Amazing actors

Gregor Fisher, born Gregor McKenzie, was raised in Neilston by adoptive parents Cis and John Leckie. His first regular television appearance was in 1978 when he appeared alongside Rikki Fulton in the BBC sketch show Scotch & Wry (1978). As he became more recognized, he was in demand for more television work. In 1986, he was cast in Naked Video (1986) (which itself started as a radio show entitled 'Naked Radio') alongside the likes of Andy Gray, Elaine C. Smith and Tony Roper, among others. This show saw the creation of some of his finest characters such as string-vested drunkard 'Rab C. Nesbitt', and 'The Baldy Man', the vain half-wit with an unconvincing comb-over. His talent for visual comedy was not unnoticed by the production team, particularly not by writer Phil Differ, who wrote for him 'The Man In The Photo Booth' (which was a direct lift from the 'photo booth' sketch in 'Naked Video' featuring 'The Baldy Man'). Incidentally, the 'Rab C. Nesbitt' character became so popular that in 1988 he was awarded his own show Rab C. Nesbitt (1988) which has since notched up ten series, ending with a special episode in 2014. The well-loved Scottish actor currently lives in France with his wife, actress Vicki Burton.

James Cosmo was born on 24 May 1948 in Clydebank, Dunbartonshire, Scotland, UK. He is an actor and producer, known for Braveheart (1995), Troy (2004) and Highlander (1986). He has been married to Annie Harris since 24 May 2000.

Graham McTavish is a Scottish television and film actor, best known for his roles as Dougal Mackenzie in the popular TV series "Outlander" (2014-16), as Dwalin in the "The Hobbit" trilogy for Peter Jackson (2012-14) as well as the Saint of Killers in AMC's series "Preacher", based on Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon's cult comic book series (2016 onwards). He also starred alongside Sylvester Stallone in "Rambo" (2008) and "Creed" (2015), making him the only actor to perform opposite Rocky AND Rambo. He is also known for his roles in numerous other TV shows and movies including "Red Dwarf" (1998), "24" (2009), "Rome" (2004), "The Finest Hours" (2015) and "Colombiana" (2011). As well as extensive theatre work throughout the UK including The Royal Court, and The Royal National Theatre, he is well known for his voice work on games and animated TV, including "Uncharted 2, 3, and 4", "Call of Duty", "Dante's Inferno", Loki in "Hulk v Thor" and "The Avengers", "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" and "Kung Fu Panda"

Gary Lewis was born in 1958 in Glasgow, Strathclyde, Scotland, UK. He is an actor, known for Billy Elliot (2000), Gangs of New York (2002) and Valhalla Rising (2009).

Widely considered as one of the greatest stage and screen actors of his generation both in his native Scotland and internationally, David Tennant was born David John McDonald in West Lothian, Scotland, to Essdale Helen (McLeod) and Sandy McDonald, who was a Presbyterian minister. He is of Scottish and Ulster-Scots descent. When he was about 3 or 4 years old, he decided to become an actor, inspired by his love of Doctor Who (1963).

He was brought up in Bathgate, West Lothian and Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland and was a huge fan of the band The Proclaimers. He attended Paisley Grammar school and while there he wrote about how he wanted to become a professional actor and play the role of the Doctor in Doctor Who (1963).

He made his first television appearance (which was also his first professional acting job) when he was 16, after his father sent some photos of him to a casting director at Scottish television. He also attended a youth theatre group at weekends run by the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (now renamed the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland). When he was 16 he auditioned for and won a place at the academy; the youngest student to ever do so, and started as a full time drama student when he was 17.

He worked regularly in theatre and TV after leaving drama school, and his first big break came in 1994 when he was cast in a lead role in the Scottish drama Takin' Over the Asylum (1994). He then moved to London where his career thrived. Among other significant factors of his prolific artistic course, he spent several years as a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, and became famous from his lead roles in TV dramas Blackpool (2004) and Casanova (2005).

