Charles Shaughnessy is arguably best known for portraying the Broadway producer and widower Maxwell Sheffield in the hit ‘90s sitcom The Nanny. He played a father to three children who come to love and appreciate the nanny who started off as a huge risk — Fran Fine (Fran Drescher). Fine brings heart and humor back into a household struck by great loss, and she and Sheffield boast a will-they-won’t-they slow-boiling romance for much of the show’s run. Yet, what has Shaughnessy been up to since, and what is he known for outside the hit series?
What came before ‘The Nanny’ for Shaughnessy?
Before The Nanny fell in his lap, Shaughnessy boasted a few roles in a handful of shows and movies — some more well-known than others. He appeared in an episode of General Hospital in 1984 as Alistair Crawford and starred in the TV miniseries Partners in Crime as John Rennie in 1983.
Shaughnessy also appeared in Murphy Brown, Day-O, Harry and the Hendersons, and more. Yet, in 1993, his career received quite the kickstart, as he became a leading character in a show that became known around the globe.
What did Shaughnessy appear in immediately following ‘The Nanny?’
The Nanny went off the air in 1999, and Shaughnessy soon appeared in the 2000 TV movie Mom’s Got a Date with a Vampire as Dimitri Denatos. He also played Alex and James Hexton in two episodes of Sabrina: The Teenage Witch. Shaughnessy went on to voice characters in Rugrats, The Wild Thornberrys, and more.
Shaughnessy also guest-starred in Drescher’s short-lived series Living with Fran. Shaughnessy jumped around a bit from voice work to appearances in TV shows and movies. Yet, most recently, he took a swing at playing royalty.
Charles Shaughnessy recently played Prince Charles and King Edward
Shaughnessy played Prince Charles in 2019’s Harry & Meghan: Becoming Royal before playing King Edward the same year in Christmas with a Prince: Becoming Royal.
Outside his turns as Prince Charles and King Edward, he starred in the sci-fi fantasy series The Magicians (based on Lev Grossman’s novel of the same name) from 2016 to 2020 as Christopher Plover. Shaughnessy also played Sir Liam Gooch in the short-lived TV series, Just Roll with It (which ran from 2019 to 2020). He is also set to appear in two upcoming productions — Final Frequency and The Magic.
