Accepted a role as one severely criticised (5,5)
I believe the answer is:
taken apart
'as one severely criticised' is the definition.
(to take someone apart is to criticise them harshly)
'accepted a role' is the wordplay.
'accepted' becomes 'taken' ('take' can be a synonym of 'accept').
'role' becomes 'part' (eg a part or role in a film).
'taken'+'a'+'part'='TAKEN APART'
(Another definition for taken apart that I've seen is " Severely criticised".)
I've seen this clue in The Telegraph.
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