In 2005, his childhood wish came true. David was cast to play the role of the Doctor in Doctor Who (2005) alongside Billie Piper, after Christopher Eccleston decided to leave. Playing the Doctor made him a household name and a sex symbol, being voted "Sexiest Man in the Universe" by readers of The Pink Paper and 16th Sexiest Man in the World by a Cosmopolitan survey. Since leaving the series in 2010 his career has continued to rise, with lead roles in films, TV series and theatre.

Richard Madden, born 18 June 1986, is a Scottish stage, film, and television actor best known for portraying Robb Stark in the HBO series "Game of Thrones" and Prince Kit in Disney's "Cinderella." Starring as David Budd in the BBC miniseries "Bodyguard" has also brought him more international acclaim and attention including a Golden Globe and other nominations. Despite his seemingly overnight success, Madden has been acting since he was in his teens, with only a brief break where he focused on school.

Madden was born in Elderslie, Renfrewshire, Scotland, where he was brought up with two sisters. His mother, Pat, is a classroom assistant, and his father, Richard, is in the fire brigade.

Chloe Pirrie (born 25 August 1987) is a Scottish actress. She has played main roles in the 2014 miniseries The Game, the 2012 film Shell, and the 2015 television film An Inspector Calls. She has also appeared in the 2016 miniseries War & Peace, the 2015 film Youth, the 2015 film Blood Cells and a 2013 episode of Black Mirror. In 2015 she also co-starred in the Academy Award winner for Best Live Action Short Film, Stutterer.

Pirrie was raised in Stockbridge, Edinburgh, and attended the Mary Erskine School. She began acting in school and decided to pursue it as a career after being cast in a school production of The Cherry Orchard. She moved to London at the age of 18 to attend the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and graduated in 2009. Pirrie's professional acting career began in 2009. She made her debut at the Royal National Theatre in a 2010 production of Men Should Weep alongside numerous other Scottish actors. Shortly afterwards, she appeared in Solstice, a short film released in 2010. Her first role in a feature film was in Shell (2012), a Scottish drama in which Pirrie played the eponymous main character. For this performance she won Most Promising Newcomer at the British Independent Film Awards 2013 and was nominated for Best British Newcomer at the 2012 BFI London Film Festival Awards. In 2013, she played a politician in "The Waldo Moment", an episode of the anthology series Black Mirror. In the same year she was named as one of BAFTA's "Breakthrough Brits" and Screen International's "UK Stars of Tomorrow".

In 2014, Pirrie starred in the BBC miniseries The Game, a Cold War spy thriller in which she played an MI5 secretary. The following year she appeared as Sheila Birling in Helen Edmundson's BBC One adaptation of J. B. Priestley's An Inspector Calls, in the miniseries The Last Panthers, the British independent film Burn Burn Burn, and the Italian film Youth.

In 2015, she starred as Ellie in the Academy Award winner for Best Live Action Short Film, Stutterer. Ellie is the love interest for Greenwood (played by Matthew Needham). Greenwood has a major stuttering problem and can't speak effectively, causing him to panic when Ellie suggests they take what had only been an online relationship, offline to meet in person. After finally giving in, Greenwood learns a secret about Ellie that changes everything.

She played Julie Karagina in the 2016 BBC miniseries War & Peace and was cast as Emily Brontë in To Walk Invisible, a BBC drama about the Brontë family created by Sally Wainwright. She also starred in the Death In Paradise episode 'In The Footsteps Of A Killer' as Grace Matlock, an employee at the Saint Marie Times.

She also plays Lara in the 2016 BBC thriller series, The Living and the Dead. In 2017, she starred in the Netflix series, The Crown for its second season, playing Eileen Parker. In 2018, she appeared in the BBC/Netflix miniseries Troy: Fall of a City.

Cal MacAninch was born on 24 November 1963 in Govan, Glasgow, Scotland, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for Downton Abbey (2010), Calibre (2018) and Mr Selfridge (2013). He is married to Shauna Macdonald. They have three children.

