Alan Rickman was waaay too far down this list! 😔 Christopher Lee and Ralph Fiennes should’ve made it also, Fiennes was (in my opinion) incredibly underrated as Voldemort in HP
Popular culture & Arthouse, thriller & romance - the best actors might do them all. Also I think Voldemort was played the only way he could’ve done - a large ham
And fuck Michael Caine he is so overrated. He always plays the same character and for me his charatcers are never believable. He doesn't deserve to be ranked so high I think hes very overrated.
...and Sir Robert Stephen's, husband of Dame Maggie Smith (Downton Abbey) and father of Toby Stevens (who could be at least an honourable mention in his own right!)
Charlie Chaplin #7 ?!?! There would be no cinema as we know it today without Charlie Chaplin. He changed the course of moving pictures and was brilliant. NUMBER 1, without a doubt.
How could you overlook the likes of Richard Burton, John Hurt, Charles Laughton, John Gielgud, Claude Rains, James Mason, Ray Milland, George Sanders, Robert Shaw, Peter Sellers, David Niven, Trevor Howard, Ralph Richardson, Nigel Hawthorne, Peter Cushing, Albert Finney, Jeremy Irons, Timothy Dalton, Ralph Fiennes, Ben Kingsley, Kenneth Branagh and Sean Connery?!
Why is the brilliant actor Leslie Howard, who died on a government mission in WWII, not on the list? Or London born Bob Hope who spent years entertaining fellow American soldiers near battlefields in that same war. Also, I vote for Jonny Lee Miller - the best Sherlock Holmes of today..
HOW THE HELL IS ALAN RICKMAN 9TH, IAN MSKELLEN 8TH, GARY OLDMAN 6TH, AND COLLIN FIRTH ONLY AN HONORABLE MENTION?! THATS INSANE! What's even more insane is how Jeremy Irons isn't on this list!
Gary Oldman is always underrated by Americans. He's like a chameleon: adapting, changing into any character. He can play anything: drama, comedy, satiric, action, thriller, action, science fiction. I still didn't get over Zorg and many others!
The amount of talent in all kind of art (cinema, music, literature...) that UK possesses is just ridiculously massive. They are such a tiny thing in the map and such a bright people at the same time. Its just unbelievable.
María Matmos Yeah your right. 65 million people on a tiny island with so much talent. From Shakespeare, The Beatles ..the list is endless. Amazing really. Love the UK.
He may not be as recognized as many others, but I think Stephen Moyer (HBO series: True Blood) is exceptionally wonderful in his role as vampire Bill Compton. He did so well in that role that it’s like he stepped out of the pages of the books.
Agree. SEAN CONNERY SHOULD BE NUMBER 1 #8 #7 agree#6gary old man. #5peter iTools. #4 Laurence Olivier. #3 Michael Caine. #2 Anthony Hopkins. #1sean Connery. Daniel Day Lewis
+Patricia Phillips For me: 6 Gary oldman 5 connery 4 day-lewis 3 hopkins 2 mckellen 1 olivier even though I want to rank higher, and I also can't logically agree with connery as 1 if neeson is as good as him, and Daniel did drama and action very well where some other actors failed, but to me hopkins and olivier are as good as him, even Mark rylance
Rowan Atkinson, Stephen Fry, Hugh Laurie, Sir Sean Connery, Ian McDiarmid, Sir Richard Attenborough, Sir Ian Holm, Richard Harris, Sir Michael Gambon, Sean Bean, John Cleese..I know this is a tough list to make, but you could have at least extended the 'Honorable Mentions'.. Also I think Sir Ian Mckellen deserves a higher ranking. He is versatile, does the best monologues and is an amazing stage actor.
VW2015 : I agree! Alan Rickman stays as one of my all time favorite actors ever, anywhere .... not just from the U.K. Rowan Atkinson still brings some of the best belly laughs, Sean Connery only got better looking with age and that wonderful and very distinctive voice.
Rowan Atkinson is a comic genius NOT a great actor, and Sean Connery, Anthony Hopkins and Michael Caine are the WOODEN type of BRITISH actor Americans go for!
Seriously?! Alan Rickman is number nine? To me he is the greatest actor in the history of actors! RIP Alan Rickman. You were the reason I was happy in the mornings of everyday. I will make sure your spirit lives on! Who's with me?
***** Martin Freeman's, Tom Hardy's and Benedict Cumberbatch's success are recent, their acting careers are not. I remember watching movies with them almost 10 years ago.
