Richard Thomas Griffiths, OBE (31 July 1947 – 28 March 2013) was an English actor of film, television, and stage. He received the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor, the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Play, the Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Featured Actor and the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play, all for his role in The History Boys. For the 2006 film adaptation, Griffiths was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role.\n', '

He is also known for his portrayal of Vernon Dursley in the Harry Potter film series, Uncle Monty in Withnail and I (1987), Dr. Albert Meinheimer in The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear (1991), Henry Crabbe in Pie in the Sky (1994–1997), Prostetnic Vogon Jeltz in The Hitchhiker\'s Guide to the Galaxy and King George II in Disney\'s Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011). Earlier in his career, he had a prominent supporting role as British journalist Collins in Richard Attenborough\'s Academy Award-winning film Gandhi (1982).\n', '

Griffiths was born in Thornaby-on-Tees, North Riding of Yorkshire, to Jane (née Denmark) and Thomas Griffiths. His father was a steelworker who also fought in pubs for money, while his mother\'s occupation was described as "bagger". He and his brother John were raised in the Roman Catholic faith. \n', '

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