Anton Lesser
Lesser in June 2011
Born	(1952-02-14)14 February 1952 (age 74) Birmingham, England, United Kingdom
Alma mater	University of Liverpool Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1979–present
Spouse	Madeleine Lesser
Children	2

Anton Lesser (born 14 February 1952) is a British actor. He is known for his roles asQyburn in theHBO seriesGame of Thrones,Harold Macmillan inThe Crown,Clement Attlee inA United Kingdom, Chief Superintendent Bright inEndeavour, and Major Lio Partagaz inAndor. An associate of theRoyal Shakespeare Company, he has performed numerousShakespearean roles on stage and television.

Anton Lesser was born inBirmingham^[1] on 14 February 1952,^[2] the son of David Lesser and his wife Amelia Cohen.^{[citation needed]} He is from aJewish background.^[3]

He was educated atMoseley Grammar School^[4] and at theUniversity of Liverpool, where he earned a degree in architecture in 1973.^[5]

Lesser went to theRoyal Academy of Dramatic Art from 1974 until 1976,^[1] and on graduation in 1977^[6] was awarded the Bancroft Gold Medal as the most promising actor of his year. His final performance there was as Gethin Price inComedians byTrevor Griffiths.^[1]

Lesser was spotted inThe Comedians and offered a contract by the casting director for theRoyal Shakespeare Company (RSC).^[1]

As an associate artist with the RSC, Lesser played many of Shakespeare's great roles.^[1] In theBBC Television Shakespeare productions, he was Troilus (Troilus and Cressida), Edgar (King Lear), andFeste (Twelfth Night). On stage, he has portrayedRomeo (a titular character inhis play),Prince Hamlet (the titular character ofhis play), Brutus (Julius Caesar),Petruchio (The Taming of the Shrew), Richard III (the titular character ofhis play), and others.^{[7][better source needed]}

When he moved toLondon, the reviews were less flattering than he had become accustomed to at the RSC. However, he continued to win roles on stage, including as Stanley inHarold Pinter'sThe Birthday Party,Petruchio inThe Taming of the Shrew, Rover inWild Oats and Brutus inDeborah Warner'sJulius Caesar in 2005.^[1]

Lesser is a frequent radio contributor and played the title role in theBBC Radio adaptations of the first fiveMarcus Didius Falco mysteries byLindsey Davis. He has also recorded manyaudiobooks, including much of the work ofCharles Dickens. Lesser's recording ofGreat Expectations won him a Talkie Award. Other books range fromJohn Milton'sParadise Lost,Homer andRumi^[8] to contemporary novels byRobert Harris (Fatherland) andPhilip Pullman. For two months in 2013, Lesser was a regular cast member playing Robin Carrow inAmbridge Extra, aBBC Radio 4 Extra spin-off from theBBC Radio 4 dramaThe Archers.^[9]

In 2013, during thethird season of theHBO Max seriesGame of Thrones, Lesser began playing the recurring role of Qyburn, an enigmaticmad scientist who served as part of the retinue ofCersei Lannister (Lena Headey). Qyburn, and Lesser's portrayal of him, were popular with fans, particularly as the series went on and the character appeared more frequently and had greater influence over the narrative.^[10][11]The Ringer described him as "the last curious man inWesteros" and noted that the character "refuses to seem like aMacGuffin, despite totally being one."^[12] The character returned across the remainder of the series run untilthe penultimate episode in 2019; Qyburn was one of the characters who perished in the episode, which led to many fans producingmemes about his abrupt death.^[13]

From 2013, Lesser also played Chief Superintendent Bright in the TV seriesEndeavour.^[14]

Lesser portrayedThomas More in theBBC mini-seriesWolf Hall, and received a nomination for theBritish Academy Television Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance.^[15]

In 2022, Lesser played Major Lio Partagaz, a supporting antagonist in theStar Wars spinoffAndor. His performance of Partagaz, a ranking member of theEmpire's intelligence agency, the Imperial Security Bureau, was noted by critics.Digital Spy commented that Lesser delivered dialogue on Imperial bureaucracy with "powerful coolness."^[16]

In July 2025, it was announced that he would play the role of Garrick Olivander in the upcomingHarry Potter TV series.^[17]

In 2015, Lesser became a public supporter of Chapel Lane Theatre Company, based inStratford-upon-Avon.^[18]

Lesser's daughter Lily Lesser is also an actor.^[19]

• Romeo,Romeo and Juliet, 1980, RSC
• Hamlet,Hamlet, 1982, Donmar Warehouse, London
• Troilus,Troilus and Cressida, 1981, RSC
• Richard III,The Plantagenets (Henry VI, part 1–3 andRichard III), 1988, RSC
• Edwin Forrest,Two Shakespearean Actors, 1990, RSC
• Henry Bullingbrook,Richard II,^[20] 1990, RSC
• Petruchio,The Taming of the Shrew, 1992, RSC
• Frank Ford,The Merry Wives of Windsor, 1992, RSC
• Serge,'Art', 1997,Wyndham's Theatre, London
• Elyot,Private Lives, 1999, Lyttelton Theatre, London
• Iachimo,Cymbeline, 2003, RSC
• Marcus Brutus,Julius Caesar, 2005, Barbican, London
• Leontes,The Winter's Tale, 2006, RSC
• Oliver Lucas,The Vertical Hour, 2008, Royal Court Theatre, London
• Dr. Rank,A Doll's House, 2009, Donmar Warehouse, London
• Laurie Lee,Red Sky at Sunrise: Laurie Lee in Words and Music, 2023–present, Hambletts Productions, Stratford-upon-Avon
• Thomas Hardy,A Beautiful Thread: Thomas Hardy in Words and Music, 2024–present, Hambletts Productions, Stratford-upon-Avon
• Ghost,Hamlet, 2025, Royal Shakespeare Company, Stratford-upon-Avon

• Anton Lesser atIMDb

• 1952 births
• Living people
• 20th-century English male actors
• 21st-century English male actors
• Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
• Alumni of the University of Liverpool
• English male film actors
• English male Shakespearean actors
• English male stage actors
• English male television actors
• English male voice actors
• Jewish English male actors
• Male actors from Birmingham, West Midlands
• People educated at Moseley School
• Royal Shakespeare Company members

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Use British English from April 2014
• All Wikipedia articles written in British English
• Use dmy dates from April 2014
• Articles with hCards
• All articles with unsourced statements
• Articles with unsourced statements from September 2024
• All articles lacking reliable references
• Articles lacking reliable references from November 2024