Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role

The Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role is an annual award presented by the Society of London Theatre in recognition of the "world-class status of London theatre." The Oliviers were established as the Society of West End Theatre Awards in 1976, and renamed in 1984 in honour of English actor and director Laurence Olivier.

This award was first given in 1977, then was replaced in 1985 by the commingled actor/actress Best Performance in a Supporting Role, which replaced the 1977 to 1984 pair of Best Actor in a Supporting Role and Best Actress in a Supporting Role awards. From 1991 to 2012, the general supporting category vacillated at random between the commingled singular award (presented for 12 different seasons) and the pair of awards (presented for the other 11 seasons); the commingled award was last given in 2012, and the split pair of Best Actor and Best Actress awards have been presented every year since.

Winners and nominees 1970s Year Actor Play Character 1977 Nigel Hawthorne Privates on Parade Major Giles Flack Michael Pennington Romeo and Juliet Mercutio Paul Rogers The Madras House Henry Huxtable Patrick Ryecart Candida Eugene Marchbanks 1978 Robert Eddison Twelfth Night Andrew Aguecheek / Feste Michael Bryant The Double Dealer Sir Paul Plyant Julian Glover Coriolanus Aufidius Robert Stephens Brand Mayor 1979 Patrick Stewart Antony and Cleopatra Enobarbus Michael Bryant Undiscovered Country Dr. von Aigner Stephen Greif Death of a Salesman Biff David Suchet Once in a Lifetime Herman Glogauer

1980s Year Actor Play Character 1980 David Threlfall Nicholas Nickleby Angry Gentleman / Smike Simon Callow Amadeus Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Edward Petherbridge Nicholas Nickleby Newman Noggs John Rogan Juno and the Paycock Joxer Daly 1981 Joe Melia Good Maurice Tony Church Hamlet Polonius Norman Rodway Shadow of a Gunman Seuman Shields Tom Wilkinson Hamlet Horatio 1982 David Healy Guys and Dolls Nicely Nicely Johnson Geoffrey Hutchings A Midsummer Night's Dream Bottom Stephen Moore All's Well That Ends Well Parolles Paul Rogers The Importance of Being Earnest Rev. Canon Chasuble 1983 Alan Devlin A Moon for the Misbegotten Phil Hogan Ian McDiarmid Tales from Hollywood Bertolt Brecht Mark Rylance Arden of Faversham Michael Antony Sher King Lear Fool 1984 Edward Petherbridge Strange Interlude Charles Marsden Ramolao Makhene "Master Harold"...and the Boys Sam Richard O'Callaghan Twelfth Night Feste Timothy Spall Saint Joan Charles, the Dauphin

1990s Year Actor Play Character 1991 David Bradley King Lear The Fool Ben Daniels Never the Sinner Richard Loeb Mick Ford Singer Stefan Jonathan Kent The Rehearsal Hero 1992 Oleg Menshikov When She Danced Sergei Yesenin Simon Russell Beale Troilus and Cressida Thersites Henry Goodman Angels in America Roy Cohn / Prior 2 Ken Stott The Recruiting Officer Sergeant Kite 1993 Julian Glover Henry IV, Parts 1 and 2 Henry IV of England Robin Bailey Trelawny of the Wells Sir William Gower David Bradley Henry IV, Part 2 Justice Shallow Martin Shaw An Ideal Husband Lord Goring 1994 Joseph Mydell Angels in America: Perestroika Belize Richard McCabe The Winter's Tale Autolycus Rufus Sewell Arcadia Septimus Hodge 1995 Ken Stott Broken Glass Dr. Harry Hyman Simon Russell Beale The Tempest Ariel Simon Coates As You Like It Celia Trevor Peacock The Birthday Party Petey 1997 Trevor Eve Uncle Vanya Astrov Stephen Boxer The Herbal Bed Barnabus Goche Tony Haygarth Twelve Angry Men Juror 3 Owen Teale A Doll's House Torvald Helmer

2000s Year Actor Play Character 2000 Roger Allam Money Henry Graves Michael Bryant Summerfolk Semyon Dvoetochie Ron Cook Juno and the Paycock Joxer Daly Michael Williams The Forest Arkadiy Schastlivtsev 2001 Ben Daniels All My Sons Chris Keller Chiwetel Ejiofor Blue/Orange Christopher Douglas Hodge The Caretaker Aston Jason Watkins A Servant to Two Masters Truffaldino 2002 Toby Jones The Play What I Wrote Arthur Desmond Barrit Henry IV, Parts 1 and 2 Sir John Falstaff Ned Beatty Cat on a Hot Tin Roof Big Daddy Adam Godley Mouth to Mouth Gompertz Malcolm Sinclair Privates on Parade Major Giles Flack

