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Vincenzo Nicoli (born 27 July 1958) is a British actor who appears in film, television and theatre.
He is best known for his role as Papa Pete in the CBBC children's programme Hank Zipzer (2014–2016) and as the voices of Lorenzo and Beppe in Thomas & Friends (2019–present). Along with actress Flaminia Cinque, he has appeared in Leap Year, The Knot, Brothers of Italy and Mama Cannelloni.
Early life
Nicoli was born in Worcester on 27 July 1958 to Italian parents from Puglia.
He took a 3-year acting course at the London Academy of Music & Dramatic Art in which he graduated from.
Career
He made his acting career when he appeared in the musical Bashville and as a minor character in Accidental Death of an Anarchist.
His television appearances include Rome, Dalziel and Pascoe, Dempsey and Makepeace, The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, Auf Wiedersehen, Pet, Mr. Selfridge, EastEnders and Foyle's War.
Nicoli appeared as Antinous in the 1997 miniseries The Odyssey for two episodes of the miniseries. From 2014 to 2016, he played Papa Pete in the comedy programme Hank Zipzer
He played a crime boss in the Christopher Nolan superhero film The Dark Knight. He has appeared in films such as Captain Phillips, Leap Year, Alien³, Buster, In Love and War and The Naughty List.
In 2019, he joined the voice cast of Thomas & Friends as the voices of Lorenzo and Beppe in the UK & US versions, respectively.
Personal life
Nicoli is married to actress Heather Bleasdale. He and Bleasdale have a daughter, Ella Nicolì-Horne, who studies at Bournemouth University. He speaks English and Italian. He upholds his British-Italian citizenship.