Daniel was born in Glasgow and is the son of the actor Ron Donachie. Brought up in Strathbungo, Glasgow, he attended Shawlands Academy, where he was head boy, before gaining an HNC in acting at Reid Kerr Colege, Paisley. Aged sixteen he had his first role in supernatural thriller 'Outcast', starring James Nesbitt and then had an ongoing role in the Scottish soap 'River City'. When he was nineteen he was cast as loyal squire Podrick Payne in the unstoppable 'Game of Thrones; series - in which his father also appeared - and to date has managed not to join that series' rather lengthy list of dead.

John Hannah is the youngest child of his family, having two older sisters. Before he decided on a career as an actor, John was an apprentice electrician for four years. He gave up his work as an electrician after being accepted to the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in Glasgow. After years of struggling, he finally got his 'big break' when he was cast as Matthew in Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994). He currently lives in London with his wife Joanna Roth and their two children.

Rose Leslie is a Scottish actress. Her leading on screen debut was at age 21 in the television film New Town (2009). She is famous for playing Ygritte in the HBO fantasy series Game of Thrones (2011). Leslie also appeared in the films Now Is Good (2012) and The Last Witch Hunter (2015).

Leslie was born Rose Eleanor Arbuthnot-Leslie in Aberdeen, Scotland, near Lickleyhead Castle, where her family has lived for more than 500 years. Rose is the daughter of Candida Mary Sibyl (Weld) and Sebastian Arbuthnot-Leslie, who is the Aberdeenshire Chieftain of Clan Leslie. She is the middle of five children, and went to the local primary school in Rayne, before going to Millfield, a co-ed public school in England. It was at Millfield that Rose really cultivated her love for acting, as the school had an excellent drama department. After five years at Millfield, Rose went on to the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) to earn a bachelor's degree with honors in 2008.

Rose's first acting job was in a television documentary series, called Locked Up Abroad (2007), in 2008. In 2009, she appeared in the made-for-TV film, Purves + Pekkala (2009), in which she received a Scottish BAFTA Award for Best Acting Performance - New Talent Award. In 2010, Rose appeared in the British TV Series, Downton Abbey (2010), as "Gwen Dawson," for 7 episodes. Later that year, she appeared in the play, "Bedlam," at the Globe Theatre in London. In 2011, Rose appeared in the British drama television series, Case Histories (2011), as "Laura Wyre," for 2 episodes. In 2012, Rose played "Lena Holgate" in the episode, The Ghost Position (2012), in the British detective television series, Vera (2011). Later that same year, Rose would make her iconic appearance in the 2nd season of the HBO epic fantasy series, Game of Thrones (2011), opposite Kit Harington as the wildling "Ygritte."

Bill Paterson was born on 3 June 1945 in Glasgow, Scotland, UK. He is an actor and writer, known for The Witches (1990), Miss Potter (2006) and How to Lose Friends & Alienate People (2008). He has been married to Hildegard Bechtler since 1984. They have two children.

David Hayman was born on 9 February 1948 in Bridgeton, Glasgow, Scotland, UK. He is an actor and director, known for The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (2008), Sid and Nancy (1986) and Macbeth (2015). He is married to Alice Hayman. They have three children.

Sophie Rundle is an English actress. Born on April 21, 1988 to Fiona and Michael Rundle, she has two brothers James and Henry. She attended the Bournemouth School for Girls before going on to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, where she graduated in 2011 with a BA in Acting.

Upon graduation, she appeared in the period drama Garrow's Law (2009) and was part of the huge cast recreating the fate of the passenger liner Titanic (2012), which aired on the 100th anniversary of the disaster. Most of her appearances have been in dramas set in bygone days, from the 17th-century Jamestown (2017), the post-war The Bletchley Circle (2012) and Call the Midwife (2012), and the 1920s gangster saga Peaky Blinders (2013). She had contemporary roles in the sitcom Not Safe for Work (2015) and played the brave young PC Kirsten McAskill in Happy Valley (2014).

On stage, she has also gone back to the 1920s in Noel Coward's 'The Vortex' at the Rose, Kingston and on film to the nineteenth century with Great Expectations (2012). In 2015, she joined another huge cast playing the pre-'Bleak House' Lady Dedlock in Dickensian (2015), a mash-up of various characters from books by Charles Dickens in a fictional interaction. In 2018 she will be seen in the series Bodyguard (2018).

