980 Buccaneer Major Ndobi 2 episodes
1981 Wolcott Dennis St George TV miniseries
The Jail Diary of Albie Sachs Danny Young TV movie
A Midsummer Night's Dream Philostrate TV movie
1983 Rumpole of the Bailey Jonathan Mazenze Episode: "Rumpole and the Golden Thread"
1983 Angels Turi Mimi 2 episodes
1984 Sharma and Beyond Man on Stairs TV movie
1985 Titus Andronicus Aaron TV movie
Alas Smith and Jones 1 episode
1986–89 Screenplay Mike/Wallace 2 episodes
1988 A Gentleman's Club Baba Episode: A Question of Er...
1989 Behaving Badly Daniel TV miniseries, 4 episodes
1991 Chancer Kazeem 2 episodes
Press Gang Inspector Hibbert 2 episodes
1992–94 Medics Dr Tom Carey 19 episodes
1992 Surgical Spirit Fergus Debonaire 1 episode
Virtual murder Dr Mellor Episode: A Dream of Dracula
The Tomorrow People Professor John Galt 5 episodes (The 5-part story officially known as "The Origin Story")
1993 The Comic Strip Presents ... Lieutenant Delaney Episode: Gregory: Diary of a Nutcase
Red Dwarf Computer Voice Episode: "Emohawk: Polymorph II"
1994 Horizon Narrator TV documentary
The Chief Vincent Pierce 1 episode
MacGyver: Lost Treasure of Atlantis Inspector Rhodes TV movie
Shakespeare: The Animated Tales Cassius TV miniseries, Episode: Julius Caesar, voice
1999 The Murder of Stephen Lawrence Neville Lawrence TV movie
2000 Jason and the Argonauts Chiron the centaur TV miniseries
2001–present Holby City Ric Griffin Recurring role, 505 episodes
2004–present Casualty Ric Griffin Recurring guest role
2007 Doctor Who Solomon 2 episodes: "Daleks in Manhattan" and "Evolution of the Daleks"
2012 White Heat Victor TV miniseries, 6 episodes
2017 Still Star-Crossed Prince Cosimo 3 episodes

Selected theatre performances

References

  1. ↑ Hugh Quarshie at TheGenealogist.co.uk.
  2. ↑ Hugh Quarshie, BBC Who Do You Think You Are? magazine, 2010.
  3. ↑ "Hugh Quarshie — Holby City's African chief", BBC News, 6 September 2010.
  4. ↑ Hugh Quarshie is related to Antonie Kamerling through Pieter Martinus Johannes Kamerling's brother Anthony Wilhelm Constantinus Gerardus Kamerling (1824–1875). Source: GoldCoastDataBase.
  5. ↑ Hugh Quarshie (23 April 2016). Hugh Quarshie: Give half your votes to equality on 5 May – WE think that's fair (Video). Women's Equality Channel via YouTube. Retrieved 28 April 2016.
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