Craig Fairbrass
Born (1963-01-15) 15 January 1963
London, England
Occupations
  • Actor
  • producer
  • screenwriter
Years active1979–present
Spouse
Elke Kellick
​
(m. 1987)​
Children2
Websitecraigfairbrass.co.uk

Craig John Fairbrass (born 15 January 1963) is an English actor, producer, and screenwriter. He has made appearances in London's Burning (1990), Cliffhanger (1993), Killing Time (1998), EastEnders (1999–2001), The Great Dome Robbery (2002), The Long Weekend (2005), Rise of the Footsoldier film series (2007–present), The Bank Job (2008), House of the Rising Sun (2011), St George's Day (2012), Breakdown (2014), The Hooligan Factory (2014), Villain (2020),

He is also the original voice of Gaz and Simon "Ghost" Riley in the Call of Duty video game series (2007–present).

Early life

Craig John Fairbrass was born at Mile End Hospital in London on 15 January 1963, the son of seamstress Maureen (nee Bryan) and dock worker Jack Fairbrass. He grew up in Stepney and has a younger sister named Lindsey.[1] After being expelled from Eaglesfield Boys Comprehensive School in Woolwich at the age of 15,[2] he successfully auditioned for the National Youth Theatre.[2] He then began searching for a talent agent to represent him, supporting himself financially by working as a roofer in the daytime,[2] and working evenings as a doorman, at what he would later call some of the "less desirable nightspots" in southeast London.[1] From these jobs, he saved enough money to buy a small sandwich shop at Woolwich Market,[2] for a while, until he began to secure more acting roles.[1]

Career

After a few years of walk-on roles in Emmerdale, Three Up Two Down, and Shelley, Fairbrass made his first real TV appearance as an actor in the 1984 BBC television series Big Deal as Nev in the episode "Fighting chance" followed by another BBC role in Tucker's Luck. He made his feature film acting debut as D.I Challoner in the 1989 Working title thriller For Queen and Country opposite Academy Award winner Denzel Washington. Film and television appearances quickly followed, including the Ray Winstone film Tank Malling, and the Channel 4 Film, The Final Frame playing Suggs's right-hand man, Franklin. He also landed a regular role as Gary 'Technique' Pagnall in the ITV drama series London's Burning in 1990. That same year Fairbrass was cast opposite Helen Mirren as Detective Inspector Frank Burkin in the Bafta/Emmy Award-winning original Prime Suspect 1 and 2.[3]

In 1991, he travelled to Los Angeles and secured his first Hollywood acting role in the 1993 action blockbuster Cliffhanger with Sylvester Stallone.[4] This led to roles in independent films with lead roles in Beyond Bedlam (1994),[4] with Elizabeth Hurley, Galaxis (1995),[4] with Brigitte Nielsen, Proteus, Killing Time, and Darklands.[4]

In 1999, Fairbrass landed the regular role of Dan Sullivan in EastEnders, leaving the show in August 2001.[5] He then took the lead role of Ray Betson in the Channel Five crime drama The Great Dome Robbery.[5]

Fairbrass returned to the U.S., starring in the Chris Klein comedy, The Long Weekend,[4] and as Henry Caine opposite Nathan Fillion in White Noise 2.[5] In February 2007, he appeared as the renegade Jaffa, Arkad, in the episode "Talion" in the final season of Stargate SG-1,[4] as a guest lead in Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles,[4] opposite Lena Headey, and as guest lead Devon Burke, a rogue MI5 agent in David Mamet's hit show The Unit.[4]

In 2007, he starred in the feature film Rise of the Footsoldier,[4] as real life gangster Pat Tate, and opposite Jason Statham in The Bank Job.[5] The following year he joined Til Schweiger in the game-based action film Far Cry (2008). In 2011, Fairbrass took the co-lead in the crime thriller St George's Day, other lead roles included Vikingdom 3D, House of the Rising Sun,[4] opposite Dave Bautista, Hijacked, and Get Lucky and Let me Survive.[4]

In 2012, Fairbrass took his first lead role in a US action thriller The Outsider,[4] which starred Jason Patric, James Caan and Shannon Elizabeth. In Bula Quo!, he co-starred alongside Rick Parfitt and Francis Rossi.[4] In 2014, he took the lead alongside James Cosmo, Bruce Payne, Emmett Scanlan, and Olivia Grant. in the psychological thriller, Breakdown.[4]

