Richard Armitage (born 22 August 1971 in Leicester) is an English actor.

Born in Leicester, he went to Huncote Primary School in Huncote, later Brockington College in Enderby and then Pattison College in Coventry, and then studied acting at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA). At 17 he joined a circus in Budapest for 6 weeks to gain his Equity Card. His first major role was in the BBC drama Sparkhouse (2002). After a variety of supporting roles in the TV productions of Between the Sheets, Cold Feet (series 5), and Ultimate Force (Series 2), he landed his first leading role, that of John Thornton in the BBC drama North and South based on the novel by Elizabeth Gaskell.

In 2005, he was seen in Macbeth, part of the BBC's ShakespeaRe-Told series. He starred in the BBC's The Impressionists, in which he played the young Claude Monet, and as Dr Alec Track in ITV's The Golden Hour.