Alexander Siddig facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Alexander Siddig
صدّيق الطاهر الفاضل الصدّيق عبدالرحمن محمد أحمد عبدالكريم المهدي  (Arabic)
Siddig at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival
Born	Siddig El Tahir El Fadil El Siddig Abdurrahman Mohammed Ahmed Abdul Karim El Mahdi (1965-11-21) 21 November 1965 (age 59) Omdurman, Khartoum, Sudan
Other names	Siddig El Fadil
Alma mater	London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art
Occupation	Actor, director
Years active	1987–present
Spouse(s)	Nana Visitor ​ ​ (m. 1997; div. 2001)​ Shana Collier ​ (m. 2015)​
Children	1
Relatives	Malcolm McDowell (uncle) Charlie McDowell (cousin) Sadiq al-Mahdi (uncle) Muhammad Ahmad (great-great-grandfather)

Alexander Siddig (born November 21, 1965) is a British actor and director. He was born with a very long name: Siddig El Tahir El Fadil El Siddig Abdurrahman Mohammed Ahmed Abdel Karim El Mahdi. He is known professionally as Siddig El Fadil and later as Alexander Siddig.

Siddig is famous for playing Dr. Julian Bashir in the TV show Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. He also played Doran Martell in Game of Thrones, Ra's al Ghul in Gotham, and Philip Burton in Primeval. He has also been in movies like Syriana (2005) and Cairo Time (2009).

Early Life and School

Alexander Siddig was born on November 21, 1965, in Omdurman, Sudan. His father, Tahir El Mahdi, was from Sudan. His mother, Gloria, was English. She was the older sister of the famous actor Malcolm McDowell. This makes Malcolm McDowell Siddig's uncle.

Siddig's parents met in Sudan in the 1960s. His father had studied at Cambridge University. Siddig's uncle, Sadiq al-Mahdi, was the Prime Minister of Sudan for a few years. Siddig is also the great-great-grandson of Muhammad Ahmad, a religious leader.

When Siddig was two years old, his family moved to London, England. He spoke Arabic as a young child. But he soon forgot most of it after moving to Britain. His mother later married film director Michael Birkett.

Siddig went to St Lawrence College, Ramsgate. He also studied geography and anthropology at University College London. After that, he went to the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) to study acting.

Acting Career

After finishing LAMDA, Siddig worked in theater. He was both an actor and a director. His first TV role was in a British show called The Big Battalions in 1992. Soon after, he played Prince Feisal in A Dangerous Man: Lawrence After Arabia (1990). This TV movie was a follow-up to the famous film Lawrence of Arabia.

His role as Prince Feisal caught the eye of Rick Berman. Berman was a producer for Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993). Berman first thought Siddig might play Commander Benjamin Sisko. But he decided Siddig was too young. So, Siddig got the part of Dr. Julian Bashir instead. He stayed on Deep Space Nine for all seven seasons. He even directed two episodes: "Business as Usual" and "Profit and Lace". In 1995, he changed his stage name from Siddig El Fadil to Alexander Siddig.

After a big world event in 2001, there was more demand for actors to play characters from the Middle East. Siddig started getting many new roles. He played a mountain guide in Vertical Limit (2000). He was also Ajay in the movie Reign of Fire (2002). In 2003, he played a secret agent in the British TV show Spooks.

In 2005, Siddig returned to the stage in London. He also appeared in Ridley Scott's film Kingdom of Heaven. In this movie, he played Saladin's aide, Imad. That same year, he starred with George Clooney in the movie Syriana, playing Prince Nasir.

Siddig played the main character in the BBC's 2006 TV movie Hannibal. In 2007, he starred in the French film A Lost Man. He also played Hamri Al-Assad in the sixth season of the TV show 24.

In 2009, he was in the movie Cairo Time with Patricia Clarkson. He played Tareq Khalifa, an Egyptian man. The film won an award at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival. He also played Jamal in the 2010 film Miral.

Siddig played Philip Burton in the science-fiction show Primeval in 2011. In 2012, he worked again with director Ruba Nadda. He starred in the film Inescapable. He played a Syrian-Canadian businessman.

In 2013, Siddig narrated the BBC nature show Wild Arabia. He also played Minos in the BBC fantasy show Atlantis.

From 2013 to 2015, Siddig played Al-Rahim in the show Da Vinci's Demons. In 2015 and 2016, he appeared in the HBO series Game of Thrones. He played Doran Martell, the Prince of Dorne. He also played Ruben Oliver in the British show Peaky Blinders.

In 2017, Siddig joined the cast of Gotham. He played League of Shadows leader Ra’s al Ghul. He also played Aristotle Onassis in the show The Kennedys: After Camelot.

In 2019, he was in the Netflix show The Spy. He played Ahmed Suidani, a Syrian security officer. He also voiced Avi Singh in Star Wars: The Bad Batch.

Personal Life

Alexander Siddig met actress Nana Visitor while working on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Their son, Django El Tahir El Siddig, was born on September 16, 1996. Nana Visitor's pregnancy was even written into the show's story! They got married in 1997 and later divorced in 2001.

Filmography

Film

At TrekExpo in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 2005

Television series

See also

In Spanish: Alexander Siddig para niños