What the hell, Colin Firth is just in the honorable mention, he deserve to be in the top at the 1, 2 or 3 places, and Alan rickman just at 9th, why he is so talented
I agree!!! This list is too subjective, as the ranking of these many wonderful U.K. actors is certainly not how I would list them. Colin Firth is a favorite of mine , as he is great in all his roles. I was thrilled to see him win an Oscar. Alan Rickman may have started starring in movies later in life than most actors, yet his performance in ‘Die Hard’ was phenomenal! We lost out ‘big time’ when he died too soon,. Just think of how many more wonderful performances he could have done.
Well, Charlie Chaplin has some amazing acting roles, Atkinson is far better as a comedian then an actor - on the other hand, where do you draw the line between one and the other?
@@ruthmeb Connery is not a good actor. He exceeds most of the hams on this list. Sit down and watch most of the films and you will realize that he steals the show even from the "so called" main actors. Indiana Jones, he stole the limelight from Harrison Ford... Highlander, he stole the scene from Christopher Lambert, The Rock, he stole the limelight from Nicholas Cage... compare all the 007 films, he stands head and shoulders above all other actors that followed him, including Roger Moore. Before you speak, find all his films and warch them before you utter a single word
Some honorable mentions: Robert Shaw (Jaws, Man for all Seasons, From Russia with Love),Donald Pleasence (You only Live Twice, The Great Escape). Ian McDiarmid (Darth Sidious - Star Wars); Michael York (Logan's run, Cabaret), Basil Rathbone (best Sherlock Holmes); Stephen Boyd ( Ben Hur); Oliver Reed (The Three Musketeers, Oliver); Christopher Lee (Dracula, The Man With the Golden Gun, Star Wars), Richard Attenborough (The Great Escape, Miracle on 34th Street).
Not many may know who Steven Boyd was, but I have been a fan of his for decades. He was terrific in ‘Ben Hur’!!! All the actors that are mentioned in your comments have given us note worthy performances.
I discovered Oliver Reed recently and am fascinated with his interviews like the one where Shelley Winter threw a drink on his face 😂 and movies like The Hunting Party
@@106andie Oliver Reed was becoming a pretty big star by the 1970s, but, because of his reputation for drinking, directors wouldn't hire him and his career went down the toilet. It's a shame because he was soooo good.
No mention of Tim Curry or even Jeremy Irons!? Along with Rickman, those are the epic trinity of British actors...the bar that all actors are measured by!!!
This is perhaps the worst top ten that Mojo have ever done. How do they miss Richard Burton? Burton Olivier O'Toole Caine any then the rest D.D.Lewis might, possibly, make the top 20.
Nathan Francis exactly! Not even given honorable mention! I guess, because he wasn't in harry potter or star wars,or lord of the rings, hes not worth mentioning!
Bill Nighy is a great talent like the others listed here. What I admire about him the most is how he can be so memorable in every role that he has been in.
Maybe you should redo the list and let the RU-vid comment section vote, Mojo. Christian Bale and Liam Neeson only having honorable mentions is shameful, and Rowan Atkinson, James McAvoy, and Sean Connery are left out because...?
No, Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor, and Christian Bale getting honorable mentions while Sean Connery and Patrick Stewart not getting even an HM is shameful. Also, I really think that people need to stop saying Atkinson. He's not that great... definitely not great enough to make a list like this.
Victim of Lag Rowan is a legend. And what's wrong with Liam, Christian and Ewan "greatest-actor-to-ever-bless-this-Earth" McGregor*? Unless you're referring to that an honorable mention is all they got? And sorry about the lag, mate. *Seriously, Ewan should be #1. I'd elaborate, but I already did in a previous comment.
This video should be called my irrelevant opinion of the best actors that were brittish BECAUSE ANYONE THAT PUTS ALAN RICKMAN AT 9TH IS CLEARLY IRRELEVANT
@Daniel Griffin, His dad was Irish and he loved Ireland - to a point where he exaggerated his Irishness by being vague about where he was born - Ireland or Leeds, England. Fair enough. But the truth is that he was born, lived and died in England. Spent most of his spare time watching and teaching cricket at Lords in London.
For those of you complaining that some of the actors on this list are Irish, Scottish, etc., and therefore don't deserve to be on said list, quick geography recap: the United Kingdom consists of Great Britain, Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Wales, so the likes of Liam Neeson, Daniel Day-Lewis, and Peter O'Toole deserve their spots on this list.
Well Peter O'Toole is debatable as it is disputed that he was born in either Galway, Ireland or Leeds, England. Daniel Day Lewis is English but holds both British and Irish citizenship, and Liam Neeson was born a catholic in the north. But at the end of the day nobody can get bent out of shape about it. It's pretty accurate to be fair!
