Outstanding Contribution to Film and Television: Peter Capaldi

“...You’re riding high in April, shot down in May…”

Thus go the lyrics to Frank Sinatra’s ‘That’s Life’, the song Peter Capaldi has selected to best describe his career. Given his profession, perhaps his choice should not come as a surprise; the business is notoriously filled with peaks and troughs.

Even so, as his 120-plus credits would suggest, the recipient of the Outstanding Contribution to Film and Television award has rarely been short of work since being plucked from obscurity in his 20s to star in Bill Forsyth’s wonderful Local Hero (1983). The Glasgow-born actor made an immediate impression in what has become one of Scotland’s most quintessential films.

Other career highs include writing and starring in road movie Soft Top Hard Shoulder (1992), which earned a BAFTA Scotland award, and directing the self-penned short Franz Kafka’s It’s a Wonderful Life (1993), which would win him a BAFTA, an Oscar and two further BAFTA Scotland awards. These are just a few of his many accolades.

This was Capaldi’s first brush with BAFTA, but not his last. In 2010, he won for his performance as Malcolm Tucker in The Thick of It (2005-2012). The acerbic-tongued government spin doctor must rank as one of Capaldi’s most iconic roles, outshone perhaps only by his turn as the 12th incarnation of the good Time Lord (Doctor Who, 2013-2017). Tucker is certainly his most quotable (although perhaps not in polite company).

Other memorable recent performances include Randall Brown (The Hour, 2012), Mr Curry (Paddington 1 and 2, 2014 and 2017), Cardinal Richelieu (The Musketeers, 2014), Keharr (Watership Down, 2018), the Thinker (The Suicide Squad, 2021), Siegfried Sassoon (Benediction, 2021) and the chilling Gideon Shepherd (The Devil’s Hour, 2022).

“I like other actors to bring themselves to the work,” he says when asked what inspires a good performance in himself. “It’s always a delightful surprise to see what other actors do. It’s never what I imagined and is always down to their individual take on the material.”

Capaldi won’t be drawn on favourites, but he does note: “I’ve been lucky enough to have had some wonderful encounters. I wouldn’t care to pick one out, but I would say working with the late James Gandolfini was a privilege and a thrill. He was gracious, warm and utterly brilliant.” The pair starred together in In the Loop (2009), which would earn Capaldi another BAFTA Scotland award.

As for this latest honour, Capaldi says: “My good luck started with being born in Scotland and continued on with the opportunities afforded me within the Scottish film and television industry. Without the support of the creative community in Scotland, I wouldn’t be here, so to be the recipient of this award is kindness indeed.”

You get out of life, what you put in, right? As Ol’ Blue Eyes sang, “That’s life. That’s what all the people say...”

By Toby Weidmann