Eddie Marsan | |
|---|---|
 Marsan atThe World's End premiere, Leicester Square, in 2013 | |
| Born | Edward Maurice Charles Marsan (1968-06-09)9 June 1968 (age 57) Stepney, London, England |
| Alma mater | Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1990–present |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 4 |
Edward Maurice Charles MarsanOBE (born 9 June 1968) is an English actor. He won theLondon Film Critics Circle Award and theNational Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor for the filmHappy-Go-Lucky (2008).
Marsan was born on 9 June 1968[1] in theStepney district of London to a working-class family; his father was a lorry driver and his mother was aschool dinner lady and teaching assistant.[2][3] He was brought up inBethnal Green and attendedRaine's Foundation School.[4] He left school at 16 and initially served an apprenticeship as a printer before beginning his career in theatre.[3]
He trained at theMountview Academy of Theatre Arts, graduating in 1991,[5] and went on to study underSam Kogan[6] at the Kogan Academy of Dramatic Arts,[7] now known as The School of the Science of Acting,[7] of which Marsan is now a patron.[8] His first year at drama school was funded by Mr Benny, a bookmaker who ran a menswear shop where Marsan worked; he obtained scholarships for the rest of the course. It took many attempts for Marsan to get a place at drama school.[9]
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Marsan's first television appearance was in 1992 as a "yob" in theLondon Weekend Television seriesThe Piglet Files. One of his more significant early television appearances was in the popular mid-1990s BBC sitcomGame On as an escaped convict who was an old flame of Mandy's. Marsan went on to have roles inCasualty,The Bill,Grass,Kavanagh QC,Grange Hill,Silent Witness,Ultimate Force,Southcliffe,[10] and more. He also voiced the Manticore in theMerlin episode "Love in the Time of Dragons".[11]
In 2011, he starred alongsideOlivia Colman andPeter Mullan, all three actors relatively unknown at that time, in the British drama filmTyrannosaur.[12]
In 2013, he began portraying Terry Donovan, brother to the lead character in 7 series and 82 episodes ofShowtime's drama seriesRay Donovan.[10] The same year he playedLudwig Guttmann in the television filmThe Best of Men. In May 2015, Marsan appeared as the practical magician Gilbert Norrell in theBBC period dramaJonathan Strange & Mr Norrell.[13]
Marsan's film roles include the main villain in the 2008superhero filmHancock alongsideWill Smith and as Inspector Lestrade inGuy Ritchie'sSherlock Holmes. His other films includeSixty Six,Gangs of New York,[10]21 Grams,The Illusionist,[10]V for Vendetta,Gangster No. 1,Miami Vice,Mission: Impossible III,I Want Candy,Vera Drake,Happy-Go-Lucky,[10]Filth,Tyrannosaur[10] andHeartless.[14]
In 2021, Marsan appeared as anti-Fascist activist Soly Malinovsky in the television adaptation of the novelRidley Road.[15] In 2022, he played the real-life role ofJohn Darwin in ITV's drama seriesThe Thief, His Wife and the Canoe.[16]
Marsan appeared as Mitch Winehouse, father ofAmy Winehouse, in the biopicBack to Black, which was released in 2024.[17]
Marsan married make-up artist Janine Schneider in 2002. They have four children.[18] Marsan is ahumanist and was appointed a patron ofHumanists UK in 2015.[19] He was critical of the lack of representation of working-class people in the arts in 2015 onBBC Radio 5 Live in which he stated too much drama is written from "the white, privileged, middle class perspective".[20] In 2024 he was interviewed onHARDtalk with an episode entitled "Do the arts neglect working-class people?".[9]
Marsan was appointedOfficer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the2025 New Year Honours for service to drama.[21][22]