O toole wasnt born in northern ireland. The united kingdom is a political entity. Day lewis and neeson always refer to themselves as irish. Not british. As most irish in the 6 counties do also.
I can't believe the GREAT Richard Burton isn't on this list! What the Hell are you thinking? Or not thinking...good grief. At least you remembered Gary Oldman...but not Ben Kingsly? You have Colin Firth, which is good, but ever heard of a British actor named Charles Laughton? Or Basil Rathbone? Or Derek Jacoby? Or Bill Nighy?
Sean Connerey, Jeremy Irons, Ralph Fiennes ever heared? Sorry man. I never heared about " Or Basil Rathbone? Or Derek Jacoby? Or Bill Nighy?". Must be your private wishing list. Continue dreaming................. I only agree in the point of Richard Buron to be mentioned and Charles Laughton. But reading your statement makes me thinking, what is wrong with this person?
Absolutely. There are so many great British actors who should of gotten mentioned. You can't do just a top ten, a top 25 in no particular order would be the correct thing to do. Their top 10 and our's are completely different, it's a matter of taste.
No Richard Burton, Ben Kingsley, Albert Finney, Ralph Richards, John Gielgud, Rex Harrison, Sean Connery, Alan Bates, Bob Hoskins, Richard Harris, Roger Moore can someone say THE WILD GEESE?
About Half of the people from Northern Ireland Consider themselves British, The Other Half Consider themselves Irish, It is on Irish Land but Ruled by British Law, I'm from Northern Ireland, and Personally, I Consider myself Irish, But there's nothing wrong with saying I'm from the UK. Having Liam Neeson on this list is Acceptable, Though he considers himself Irish. The Fun is thing about living in Northern Ireland is you can say ''I'm Irish'' AND ''I'm from the UK'' so that's pretty cool. Lol Can We just calm down.
Toxic Twist I am an anglo-irish if you will, and I think like all of us should be together as the UK and be an amazing culture and world power together. I don't understand why alot of Irish people despise England... Like it's stupid.
Toxic Twist Northern Ireland is still on the island of Ireland though,NOT the island of Britain, so you are right in one way Liam Neeson is from the UK but he's NOT British,he's Irish and yes, ye are all Irish as far as we are concerned down here too! Its our island from top to bottom and the only way you can tell you're going into the North is the road signs change from kilometres to miles and are not repeated as Gaelige! One advantage though is we can go up for some cheap shopping every now and then; "Guess how much I got this for in Newry,???"lol!
Michael White Centuries old memories of pain and oppression can take a long time to fade, Michael.I agree it is sad we can't all forgive and move on though NOT as the UK! Honestly, no one here in the Republic is going to like THAT idea! There will be no going back I am afraid and it's highly likely in the future that Ireland will unite under the Republic ( though I think most of us agree it needs to sort out it's infrastructure and unemployment problems first;and having our own NHS would be helpful too!) As an English born Irish woman I have encountered suspicion but NOT amongst all Irish people and we did let the queen come here a few years back!But NO ! NO way is the Republic of Ireland going to join back up with the UK! Be very careful Michael;in all honesty it's not wise to express such an idea in public at all as not every one would be as tolerant a s myself!
Not Amused I know, but you have too look at the intention of why Britain ever concurred a country. Never with the intention too hurt innocent people. I think the past is a great thing too look back on and say, yes... That was us, but when you are dwelling on something so insignificant as what was done purely on political intention, it goes way too far.
Daniel Day Lewis has played in only 7 movies the last 20 years and is the only actor to win 3 oscars. EDIT: he is the only one to win them as the best lead actor.
+Susan Pendell He played the lead in "Gangs of New York", "There Will Be Blood", and "Lincoln", all directed by very well-known directors. He also played the lead in "My Left Foot", "The Last of the Mohicans", and "In the name of the father"
ILuvKonata Oh well, not so sure about P. Stewart. But otherwise totally with you. Not to forget Hugh Laurie. And Eddie Redmayne. I think the time range has been chose too wide: From the 40ies until now and only 10 greatest actors? That's simply not enough.
Okay... Alan Rickman, Ian McKellan and Gary Oldman should have been higher. Colin Firth should have been in the countdown, so id Sir Christopher Lee and Ewan McGregor. And Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman should be added in there as well.