2010s Year Actor Play Character 2010 Eddie Redmayne Red Ken Mackenzie Crook Jerusalem Ginger Rory Kinnear Burnt by the Sun Mitya Tim Pigott-Smith ENRON Ken Lay 2011 Adrian Scarborough After the Dance John Reid James Laurenson Hamlet Ghost / The Player King Hilton McRae End of the Rainbow Anthony Lee Ross Birdsong Jack Firebrace 2013 Richard McCabe The Audience Harold Wilson Paul Chahidi Twelfth Night Maria Adrian Scarborough Hedda Gabler Jurgen Tesman Kyle Soller Long Day's Journey into Night Edmund 2014 Jack Lowden Ghosts Oswald Ron Cook Henry V Pistol Mark Gatiss Coriolanus Menenius Ardal O'Hanlon The Weir Jim 2015 Nathaniel Parker Wolf Hall / Bring Up the Bodies Henry VIII David Calder The Nether Doyle Richard Goulding King Charles III Prince Harry John Light Taken at Midnight Dr Conrad 2016 Mark Gatiss Three Days in the Country Shpigelsky Michael Pennington The Winter's Tale Antigonus Tom Sturridge American Buffalo Bobby David Suchet The Importance of Being Earnest Lady Bracknell 2017 Anthony Boyle Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Scorpius Malfoy Freddie Fox Travesties Tristan Tzara Brian J. Smith The Glass Menagerie Jim O'Connor Rafe Spall Hedda Gabler Judge Brack2018Bertie CarvelInkRupert MurdochJohn HodgkinsonThe FerrymanTom KettleJames McArdleAngels in AmericaLouis IronsonPeter PolycarpouOsloAhmed Qurei2019Chris WalleyThe Lieutenant of InishmoreDaveyKeir CharlesQuizVariousAdam GillenKiller JoeChris SmithAdrian LukisThe PriceWalter FranzMalcolm SinclairPressureDwight D. Eisenhower

2020s Year Actor Play Character 2020 Adrian Scarborough Leopoldstadt Hermann Merz Arinzé Kene Death of a Salesman Biff Loman Colin Morgan All My Sons Chris Keller Reece Shearsmith A Very Expensive Poison The President / Jon 2021 Not presented due to extended closing of theatre productions during COVID-19 pandemic2022Various performersLife of PiTigerDino FetscherThe Normal HeartFelix TurnerNathaniel ParkerThe Mirror and the LightHenry VIIIDanny Lee WynterThe Normal HeartTommy Boatwright 2023 Will Keen Patriots Vladimir Putin Ensemble For Black Boys Who Have Considered Suicide When the Hue Gets Too Heavy Onyx, Pitch, Jet, Sable, Obsidian, Midnight Elliot Levey Good Maurice David Moorst To Kill a Mockingbird Dill Harris Sule Rimi Blues for an Alabama Sky Sam Thomas 2024 Will Close Dear England Harry Kane Paul HiltonAn Enemy of the PeoplePeter StockmannGiles TereraClyde'sMontrellousLuke Thompson A Little LifeWillemZubin VarlaHarold2025 Elliot Levey Giant Tom Maschler Jorge Bosch Kyoto Raúl Estrada-Oyuela Tom Edden Waiting for Godot Lucky Ben Whishaw Bluets Actor2026Paapa EssieduAll My SonsChris KellerHammed AnimashaunDealer’s ChoiceMugsyZachary HartThe SeagullSimon MedvedenkoStereophonicRegGiles TereraOh, Mary!Mary's Husband

Multiple awards and nominations for Best Actor in a Supporting Role

Awards 2 Wins Adrian Scarborough

Nominations 3 Nominations Adrian Scarborough Michael Bryant

2 Nominations Edward Petherbridge Julian Glover David Bradley Ken Stott Ben Daniels Mark Gatiss Nathaniel Parker Elliot Levey Paul Rogers Simon Russell Beale Ron Cook Michael Pennington David Suchet Giles Terera Zachary Hart

See also Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play Lists of acting awards List of awards for supporting actor Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play

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