| † | Denotes works that have not yet been released |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | The Piglet Files | Yob | Episode: "Sex, Spies and Videotape" |
| 1992–1996 | The Bill | Martin Price/Roy Kilby/Dean Stacey/Gary Vaughan | 4 episodes |
| 1996 | Casualty | Rick Grant | Episode: "Chain Reactions" |
| EastEnders | Roddy | 1 episode | |
| Game On | Stoat | Episode: "Heavy Bondage & Custard Creams" | |
| 1996–1998 | Grange Hill | Andy Sutcliffe/Eddie Sutcliffe | 3 episodes |
| 1997 | Get Well Soon | Brian Clapton | Main cast, 6 episodes |
| Kavanagh QC | Ian Vincent | Episode: "The Ties That Bind" | |
| 1999 | The Vice | Rhys | 2 episodes |
| 2000 | The Mrs Bradley Mysteries | Ronald Quincy | Episode: "The Worsted Viper" |
| 2001 | The Monkey King | Pigsy | Miniseries, 2 episodes |
| 2002 | Ultimate Force | Badger | Episode: "The Killing House" |
| Judge John Deed | Ed Hay | Episode: "Nobody's Fool" | |
| 2003 | Grass | Sunshine | 3 episodes |
| Charles II: The Power and the Passion | Titus Oates | Episode #1.4 | |
| 2004 | Coming Up | Martin | Episode: "The Baader Meinhoff Gang Show" |
| Quite Ugly One Morning | Stephen Lime | Television film | |
| Silent Witness | Derek Portnoy | 2 episodes | |
| 2006 | Friends and Crocodiles | Martin Butterworth | Television film |
| 2008 | God on Trial | Lieble | Television film |
| Little Dorrit | Pancks | Miniseries, 12 episodes | |
| The 39 Steps | Scudder | Television film | |
| 2009 | Criminal Justice | Saul | Main cast, 5 episodes |
| 2009–2010 | Law & Order: UK | Jason Peters | 2 episodes |
| 2010 | Merlin | The Manticore (voice) | Episode: "Love in the Time of Dragons" |
| The Sarah Jane Adventures | Mr White | 2-part story:Goodbye, Sarah Jane Smith | |
| 2011 | Moby Dick | Stubb | Miniseries, 2 episodes |
| 2012 | Playhouse Presents | The Intruder | Episode: "Walking the Dogs" |
| The Best of Men | Ludwig Guttmann | Television film | |
| 2013 | Southcliffe | Andrew Salter | 4 episodes |
| 2013–2020 | Ray Donovan | Terry Donovan | Main cast, 82 episodes |
| 2015 | Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell | Gilbert Norrell | Miniseries, 7 episodes |
| River | Thomas Neill Cream | Miniseries, 6 episodes | |
| Hunted | Narrator (voice) | Reality television series | |
| 2016 | Galavant | Death | Episode: "Love and Death" |
| 2017 | Urban Myths | Bob Dylan | Episode: "Bob Dylan: Knockin' on Dave's Door" |
| 2018 | Indian Summer School | Narrator (voice) | Reality television series, 3 episodes |
| 2020 | Isolation Stories | Stephen | Miniseries, episode: "Karen" |
| 2021 | The Pact | Arwel Evans | 4 episodes |
| Deceit | Professor Paul Britton | Miniseries, 4 episodes | |
| Ridley Road | Soly Malinovsky | 4 episodes | |
| 2022 | Ray Donovan: The Movie | Terry Donovan | Television film |
| The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe | John Darwin | Miniseries, 4 episodes | |
| 2023 | The Power | Bernie Monke | Main role, 7 episodes |
| The Winter King | Uther Pendragon | 2 episodes | |
| 2024 | Franklin | John Adams | Miniseries, 5 episodes |
| Inside No. 9 | Nathaniel | Episode: "The Curse of the Ninth" | |
| Suspect | Dr. Alistair Underwood | Episode: "Alistair" | |
| Supacell | Ray | 2 episodes | |
| Heartstopper | Geoff Young | 3 episodes | |
| 2025 | Reunion | Stephen Renworth | 4 episodes |
| The Bombing of Pan Am 103 | Tom Thurman | Miniseries, 6 episodes[27] | |
| King & Conqueror | King Edward | ||
| Prisoner † | TBA | Post-production |
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Deathtrap Dungeon | Narrator |
| International | |
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| National | |
| Academics | |
| Artists | |
| People | |
| Other | |
