Alex Lanipekun is a British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 Actor of Nigerian and Italian/English origin. He trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art

Royal Academy of Dramatic Art

The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art is a drama school located in London, United Kingdom. It is generally regarded as one of the most renowned drama schools in the world, and is one of the oldest drama schools in the United Kingdom, having been founded in 1904.RADA is an affiliate school of the...

 but left early to join the cast of the BBC

BBC

The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

 drama Spooks

Spooks

Spooks is a British television drama series that originally aired on BBC One from 13 May 2002 – 23 October 2011, consisting of 10 series. The title is a popular colloquialism for spies, as the series follows the work of a group of MI5 officers based at the service's Thames House headquarters, in a...

as journalist come spy Ben Kaplan

Ben Kaplan

Ben Kaplan DSO, portrayed by Alex Lanipekun was a starring character in the British spy series, Spooks.- Appearances :Ben Kaplan first appeared in Series 6, Episode 5 as a freelance journalist who was in a relationship with Jo Portman. He tried to expose what was going on with MI5's and Section D's...

. In 2007 he won the prestigious Carleton Hobbs Award, joining the BBC Radio

BBC Radio

BBC Radio is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927. For a history of BBC radio prior to 1927 see British Broadcasting Company...

 Drama Rep during their winter season. In 2008 after completing his second season on Spooks, he played the part of Ashley in Apples and Oranges for Channel 4

Channel 4

Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...

.

In 2008, Alex played Eric the Red in Wig Out! at the Royal Court Theatre

Royal Court Theatre

The Royal Court Theatre is a non-commercial theatre on Sloane Square, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is noted for its contributions to modern theatre...

, by Tarrell McCraney, directed by Dominic Cooke

Dominic Cooke

Dominic Cooke is an English theatre director and playwright. He won the 2007 Laurence Olivier Award for best director for his revival of The Crucible while working at the RSC...

.

In 2009, Alex played Danilo in Dimetos, by Athol Fugard

Athol Fugard

Athol Fugard is a South African playwright, novelist, actor, and director who writes in English, best known for his political plays opposing the South African system of apartheid and for the 2005 Academy-Award winning film of his novel Tsotsi, directed by Gavin Hood...

, at the Donmar Warehouse

Donmar Warehouse

Donmar Warehouse is a small not-for-profit theatre in the Covent Garden area of London, with a capacity of 251.-About:Under the artistic leadership of Michael Grandage, the theatre has presented some of London’s most memorable award-winning theatrical experiences, as well as garnered critical...

 with Jonathan Pryce

Jonathan Pryce

Jonathan Pryce, CBE is a Welsh stage and film actor and singer. After studying at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and meeting his longtime partner English actress Kate Fahy in 1974, he began his career as a stage actor in the 1970s...

 directed by Douglas Hodge

Douglas Hodge

Douglas Hodge is an English actor, director, and musician who trained for the stage at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.Hodge is a council member of the National Youth Theatre for whom, in 1989, he co-wrote Pacha Mama's Blessing about the Amazon rain forests staged at the Almeida...

. The play was last performed in 1976 with Paul Scofield in the title role and Ben Kingsley playing Danilo.

In series 2 of Jonathan Harvey's British Comedy Beautiful People, he Guest Starred as the Jamaican Personal Trainer Tiger.

In series 2 of the BBC's Being Human

Being Human (TV series)

Being Human is a British supernatural drama television series. It was created and written by Toby Whithouse and is currently broadcast on BBC Three. The show blends elements of flatshare comedy and horror drama...

Alex Guest Starred in the opening double episode playing the character Saul.

He has also completed roles in the films Clash Of The Titans starring Sam Worthington and Ralph Fiennes, and the British film Blitz starring Jason Statham and Paddy Considine.

In Autumn 2010 Alex took on the character of Laertes in Nicholas Hytner's production of Hamlet at the National Theatre. After a sell out run and tour, it returned to the National and finally ended in April 2011.

Alex will shortly be seen in the upcoming film Twenty8k starring alongside Parminder Nagra, Kirsten Wearing, Jonas Armstrong and Stephen Dillane.

He can also be heard as the voice of the new 'Use Sports' campaign for Nike Asia.

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