In 2015, he played the lead role of Jack Cregan in the revenge thriller London Heist alongside Steven Berkoff, which he also co-wrote.[6] The film was produced by his own son, Luke Fairbrass. Craig Fairbrass went on to win the Best Actor Award at the 2016 Marbella International Film Festival for the role.[7][8]

In 2017, Fairbrass reprised his role of Pat Tate in Rise of the Footsoldier 3: The Pat Tate Years,[4] a prequel to the 2007 original and proved to be Fairbrass's most powerful performance to date, winning him the best actor award at the 2018 National Film Awards in London.[9]

In 2020, Fairbrass played Eddie Franks in the London crime thriller Villain.[4] He reprised his role of Pat Tate in the fifth installment of Rise of the Footsoldier Origins, directed by Nick Nevern.[4]

In 2022, Fairbrass starred in Ross McCall's A Violent Man.[10]

Voice

Fairbrass provided additional voices in the video game Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (2007), then again as one of the most iconic characters in the game's history as Ghost in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2009) and as various characters in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3.[4] Fairbrass also voiced a main role in the video game Battlefield V (2018) during the War Stories campaign mission, “Under No Flag” as George Mason

Personal life

Fairbrass married former Page Three glamour model Elke Kellick in 1987.[11] They have two sons together.[11]

Fairbrass has been typecast as a hard British gangster and while he enjoys the roles in films revolving around knife crime, criminal gangs, and violence, Fairbrass stated in a 2020 interview: "I'm very wary of the violence that is in the films. It's like playing Call of Duty [...] people say to me, 'How do you feel that you're [...] voicing characters in games that could be the instigation for someone to go out and commit murder?' I am just an actor. At the end of the day, it's all make believe. Some people take it a step further."[12]

Filmography

Television

Year Title Role Notes
1980 Shelley Darth Episode: "May the Best Man Win"
1984 Big Deal Nev Episode: "Fighting Chance"
1985 Who, Sir? Me, Sir? Lifeguard Episode: #1.2
1985 Tucker's Luck Dino Episode: #3.9
1986 Emmerdale Gypsy Man 8 episodes
1987 No Place Like Home Macho Episode: "The Marathon"
1987 Three Up, Two Down Man On The Beach Episode: "Come Sail with Me"
1990 The Final Frame Franklin Television film
1990–1991 London's Burning Gary 'Technique' Pagnall 7 episodes
1991 Prime Suspect D.I. Frank Burkin Television miniseries
1992 The Return of Shelley Darth Episode: "Accountants & Zulus"
1992 Prime Suspect 2 DI Frank Burkin Television miniseries
1998 Duck Patrol Hero 8 episodes
1998 The Bill Steve André Episode: "All for One"
1999 Soldier of Fortune, Inc. John Harkin Episode: "Figure Eight"
1999 An Unsuitable Job for a Woman Jason Episode: "Living on Risk"
1999–2001 EastEnders Dan Sullivan 137 episodes
2004 The Courtroom Steven Smith Episode: "Twice Bitten"
2006 Dream Team Terry Rose Episode: "War of the Roses"
2007 Stargate SG-1 Arkad Episode: "Talion"
2007 The Unit Devon Burke Episode: "Side Angle Side"
2008 Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles Fake Sarkissian Episode: "What He Beheld"
2012 Métal Hurlant Chronicles Timarek Episode: "Three on a Match"
2023 One Piece Chef Zeff 4 episodes
2023 Boat Story Guy 6 episodes

