Brian Cox is a Scottish actor born in 1946 who is renowned for his stage and screen performances. The document discusses Cox's acclaimed performance as Titus Andronicus in the 1987 Royal Shakespeare Company production, directed by Deborah Warner. An interview with Cox covers his interpretation of Titus, including that the character's tragic flaw is being unquestioning and becoming brutalized, and his journey is to reclaim his humanity. The production was hailed as one of the greatest Shakespeare revivals of the 1980s.

1. BRIAN COX
Titus Andronicus
by Cam M. Roberts

2. Production Photo of Brian Cox (right)
in performance, playing the titular role,
Titus Andronicus.

3. Date of Birth: June 1st, 1946.
Birthplace: Dundee, Scotland, United Kingdom
Birth Name: Brian Dennis Cox
Race: Caucasian (White)
Height: 5’ 9 ¼

4. Titus Andronicus (1591–2)
Royal Shakespeare Company
Opened at the Swan Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon
on May 12th, 1987
Directed by Deborah Warner
Designed by Isabella Bywater
With Jim Hooper as Saturninus, Estelle Kohler as TAMORA,
Peter Polycarpou as AARON, and Sonia Ritter as LAVINIA.

5. Titus Andronicus was again a tremendous
success with Brian Cox’s performance in
Deborah Warner’s 1987 RSC staging in the
Swan Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon. It was
hailed as one of the greatest Shakespeare revivals
of the 1980s. When Working out a wish list of
performance I hoped to include in this book,
Cox’s Titus was a leading contender. I was
stunned by it”
Julian Curry, p. 2.

6. Cox on Shakespeare
CURRY: It’s in the text?
COX: It’s in the text. It really is.

7. CURRY: Most of the characters seem fairly straightforward,
apart form Titus. But he’s wonderfully complex. Going back to
the beginning of the play, why did you turn down the candidacy
to be Emperor? And why did you support Saturninus?
COX: I think it’s the fact that he’s a soldier, he’s not a politician.
And he’s not of royal blood. There are feudal elements to the
play, and he sees very clearly where he is on the feudal ladder.
He makes the wrong choice in supporting Saturninus, but he
does it in order to safeguard something which… he believes that
things are going to be better served by Saturninus. And he
makes a massive error of judgment. Actually the reason he
doesn’t take on the candidacy of Rome is because he doesn’t
want it. He doesn’t want to be Emperor, that’s not who he is.
Curry, p. 10.

8. CURRY: He says ‘I’m too old, too tired, you’ll
have to elect somebody else tomorrow…’ But do
you think he really means it? Does he want to be
asked three times?
COX: No, I don’t think he does, I think that’s his
honesty. He’s an honest, bluff old soldier. That’s
what makes him an attractive character.

9. CURRY: Would you say Titus has a tragic flaw?
COX: Yes, his tragic flaw is that he doesn’t ask
questions. He’s unquestioning, he’s a killing
machine, and as a result he becomes brutalized.
He sees the death of his sons as being rather
noble. But then it impinges on him. When
you’ve got thirty sons you don’t notice it, but
when it’s down to four you begin to think ‘Hang
on, they’ve all gone!’

10. CURRY: So what’s his journey through the play? What
does he learn?
COX: The journey is to realize that he’s lost his
humanity, and to try to reclaim it. Which is what he
does, in a sense, even by the dastardly killing of his
daughter. And his line is guaranteed because at the end
of the play his son takes over. It’s really interesting that
at the beginning of the play he was obviously a bit of a
her. He was a very popular figure. But if you are in the
face of such action for so long, and you’re used to
serving, serving, serving, you begin not to be able to see
further than the end of your nose. It happens to a lot of
old soldiers, you know. Soldiers on the whole tend to
live long lives, and they go through changes. They can
emerge quite wise, but sometimes they behave brutally.

11. "Women are all layers.
What men don’t understand is that there is no centre to get to,
but to appreciate the beauty and the mystery of the woman in all her layers."

12. Bibliography
Cox, Brian. Salem to Moscow: An Actor’s Odyssey. London:
Methuen, 1991. Print.
Curry, Julian. Shakespeare on Stage: Thirteen Leading Actors on Thirteen Key Roles.
London: Nick Hearn Books, 2010. Print.
Harold, Madd. The Actor’s Guide to Performing Shakespeare: For Film, Television, and Theatre.
Hollywood: Lone Eagle, 2002. Print.
Internet Movie Database
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004051/
Rotten Tomatoes
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/1003427-brian_cox/
Fandango
http://www.fandango.com/briancox/overview/p86106
The Unofficial Fan Site of Brian Cox
http://www.coxian.com/
The Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2007/jul/03/theatre
The Telegraph
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/theatre-features/6138010/My-week-Brian-Cox-Actor.html
The Gothamist
http://gothamist.com/2007/11/21/brian_cox_actor.php
Talk Talk
http://www.talktalk.co.uk/entertainment/film/biography/artist/brian-cox/biography/14

13. Bibliography
The Scotsman
http://www.scotsman.com/news/interview_brian_cox_actor_1_474157
BAFTA: Guru
http://guru.bafta.org/
The Fawcett Society
http://www.fawcettsociety.org.uk/index.asp?PageID=436
Wire Image
http://www.wireimage.com/celebrities/brian-cox
Movie Clips
http://movieclips.com/payPY-brian-cox-actor-videos/#p=1
A Conversation with Brian Cox: Charlie Rose Interview (2003)
http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/2115
A Conversation with actor Brian Cox: Charlie Rose Interview (2004)
http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/1354
A Conversation with actor Brian Cox: Charlie Rose Interview (2006)
http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/157
Brian Cox Interview: Manhunter
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccPeC-uRI2c
Brian Cox Acting in Tragedy, The BBC Acting Series
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8qN2Gcdurw
Brian Cox in Conversation
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHESzaoWqsY