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 | A Spy Among Friends | Sir Roger Hollis | 2022-12-08 |
Movie | Letters Live from the Archive: Union Chapel | Self | 2021-03-22 |
Series | The Pact | Richard | 2021-05-17 |
Movie | King Rocker | (archive footage) | 2020-10-31 |
Series | Cheat | William Vaughan | 2019-03-11 |
Movie | The Rizen: Possession | The Interviewer | 2019-05-22 |
Movie | Completely Bad News | Vim Fuego | 2019-11-29 |
Movie | How The Young Ones Changed Comedy | 2018-05-26 | |
Movie | RSC Live: Twelfth Night | Malvolio | 2018-02-14 |
Series | Urban Myths | Leslie Conn | 2017-01-19 |
Movie | The Rizen | Interviewer | 2017-05-06 |
Series | Bancroft | Superintendent Cliff Walker | 2017-12-11 |
Movie | Interlude In Prague | Herr Luptak | 2017-05-25 |
Movie | Star Wars: The Last Jedi | Captain Peavey | 2017-12-13 |
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 | Ronja the Robber's Daughter | Noodle Pete (voice, English version) | 2014-10-11 |
Series | Prey | DCI Warner | 2014-04-28 |
Series | The Bleak Old Shop of Stuff | Headmaster Wackville | 2012-02-20 |
Movie | Blood | Tom Tiernan | 2012-10-09 |
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 |
Movie | Miss Austen Regrets | Henry Austen | 2008-02-03 |
Series | Teenage Kicks | 2008-03-28 | |
Movie | Rocky Horror Tribute Show | Brad | 2008-10-14 |
Series | The Alan Titchmarsh Show | Unknown | 2007-09-03 |
Movie | If It Ain't Stiff: The Stiff Records Story | Self - Narrator | 2007-12-14 |
Series | The One Show | Unknown | 2006-08-14 |
Series | Surviving Disaster | Unknown | 2006-01-10 |
Series | School's Out | Unknown | 2006-04-19 |
Series | Twisted Tales | Unknown | 2005-01-16 |
Movie | Bottom Mindless Violence | Eddie | 2004-11-22 |
Series | Doctors and Nurses | 2004-01-13 | |
Series | Celebrity Mastermind | Unknown | 2003-12-26 |
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 |
Movie | Bottom Live 3: Hooligan's Island | Eddie Hitler | 1997-10-27 |
Series | Captain Star | 1997-07-08 | |
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 | Space Virgins from Planet Sex | 'K' / Air Traffic Controller | 1993-04-29 |
Series | If You See God, Tell Him | Gordon Spry | 1993-11-11 |
Movie | Bottom Live The Stage Show | Eddie | 1993-09-27 |
Series | Absolutely Fabulous | Unknown | 1992-11-12 |
Movie | The Pope Must Die | Father Rookie | 1991-06-21 |
Series | Pebble Mill | Unknown | 1991-10-14 |
Series | Bottom | Edward Elizabeth Hitler | 1991-09-17 |
Movie | GLC: The Carnage Continues | Billy/Prince Charles/Giles Cricket Bat Portland | 1990-02-05 |
Movie | News Hounds | Phil Burke | 1990-09-02 |
Series | Rita Rudner | Unknown | 1990-09-18 |
Movie | The Secret Policeman’s Biggest Ball | Himself | 1989-01-01 |
Series | Happy Families | 1989-08-17 | |
Series | Press Gang | Simon Knowles | 1989-01-16 |
Series | Snakes and Ladders | Giles Tewkesbury | 1989-10-17 |
Movie | More Bad News | Vim Fuego | 1988-02-27 |
Movie | The Strike | Adrian/Slim/Policeman | 1988-02-20 |
Movie | Mr Jolly Lives Next Door | Dreamy Time Escort | 1988-03-05 |
Movie | The Yob | Michael | 1988-03-12 |
Series | This Morning | Unknown | 1988-10-03 |
Movie | An Audience With Victoria Wood | Himself | 1988-12-10 |
Movie | Eat the Rich | Charles | 1987-10-23 |
Series | Filthy Rich & Catflap | Edward Catflap | 1987-01-07 |
Movie | Dangerous Brothers Present: World of Danger | Sir Adrian Dangerous | 1986-01-01 |
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 |
Series | Blackadder | Baron von Richtoven | 1983-06-15 |
Series | Natural World | Narrator | 1983-10-30 |
Movie | Dead on Time | Fool | 1983-01-01 |
Movie | Bad News Tour | Vim Fuego/Alan Metcalfe | 1983-01-24 |
Movie | Kevin Turvey: The Man Behind the Green Door | Keith Marshall | 1982-03-13 |
Series | The Comic Strip Presents... | 1982-11-02 | |
Series | The Young Ones | Vyvyan | 1982-11-09 |
Movie | The Comic Strip | 1981-01-01 | |
Series | An Audience with... | Himself | 1978-01-08 |