Richard Madden, a Scottish actor, was born on June 18, 1986. At the age of 11, he was cast in his first role, and he made his cinematic playing debut in 2000. Later, as a student at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, he began performing on stage. In 2007, he toured as Romeo in Romeo and Juliet with Shakespeare’s Globe company, a role he reprised in the West End in 2016. Madden rose to prominence as Robb Stark in the epic drama series Game of Thrones from 2011 to 2013.

Childhood and Upbringing

Madden was born on June 18, 1986, in Elderslie, near Glasgow, where he lived up with his two sisters. His mother is a kindergarten teacher, while his father was a firefighter. Madden joined PACE Youth Theatre when he was 11 years old to help him overcome his shyness.

Madden graduated in 2007 from Glasgow’s Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, previously the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. During his studies, he worked with The Arches and the Glasgow Repertory Company, as well as appearing in Franz Xaver Kroetz’s play Tom Fool at the Citizens Theatre.

Richard’s Passion from Acting

The Tom Fool show was transferred to London after earning great reviews, and a team from Shakespeare’s Globe saw Madden. He was cast as Romeo in the play Romeo and Juliet at the modern Globe Theatre in London during his last year of study, followed by a tour of the production over the summer of 2007. Susan Elkin of The Stage described the actor’s portrayal of Romeo as “gravelly Glaswegian” and “almost childish” in her review.

Rise to Stardom

In the 2018 BBC thriller series Bodyguard, Madden starred as Sergeant David Budd, a war veteran and police officer with PTSD. To frame a rich and intricate portrayal of the condition, he met with members of the military who had suffered PTSD. The actor communicated Budd’s “superb instincts, his cool head under pressure, and his complex psychology” convincingly, according to Tim Goodman of The Hollywood Reporter and Sophie Gilbert of The Atlantic.