Maria Doyle Kennedy was born on 25 September 1964 in Clontarf, Dublin, Ireland. She is an actress and director, known for The Tudors (2007), The Commitments (1991) and Orphan Black (2013). She has been married to Kieran Kennedy since 11 June 1988. They have four children.

Robert Carlyle was born in Maryhill, Glasgow, Scotland, to Elizabeth, a bus company employee, and Joseph Carlyle, a painter and decorator. He was raised by his father after his mother left him when he was four. At the age of 21, after reading Arthur Miller's "The Crucible," he enrolled in acting classes at the Glasgow Arts Centre. In 1991, together with four other actors, he founded the Raindog theatre company (named after Tom Waits' album "Rain Dog," one of Carlyle's favorites), a company dedicated to innovative work. Danny Boyle's film Trainspotting (1996) marked his breakthrough.

David Thewlis was born David Wheeler in 1963 in Blackpool, Lancashire, to Maureen (Thewlis) and Alec Raymond Wheeler, and lived with his parents above their combination wallpaper and toy shop during his childhood. Originally, he came to London with his band Door 66, however he changed his plans and entered Guildhall School of Drama.

He had minor roles in films and TV until he took the main role in Naked (1993). The film won him several awards including the New York Critics Award. He has since been in many other films including DragonHeart (1996), Restoration (1995), Black Beauty (1994) and he took the part of Professor Remus John Lupin in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004) and its sequels.

Recently, he starred in the third season of FX's Fargo (2014).

He lived with the British actress Anna Friel from 2001-2010. They have a daughter, Gracie Ellen Mary, born July 9, 2005.

Miranda Richardson was born in Southport, Lancashire, England on March 3, 1958, to Marian Georgina (Townsend) and William Alan Richardson, a marketing executive. She has one sister, eight years her senior. Her parents and sister are not involved in the performing arts. At an early age she performed in school plays, having shown a talent and desire to "turn herself into" other people. She has referred to it as "an emotional fusion; you think yourself into them". This mimicry could be of school friends or film stars.

She left school (Southport High School for Girls) at the age of 17, and originally intended becoming a vet. She also considered studying English literature in college, but decided to concentrate on drama and enrolled at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School (as did many well-known British actors). After three years she graduated and moved into repertory theatre. She became affiliated with the Library Theatre in Manchester in 1979, where she became an assistant stage manager. She obtained her Equity card, and after several regional productions, first appeared on the London stage (Moving at Queens Theatre) in 1981. British television roles soon followed, and then film.

Since then, Miranda has moved into the international arena, and has made films in America, France and Spain. Television work (on both sides of the Atlantic) continues, as does some stage work. Her roles are diverse, but powerful and engaging. She has been quoted as stating "what I basically like is doing things I haven't done before" and this continually comes through in the variety of roles she has played in her career. She is also selective in the roles she takes, being uninterested in performing in the standard Hollywood fare, and preferring more offbeat roles. She was approached to play the Glenn Close role in Fatal Attraction (1987), but found it "regressive in its attitudes". Her attitude is summed up by a quote from an interview that appeared in the New York Times (Dec 27 1992): "I would rather do many small roles on TV, stage or film than one blockbuster that made me rich but had no acting. And if that's the choice I have to make, I think I've already made it".

According to "1994 Current Biography Yearbook", she resides in South London with her two Siamese cats, Otis and Waldo. She has now moved to West London. Her hobbies include drawing, walking, gardening, fashion, falconry, and music. She, by her own admission, is a loner and lives rather modestly. An actor who studied with Ms Richardson at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre in the late 1970s described her as "a strong minded, specially gifted, rather pretty young woman who enjoys wearing jewelry. She wore toe rings, which in the late 1970s and especially in England, were a rarity and considered rather racy." He also remarked on her drive, even then, to be an actress of the highest caliber.

Finn Cole was born on 9 November 1995 in Kingston, London, England, UK. He is an actor, known for F9: The Fast Saga (2021), Slaughterhouse Rulez (2018) and Peaky Blinders (2013).

