Liam Cunningham was born in 1961 in Dublin. He originally trained as an electrican before taking to the boards. He made his feature film debut in 1992 in “Into the West” with Gabriel Byrne and Ellen Barkin. His other films include “War of the Buttons”, “A Little Princess”, “Jude”, “A Love Divided”, “Showbands” and “The Wind That Shakes the Barley”.
2014 “Independent.ie” article:
The Game of Thrones star has featured in a number of projects with daring or dangerous stunts throughout his career.
And Cunningham (52), who portrays former smuggler Davos Seaworth in the smash-hit HBO drama, told the Herald that he has not left every job unscathed — he has experienced one or two close calls while working in front of the cameras.
“There are always going to be injuries on set — if you are doing things properly,” he said.
“I nearly got killed on a horse when I was filming in France with Clemence Posey a few years ago, where I had two swords attached to me and the horse reared up and I came down on my back; two inches either way and I would have lost a kidney and my life,” he revealed.
“You can only make stunts so safe.
“They are stunts — and it should be bordering on dangerous, because if it’s very safe it looks crap, so there needs to be a sense of danger.”
Even though he has a lead part in a global TV phenomenon, Cunningham — who launched the Westbury Hotel’s new Cafe Novo light breakfast menu yesterday — told this newspaper that he can’t afford to take on small budget theatre work.
“I can’t afford to do theatre, I think people assume if you’re on the television you’re a multi-millionaire.
“It’s HBO and cable, with a very big cast. It’s doing a network show where you make the money, but I’m much too lazy to do that — you have to give up your entire year.”
His co-star Trinity College graduate Jack Gleeson, who plays King Joffrey recently announced that he is looking to pursue a career in theatre production instead.
Cunningham commended the 21-year-old, and said that there are “few actors” who experience the level of success as Gleeson has.
The above “Independent.ie” article can also be accessed online here.