Adrian Edmondson was born in Bradford, Yorkshire. He went to Manchester University to study drama. Whilst he was there he met Rik Mayall, and the pair began performing as 20th Century Coyote. The act continued after university when Adrian & Rik moved to London, and they became two of the leading lights in the new 'alternative comedy' scene, performing at the newly established Comedy Store, and setting up their own club, The Comic Strip, with 'Peter Richardson', Nigel Planer, Jennifer Saunders, Dawn French, and Alexei Sayle. This spawned two 1980s TV series: The Young Ones (1982), and The Comic Strip Presents... (1982) In the 1990's Ade & Rik continued their partnership with a new series called Bottom (1991), which ran for three seasons and became a major success on the live circuit. It was basically a live sitcom, liberally sprinkled with slapstick humour, and the pair did 5 long tours between 1993 and 2003. Simultaneously, Adrian established himself as an actor, doing two improvised TV films under the Screen One and Screen Two umbrella, with director Les Blair: Screen Two: Honest, Decent and True (1986), and Screen One: News Hounds (1990) (winner of the BAFTA for best single drama). He was a regular in the hospital drama Holby City (1999) from 2005 - 2008. He took the lead in a drama documentary about the Chernobyl Nuclear Disaster in the series Surviving Disaster (2006), and appeared as Henry Austen in the TV movie Miss Austen Regrets (2008), the film Blood (2012), and the drama series Prey (2014). But his most notable dramatic role to date is that of Count Rostov in the BBC series War & Peace (2016).
Series | Kidnapped | 2025 | |
Series | Alien | 2025 | |
Series | A Spy Among Friends | Sir Roger Hollis | 2022-12-08 |
Movie | King Rocker | (archive footage) | 2020-10-31 |
Series | Out of Her Mind | Lewis | 2020-10-20 |
Series | Cheat | William Vaughan | 2019-03-11 |
Movie | Completely Bad News | Vim Fuego | 2019-11-29 |
Movie | The Rizen: Possession | The Interviewer | 2019-05-22 |
Movie | RSC Live: Twelfth Night | Malvolio | 2018-02-14 |
Movie | How The Young Ones Changed Comedy | 2018-05-26 | |
Series | Urban Myths | Leslie Conn | 2017-01-19 |
Movie | The Rizen | Interviewer | 2017-05-06 |
Movie | Star Wars: The Last Jedi | Captain Peavey | 2017-12-13 |
Series | Bancroft | Superintendent Cliff Walker | 2017-12-11 |
Movie | Interlude In Prague | Herr Luptak | 2017-05-25 |
Series | War and Peace | Ilya Rostov | 2016-01-03 |
Series | One of Us | Peter Elliot | 2016-08-23 |
Movie | Rocky Horror Show Live | Narrator | 2015-11-17 |
Series | Prey | DCI Warner | 2014-04-28 |
Series | Ronja the Robber's Daughter | Noodle Pete (voice, English version) | 2014-10-11 |
Movie | Blood | Tom Tiernan | 2012-10-09 |
Series | The Bleak Old Shop of Stuff | Headmaster Wackville | 2012-02-20 |
Movie | Five Go to Rehab | Dick | 2012-11-07 |
Series | Ade in Britain | 2011-11-07 | |
Series | Monte Carlo or Bust | 2010-10-28 | |
Series | Let's Dance for Comic Relief | Unknown | 2009-02-21 |
Series | Teenage Kicks | 2008-03-28 | |
Movie | Miss Austen Regrets | Henry Austen | 2008-02-03 |
Movie | Rocky Horror Tribute Show | Brad | 2008-10-14 |
Movie | Blackadder's Most Cunning Moments | Baron von Richthoven/Self | 2008-10-16 |
Movie | If It Ain't Stiff: The Stiff Records Story | Self - Narrator | 2007-12-14 |
Series | Surviving Disaster | Unknown | 2006-01-10 |
Series | The One Show | Unknown | 2006-08-14 |
