In , Time magazine named him one of the most influential people in the world , and in , he was appointed a CBE for services to performing arts and charity. He began acting in Shakespearean theatre productions before making his West End debut in Richard Eyre 's revival of Hedda Gabler in In , he played the title role in Hamlet at the Barbican Theatre. Cumberbatch's television work includes his performance as Stephen Hawking in the film Hawking He has a half-sister, Tracy Peacock, from his mother's first marriage.
Cumberbatch attended boarding schools from the age of eight, [ 6 ] attending Brambletye , a prep school near East Grinstead , West Sussex. After leaving Harrow, Cumberbatch took a gap year to volunteer as an English teacher at a Tibetan monastery in Darjeeling , India. In , [ 19 ] Benedict Cumberbatch's 7th-great-grandfather, Abraham Cumberbatch of Saint Andrew, Barbados died , acquired properties on the island of Barbados in the West Indies , [ 20 ] which used enslaved people for labour.
St Nicholas Abbey was owned by Cumberbatch's ancestors for at least two hundred years. These properties were passed down through the generations to Benedict's great-great-great-grandfather, Abraham Parry Cumberbatch [ 22 ] [ 23 ] died in Hellingly , Sussex. There has been media speculation [ 25 ] [ 26 ] that the Barbados National Task Force on Reparations, which, as part of the wider Caribbean's CARICOM Reparations Commission , is as of January [update] [ 19 ] seeking reparations from wealthy British MP Richard Drax for his ancestors' involvement in slavery, [ 27 ] might also consider seeking reparations from families such as the Cumberbatches.
Benedict Cumberbatch has said that by the time of his birth, most of the money had run out, and he grew up "definitely middle class ", [ 19 ] [ 25 ] [ 26 ] or upper middle class.
Cumberbatch was a part of a cast featuring members of the Royal National Theatre Company in 50 Years on Stage , the Royal National Theatre's landmark event for its 50th anniversary on 2 November The production was directed by Lyndsey Turner and produced by Sonia Friedman , which started its week run in August He also featured in Spooks and Silent Witness.
