John Pirkis was born John Simon Alexander Lyne-Pirkis in Guildford, Surrey, England, and spent his childhood in the neighboring market town of Godalming. His father, Dr. Richard Hugh Godfrey Lyne-Pirkis, was of English aristocracy, and his mother, Ellinor Bessie Maureen (Austin),was of Irish aristocracy. Their family heritage is a rich blend of Russian, French, German, and Scandinavian bloodlines.
Pirkis received a private education, initially at Penthorpe preparatory school in Rudgewick, Sussex, and later at Sutton Valence School in Kent, where he excelled in writing and public speaking, winning several prizes for his efforts. He then trained as an actor at The Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, after which he took an unconventional step by joining a circus company, touring medieval jousting tournaments across Great Britain and Europe as the Earl Marshall (Ring Master) and various Combative Knights.
For the next thirty years, Pirkis appeared on stage and screen internationally, featuring in numerous established British TV dramas, including playing Freddie Chalk Marshall opposite Hugh Laurie in two seasons of the award-winning Jeeves and Wooster. During this period, he resided in London.
Pirkis has also appeared in several feature films, including National Treasure II, Young Victoria, Swing Kids, and has completed filming on Stephen Gaghan's Gold, alongside Matthew McConaughey, Bryce Dallas Howard, and Corey Stoll.
In addition to his film and television work, Pirkis has a extensive theatre credits, performing in productions of Shakespeare, Chekhov, Oscar Wilde, Bertolt Brecht, Jean-Paul Sartre, Jean-Marie Besset, and Nick Ward, among others, on London's West End and throughout Great Britain and Europe. He has also studied at the Meisner Centre in Los Angeles and at the Université De Montréal, where he learned the Alba Emoting and Feldenkrais techniques.
In 2002, Pirkis co-founded Theatre 503 in London, a multi-award-winning institution known for showcasing cutting-edge new writing. He was recognized as one of the top 100 people to have contributed the most to British theatre in the 21st century by The Stage. In 2010, Theatre 503's production of Katori Hall's The Mountaintop won the Olivier Award for Best Play, making Katori the first black female writer to receive this prestigious honor. The production later transferred to the West End and opened on Broadway in 2011, starring Samuel L. Jackson, Angela Bassett, and directed by Kenny Leon.
In 2011, Pirkis relocated to Los Angeles, where he met and married French actress and director Cecile Delepiere. Two years later, they moved to New York with their two rescue cats, Harley Gingerson and Luther. They currently reside in Los Angeles, where Pirkis continues to work as an actor and ambassador for Theatre 503.