Movie | The Comic Strip - A Retrospective | Self | 2005-07-04 |
Movie | Bottom Mindless Violence | Eddie | 2004-11-22 |
Series | Doctors and Nurses | 2004-01-13 | |
Series | Comic Relief Does Fame Academy | 2003-03-07 | |
Movie | Bottom Live 2003: Weapons Grade Y-Fronts Tour | Edward Hitler | 2003-11-24 |
Movie | Bottom Live 2001 An Arse Oddity | Eddie | 2001-10-19 |
Movie | The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Treasure of the Peacock's Eye | Zyke | 1999-10-26 |
Movie | Guest House Paradiso | Eddie | 1999-12-03 |
Movie | The Making of 'Guest House Paradiso' | Himself | 1999-11-15 |
Series | Jonathan Creek | Unknown | 1997-05-09 |
Series | Captain Star | 1997-07-08 | |
Movie | Bottom Live 3: Hooligan's Island | Eddie Hitler | 1997-10-27 |
Series | Look at the State We're In! | Dewhurst | 1995-05-20 |
Movie | Bottom Live The Big Number 2 Tour | Eddie | 1995-11-06 |
Series | Anna Lee | Unknown | 1994-02-27 |
Movie | Gregory: Diary of a Nutcase | Gregory Dawson | 1993-05-13 |
Movie | Demonella | Sid Vicious | 1993-05-20 |
Movie | Space Virgins from Planet Sex | 'K' / Air Traffic Controller | 1993-04-29 |
Movie | Bottom Live The Stage Show | Eddie | 1993-09-27 |
Series | If You See God, Tell Him | Gordon Spry | 1993-11-11 |
Series | Absolutely Fabulous | Unknown | 1992-11-12 |
Movie | The Pope Must Die | Father Rookie | 1991-06-21 |
Series | Bottom | Edward Elizabeth Hitler | 1991-09-17 |
Movie | South Atlantic Raiders: Part 2 Argie Bargie! | Billy | 1990-02-08 |
Movie | GLC: The Carnage Continues | Billy/Prince Charles/Giles Cricket Bat Portland | 1990-02-05 |
Movie | Oxford | 2nd MI5 Man / Fan | 1990-02-22 |
Movie | News Hounds | Phil Burke | 1990-09-02 |
Movie | Les Dogs | Best Man | 1990-08-03 |
Series | Rita Rudner | Unknown | 1990-09-18 |
Series | Press Gang | Simon Knowles | 1989-01-16 |
Movie | The Secret Policeman’s Biggest Ball | Himself | 1989-01-01 |
Series | Happy Families | 1989-08-17 | |
Series | Snakes and Ladders | Giles Tewkesbury | 1989-10-17 |
Movie | Mr Jolly Lives Next Door | Dreamy Time Escort | 1988-03-05 |
Movie | The Strike | Adrian/Slim/Policeman | 1988-02-20 |
Movie | More Bad News | Vim Fuego | 1988-02-27 |
Movie | The Yob | Michael | 1988-03-12 |
Movie | An Audience With Victoria Wood | Himself | 1988-12-10 |
Series | Filthy Rich & Catflap | Edward Catflap | 1987-01-07 |
Movie | Eat the Rich | Charles | 1987-10-23 |
Movie | Dangerous Brothers Present: World of Danger | Sir Adrian Dangerous | 1986-01-01 |
Movie | Private Enterprise | Brian | 1986-01-02 |
Movie | The Comic Relief Utterly Utterly Rude Video Live | 1986-04-25 | |
Movie | Honest Decent & True | Alun Pickersgill | 1986-02-09 |
Series | Happy Families | 1985-10-17 | |
Movie | The Supergrass | Dennis Carter | 1985-11-08 |
Movie | Gino: Full Story and Pics | Gordon/Bill | 1984-01-28 |
Movie | Slags | Ace | 1984-02-11 |
Movie | Dead on Time | Fool | 1983-01-01 |
Movie | Bad News Tour | Vim Fuego/Alan Metcalfe | 1983-01-24 |
Series | Natural World | Narrator | 1983-10-30 |
Series | Blackadder | Baron von Richtoven | 1983-06-15 |
Movie | Kevin Turvey: The Man Behind the Green Door | Keith Marshall | 1982-03-13 |
Movie | Five Go Mad in Dorset | Dick | 1982-11-02 |
Series | The Young Ones | Vyvyan | 1982-11-09 |
Series | The Comic Strip Presents... | 1982-11-02 | |
Movie | The Comic Strip | 1981-01-01 | |
Series | An Audience with... | Himself | 1978-01-08 |
Series | The Secret Policeman's Ball | Self | 1976-04-01 |