10 is not a big enough list for a country with so many amazing actors over the decades. Awards do not tell how great an actor is. I don't think O'Toole (sure, he's Irish) ever got an Oscar (for movies like Night of the Generals). Some of the best work flies under the radar because it is too eclectic for main stream audiences who want car chases and super heroes. Subtlety like Colin Firth in a Single Man or The Railway Man or many of his earlier works like Tumbledown or Gary Oldman in Immortal Beloved (and even Dracula) would never appeal to most American audiences. Niven, Scofield, Burton, Rickman, Olivier, Redgrave, Jacobi, Broadbent and so many past and new, young British actors have few peers. I think British actors, for the moist part, approach acting as an art, not a dollar sign and path to fame. Most are classically trained and don't hang around as waiters waiting for a break as pretty boys. They seek quality.
They need to do a second list. To get all the ones they missed. David Tennant, Ralph and Joseph Fiennes, Pierce Brosnan, Sean Bean, Roger Moore, Patrick Stewart, Clive Owens, Christopher Eccleston, And Sean Connery.
Peter Sellers, Ralph Fiennes, John Hurt, Kenneth Branagh, Jeremy Irons, Patrick Stewart, Ben Kingsley, Hugo Weaving, Tim Roth, Michael Fassbender...Not even an honorable mention ?
Th3 D0ctor not putting Peter Sellers on here is shameful , Lolita ? Dr. Strangelove ? Being there ? go f**k yourself , these lists are so oblivious ! and what about Alec Guiness ?
So nice to see that people haven't forgotten about Laurence Olivier. He had an outstanding career. Rebecca, Spartacus, Hamlet, Richard III, Hamlet, just to mention a few highlights.
Terry Murray Yes I know that lol, I'm saying that Peter grew up in England. There are always debates about whether it counts more if they were born in a particular place or grew up there, but I think it counts for both.
Sir Sean Connery, Sean Bean, Jeremy Irons, Ralph Fiennes, Sir Ben Kingsley, Tom Hardy, Jude Law, Andy Serkis, Rowan Atkinson, Pierce Brosnan, Gerard Butler, Cillian Murphy, Benedict Cumberbatch, Tom Hiddleston, Eddie Redmayne, Henry Cavill, Daniel Craig, John Cleese, Sir Norman Wisdom, Tim Curry, Idris Elba, Martin Freeman, Malcolm McDowell, Jason Statham, Billy Connolly, Ray Winston, Sir John Hurt, Bill Nighy, Timothy Dalton and Sir Patrick Stewart.
Eric Day You don’t have to speak in order to be a great actor. The greatest ones can do more with a facial expression, and body language than some actors can do with their voices and entire acting arsenal.
Which UK actor did you forget? Where does one start? I just don't get the point of a Top Ten list. It only serves to show up the gaps in people's knowledge and is highly subjective (the one positive aspect is that it at least starts conversations on the topic and perhaps leads some to investigate further). Consider the following list of truly great UK male actors NOT mentioned: Dirk Benedict, George Sanders, Terrance Stamp, John Hurt, Ian Holm, Richard Burton, Jeremy Irons, Gabriel Byrne, Michael Fassbender, John Gielgud, Ben Kingsley, Sean Connery, John Mills, Tim Roth, Bob Hoskins, Tom Hardy, David Niven, , Peter Cushing, Tom Wilkinson, Benedict Cumberbatch, Malcolm McDowell, Jonathan Pryce, Ralph Fiennes, Stephen Rea, Idris Elba, Brendan Gleeson, Martin Freeman, Colin Farrell, Tom Hiddleston, Jude Law, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Daniel Craig, Kenneth Brannagh, Oliver Reed, Patrick Stewart, Pete Postlethwaite, Jim Broadbent, Gerald Butler, Cillian Murphy, Toby Jones, Terry-Thomas, Jonathan Rhys-Davies, Robert Carlyle, Clive Owen, Roger Moore, Bill Nighy, Hugh Laurie, Stephen Fry, Anthony Andrews ... and there are many, many more fine UK actors not mentioned here and other younger ones rising up through the ranks, like Andrew Garfield, Daniel Radcliffe, Robert Pattinson, Jamie Bell, Eddie Redmayne ... and we haven't even started thinking about the female actors ... Angela Lansbury, Vivien Leigh, Julie Christie, Deborah Kerr, Julie Andrews, Tilda Swinton, Olivia de Havilland, Kate Winslet, Emma Thompson, Merle Oberon, Jenny Agutter, Imelda Staunton, Audrey Hepburn, Helen Mirren, Vanessa Redgrave, Judi Dench, Helena Bonham-Carter, Glenda Jackson, Claire Bloom, Kristin Scott-Thomas, Emily Blunt, Charlotte Rampling, Maggie Smith, Lynn Redgrave, Jacqueline Bissett, and many, many more ...
Craig Martin So true, WatchMojo don't really ever learn. How can Kingsley and Hiddleston not be on this list!?! Some of the best villains ever portrayed in moving picture history.
im American and I'm gonna say it, Englishmen make the greatest actors. When Gary Oldman is 5th you know your fantasy acting squad is stacked for this season. But honestly I see people listing James McAvoy, Tom Hardy, Bendersnatch Cumberbund. They are great actors but this is greatest English Actors of ALL TIME. They don't have anywhere near the amount of work everyone on this list does. Maybe 20 years from now but not yet. And btw, Alan Rickman was born in '46? wow, dude is 70? hmm who knew
When you see that the likes of Ben Kingsley and Patrick Stewart don't even make the honorable mentions list, it's pretty frightening how much of a talent pool Great Britain have had. I also agree with you, those three actors, although very talented, shouldn't even be breathed in the same sentence as any of these actors.
you do realise that the British actors in the US are only good because it's only the good ones that make it over, we've got our own supply of terrible actors Americans just never see them
@jack reed, you're right, he could have - but, sadly, his movie career effectively ended in the mid-1970s because of his reputation for drinking. No director would touch him - great shame!
but over who?? He's one of my favourite actors but I understand why he's no. 6. Personally I'd put him over Michael Caine because I haven't seen much his older performances, the ones he's famous for. Also over Lawrence Olivier but for the list to be proper he'd have to be below him cuz Olivier is considered to be the gold standard when it comes to acting.
Spot On ! Olivier is in a League of his own even amongst all this talent and endless others like Brton/Sellers/McKellem/John Mills nor even mentioned..
Robert de niro, marlon brando, al pacino dustin hoffman, clint eastwood, gene hackman, morgan freeman, kevin spacey, bryan cranston, matthew mcconaughy, james gandolfini, the marx brothers, bruce willis, jeff bridges, michael keaton, samuel jackson, joe pesci, jack nicholson, kevin costner...Yeah sure...totally disregard an entire country of actors in favour of another...why not?
Don't get to full of yourselves! The US is still #1 in both actors and bands. I am unbiased, For I'm from neither country. Then again, it all comes down to personal preference...
odavies94 He said the best. Actors like marlon brando and robert de niro have changes acting for the whole world and are definitely on the top class of actors. Why categorise actors based on nationality?
I remember the first time I saw Laurence Olivier in the boat house scene in "Rebecca". I was absolutely fascinated with what elegance and effortlessness he moved around the room giving a monologue of four or five minutes. That was not only a stage actor's training, it was genuine talent. - But it is also true that he was a stage actor who had a tendency towards over-acting, with big gestures and a declamatory style that might have been normal in a theater, but a bit strange in a movie where close-ups and modern sound technique make this kind of acting a bit strange. Take "Spartacus" for example. Olivier has strong scenes as Crassus, but certain moments are quite honestly simply awful and almost unwatchable (eg the scene where he talks to Glabrus before the latter leaves town for a slave hunt mission).
Olivier #4? Gary Oldman??? What about John Gielgud, David Niven, John Hurt, Ralph Fiennes, Albert Finney, Charles Laughton, Sean Connery, Ben Kingsley, Richard Harris, Cary Grant, Richard Burton, Peter Ustinov, Rex Harrison, Anthony Quayle, Hugh Griffith, Claude Rains or any of about 200 others? These lists are total populist crap.
@@spannerintheworks1190 He was great in everything I love him in the dresser and murder on the orient express. I think he’s the greatest British (film) actor of all time
What the heck, Sir Charlie Chaplin only at Number 8?! He defined Silent Movies at the time and made it big without almost saying a word in his films! He deserves Number One more than any of these respectable men. The film industry wouldn’t be so big without Sir Chaplin. This is why he deserves Number One more than the others.
Ralph Richardson, Claude Rains, John Gielgud, Basil Rathbone, Peter Ustinov, George Sanders, Peter Sellers. James Mason, Alistair Sim, John Mills, Charles Laughton. That's just off the top of my head.
To much names darling, but I agree with the Peters, and Charles. But if you don`t mention Sean Connerey, Jeremy Irons and Ralph Fiennes, I ask my self, what is wrong with this lady?
Padmja Sopori I was thinking that exactly. It's weird, a lot of people are complaining about Sean Connery not being on the list but so few people have even mentioned John, who in my opinion, is one of the greatest actors still alive today.
