Surely, many remember the inimitable Arthur Hastings from the series Poirot, which was a huge success with viewers around the world and walked for almost fifteen years: from 1989 to 2013. During this time, thirteen seasons of the project came out, which included 70 episodes! So, Arthur Hastings in this series was played by Hugh Fraser.
Biography
The actor was born in 1950 in London. All his childhood passed in the Midlands, and by the age of eighteen, Hugh returned to London because he had a dream - he wanted to become an actor.
At the time, his home was the London Academy of Dramatic Art and Music, where he easily entered. Already a student, he began to play episodic roles in films, starred in television. And after graduating from the academy, he was taken to the theater troupe on a permanent basis.
However, the young actor was increasingly attracted to music, and he left the theater to play and sing in a rock band. Hugh then lived in a poor neighborhood - Notting Hill, and they played mainly in Soho clubs, which also can not be called too decent. It was a fun time, but it did not bring Hugh closer to the dream of becoming an actor, and he left the group.
Movie career
The future actor began to go to auditions, to try on different roles, and in 1983 he was taken on the role of a nobleman in the film "Contract of the Draftsman" directed by Peter Greenaway.
The film caused a lot of controversy between the fans and opponents of the director because of his peculiar manner of presentation of the material. But other directors noticed Fraser - he, with his purely English image, joined the picture simply perfectly.
For five years, Hugh played small roles in films and series, but hoped for something more because he felt his potential. And everyone was waiting for an interesting job.
When he heard that one of the TV channels was planning to shoot a big series, he applied for samples, completely not understanding what he would have to get involved in and what role he could get. The result was a contract for ten episodes of Poirot.
Soon, the audience saw next to the famous detective his loyal assistant - a former military man with a beautiful dressing, but slightly confused and very amorous. Fraser did an excellent job with the role, and largely thanks to him, the series turned out to be so “alive." His Arthur Hastings is charming, moderately serious and very devoted to his boss. He is not a great detective and often misses important details, but due to his honesty and diligence, it is often indispensable.
Later, Fraser had to simultaneously star in the equally popular film "Sharpe's Company." Here he played the Duke of Wellington, and Sharpe played Sean Bean, whom no one knew then. This work was also lengthy - Hugh starred in every episode of the film until 2006. Moreover, along with Poirot, this multi-part film is considered the best in the actor’s portfolio.
Fraser - writer
In addition to the acting profession and singing, Fraser was fascinated by writing - he already wrote several parts of the detective thriller about the girl Ruth Walker, who lives in Notting Hill in the family of a gangster and an alcoholic and has been forced to support her two younger brothers and sisters and take care of them since childhood. As a result, she is forced to become a hit man.
Fraser himself is a frantic reader. He absorbs all the books that seem interesting to him, and considers his “writing” to be just for fun.