Since graduating from RADA, Kyle Soller has acquired an impressive body of work across stage, screen and film. Kyle's stage work has earned him the Outstanding Newcomer award at the Evening Standard Theatre Awards in 2011 following his three breakout performances in the 2010 revival of Tennessee William's' play The Glass Menagerie at the Young Vic, and in 2011 Gogol's classic comedy The Government Inspector, also at The Young Vic, and The Faith Machine at the Royal Court. The following year he received an Olivier Award nomination for his performance in Anthony Page's 2012 production of Long Day's Journey Into Night. In 2017 Kyle starred in Patrick Marber's Hedda Gabler opposite Ruth Wilson at the National Theatre in Ivo Van Hove's directorial debut for the National Theatre. In 2019 Kyle starred in The Inheritance at The Young Vic which then transferred to the West End and then onto Broadway. Kyle received an Olivier Award for his role, as well as an Evening Standard Nomination.

Kyle made his Broadway debut in 2012 in Jamie Lloyd's revival of Edmond Rostand's Cyrano de Bergerac.

Kyle Soller is best known for Andor, Disney+ , Bodies, Netlfix, Brexit: The Uncivil War, Poldark and Anna Karenina (2012)

Angela Griffin was born on 19 July 1976 in Cottingley, Leeds, Yorkshire, England, UK. She is an actress and director, known for The Wives (2024), Help (2021) and Crime (2021). She has been married to Jason Milligan since 27 July 2006. They have two children.

Penelope Wilton was born on 3 June 1946 in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, England, UK. She is an actress, known for The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2011), Shaun of the Dead (2004) and Match Point (2005). She was previously married to Ian Holm and Daniel Massey.

Philippa "Pippa" Haywood is an English actress who trained at Bristol Old Vic Theatre School.

Haywood was born in Hatfield, Hertfordshire. She has an extensive television career which includes portraying the much put-upon Helen Brittas in the BBC One comedy series The Brittas Empire (1991-1997), Julie Chadwick in the 2007 BBC Two comedy Fear, Stress & Anger and the hot-tempered, sex-mad human resources director Joanna Clore in Green Wing (2004-2006), for which she won the "best comedy female performance" award at the 2005 Rose d'Or television festival in Lucerne, Switzerland).

She has also done many dramatic roles, including Jenny Thorne in the 1988 ITV drama serial The One Game, and Mrs. Upjohn in the 2008 Agatha Christie's Poirot episode "Cat Among the Pigeons". In 2002 Haywood was a guest star in the last episode of the first series of The Inspector Lynley Mysteries.

In 2007 she played the role of Veronica Gray in the first episode of the second series of Lewis and also had a guest role in a 2009 episode of Kingdom, and portrayed the disgraced Miss Bunting in several episodes of the first series of Mr Selfridge (2013). Since 2012 she has played one of the lead roles, Harriet, on the BBC One drama Prisoners' Wives, and costarred as Detective Superintendent Julie Dodson on the ITV drama series Scott & Bailey. In 2015 she appeared in the BBC TV adaptation of E.F. Benson's Mapp and Lucia, as Susan Wyse.

In 2015, Haywood took over the role of Helen Golightly in the long-running BBC Radio 4 comedy Clare in the Community. The character was previously played by Liza Tarbuck.

Haywood has also worked in film and theatre. Recent stage credits include: House & Garden, Private Lives, A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Winter's Tale, Requiem and Landscape with Weapon at the National Theatre. She was then playing the lead role in Wanderlust at the Royal Court Jerwood Theatre Upstairs. On December 18th 2016 she starred in Midsomer Murders with Hugh Dennis.

Alun Armstrong is a British actor who is known for playing Cardinal Jinette from the Van Helsing franchise, Baltus Hafez from The Mummy Returns, Uncle Garrow from Eragon, the High Constable from Sleepy Hollow and Maxwell Randall from Billy the Kid and the Green Baize Vampire. He is married to Sue Bairstow and has three sons.

Clare Holman was born on 12 January 1964 in London, England, UK. She is an actress and director, known for Blood Diamond (2006), Let Him Have It (1991) and Suite Française (2014). She was previously married to Howard Davies.