Film

Year Title Role Notes
1979 Scum Extra Uncredited
1984 Real Life Boyfriend
1988 Soursweet Driver
1988 For Queen and Country Challoner
1989 Tank Malling Jackie
1993 Cliffhanger Delmar
1994 Beyond Bedlam Terry Hamilton
1995 Galaxis Tarquin
1995 Proteus Alex, DEA Agent
1996 Darklands Frazer Truick
1998 Killing Time Det. Robert Bryant
1999 Weak at Denise Roy
2002 The Great Dome Robbery Ray Betson
2004 Se sarà luce sarà bellissimo - Moro: Un'altra storia Brigatista
2005 The Long Weekend Frank Silver
2007 White Noise: The Light Henry Caine
2007 Rise of the Footsoldier Pat Tate
2008 The Bank Job Nick Barton
2008 Far Cry Jason Parker
2009 31 North 62 East Major Paul Davidson
2010 The Shouting Men Tony
2010 Just for the Record Malcolm 'Mental Fists' Wickes
2010 Devil's Playground Cole
2010 Dead Cert Freddy 'Dead Cert' Frankham
2010 Freight Jed
2011 House of the Rising Sun Charlie Blackstone
2012 Deranged Anthony
2012 Hijacked Bruce Leib
2012 St George's Day Ray Collishaw
2013 Get Lucky Sebastian
2013 Bula Quo! Simon
2013 Vikingdom Sven
2013 Let Me Survive Sean
2013 Saving Santa Mercenary Voice
2014 The Outsider Lex Walker Also writer
2014 The Hooligan Factory Mickey
2015 Rise of the Footsoldier 2: Reign of the General Pat Tate Flashback
2016 Breakdown Alfie Jennings Also executive producer
2017 London Heist Jack Cregan Also executive producer and writer
2017 Rise of the Footsoldier 3: The Pat Tate Story Pat Tate Also executive producer
2019 Avengement Lincoln Burgess
2019 Rise of the Footsoldier: Marbella Pat Tate
2019 Muscle Terry
2020 Villain Eddie Franks
2021 Rise of the Footsoldier: Origins Pat Tate
2022 A Violent Man Steve Mackelson
2023 Rise of the Footsoldier: Vengeance Pat Tate

Video games

Year Title Role Notes
2007 Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Gaz, Wallcroft, additional voices
2009 Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Lt. Simon "Ghost" Riley
2010 Call of Duty: Black Ops Swift
2011 Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Wallcroft, additional voices
2012 Infex Doyle
2016 Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered Gaz, Wallcroft, additional voices
2016 Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare Tee, additional voices
2018 Battlefield V George Mason
TBA Squadron 42 Vat Tagaca In production

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Work Result Ref.
2016 Marbella International Film Festival Best Actor London Heist Won [13]
2018 4th National Film Awards UK Best Actor Rise of the Footsoldier 3: The Pat Tate Story Won [14][13]
2022 8th National Film Awards UK Best Actor A Violent Man Won [15][13]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Resume of work for Craig Fairbrass the actor".
  2. 1 2 3 4 Foster, Tom (8 August 2017). "Five Things You Didn't Know about Craig Fairbrass". TVOvermind. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
  3. ↑ Roberts, Jerry (2009). Encyclopedia of Television Film Directors. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press. p. 573. ISBN 978-0-8108-6138-1.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 "Craig Fairbrass credits". tvguide.com. Retrieved 31 May 2023.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "The Stars of EastEnders – Then and Now". Vedomosti. 24 January 2017. Archived from the original on 1 May 2018.
  6. ↑ Sandwell, Ian (17 March 2015). "'Gunned Down' starts London shoot". Screen Daily. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
  7. ↑ "Awards 2016". Marbella Film Festival. 19 July 2016. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
  8. ↑ Smith, John (14 September 2017). "EWN EXCLUSIVE: The glitz and glitter of the Marbella International Film Festival returns". EuroWeekly News. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
  9. ↑ "Winners announced at the 4th annual National Film Awards UK". National Film Awards. 29 March 2018. Retrieved 31 March 2018.
  10. ↑ Felperin, Leslie (1 February 2022). "A Violent Man review – hardnut prison drama is guilty as charged". The Guardian. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
  11. 1 2 Morgan, Sally (24 March 2001). "Interview: How I muscled into the Square; Craig Fairbrass talks about his transformation from Hollywood beefcake to Albert Square's latest bad guy". The Mirror. Retrieved 1 January 2013.
  12. ↑ "VILLAIN: Craig Fairbrass Interview (2020) British Gangster Films". YouTube.
  13. 1 2 3 "Craig fairbrass Awards". IMDb (Index source only). Retrieved 2 September 2023.
  14. ↑ "Winners at the 4th annual National Film Awards UK 2019". National Film Awards. Retrieved 29 March 2018.
  15. ↑ "Nominees for the 8th annual National Film Awards 2022 announced". National Film Awards. Retrieved 20 April 2022.
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