James Nesbitt Filmography
James Nesbitt is an actor from Northern Ireland whose filmography encompasses both television and film roles over a 30-year period. Nesbitt's screen career began in the early 1980s with uncredited roles in episodes of the BBC Play For Today strand, which he had while attached to the Riverside Theatre's youth group. His first credited role came in 1989, as a bit player in the John Ogdon biopic Virtuoso, which was followed by his first feature film role in 1991 in Hear My Song.
As a casual actor in the early 1990s, Nesbitt mixed television and film roles; he appeared in episodes of Boon, The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, Covington Cross, Lovejoy, and Between the Lines. He also played roles in several Michael Winterbottom films, beginning with Loves Lies Bleeding in 1993 and continuing with Go Now in 1995, Jude in 1996 and Welcome to Sarajevo in 1997.
In 1997, he secured his breakout television role as Adam Williams in Cold Feet, a character he played until 2003 and again from 2016 until 2020. In that time he also appeared in the film Waking Ned, two series of Playing the Field, Touching Evil, his feature film lead debut Lucky Break, and Paul Greengrass's controversial television film Bloody Sunday, as Ivan Cooper. After Bloody Sunday, Nesbitt started to take on more dramatic roles, appearing in five series of Murphy's Law (2003–2007), the two-part television film Passer By (2004), Steven Moffat's Jekyll (2007), and the Iraq War drama Occupation (2009). He has also furthered his feature film career by taking roles in Woody Allen's Match Point (2005), the Troubles drama Five Minutes of Heaven (2009), the thriller Outcast (2010), Nadia Tass's Matching Jack (2010), and Emilio Estevez's The Way (2010). He starred in the ITV medical drama series Monroe (2011–2012) and has a role as the dwarf Bofur in Peter Jackson's The Hobbit trilogy (2012–2014).
Nesbitt has also taken on theatrical roles throughout his career; between 1987 and 1994, he appeared in no less than five major plays, including the musical Up on the Roof, a world tour of Hamlet, and the Troubles drama Paddywack. After a break of eleven years, Nesbitt returned to the stage to make his London West End debut in Owen McCafferty's Shoot the Crow (2005).
Filmography
Television
| Year(s) | Title | Role | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Play for Today Too Late to Talk to Billy | Extra | Television film |
| 1984 | Play for Today: The Cry | B Special | Television film |
| 1985 | The Ties of Blood: Out of Tune | Extra | Television film |
| 1989 | Screen Two: Virtuoso | [Bit part] | Television film |
| 1991 | Boon | Martin Mulholland | 1 episode of television series:
|
| 1992 | The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles | Yuri | 1 episode of television series:
|
| Covington Cross | Humphrey | 1 episode of television series:
| |
| 1993 | Comedy Playhouse: Sailortown | Skeeball | Television film |
| Screenplay: Love Lies Bleeding | Niall | Television film | |
| Lovejoy | Jerry Boyle | 1 episode of television series:
| |
| 1994 | Between the Lines | Sean Phellan | 1 episode of television series:
|
| The All New Alexei Sayle Show | Various characters | 2 episodes of television series:
| |
| 1995 | Searching | Duncan | 2 episodes of television series:
|
| Love Bites: Go Now | Tony | Television film with limited theatrical release | |
| Soldier Soldier | Bryan Casey | 1 episode of television series:
| |
| 1996–1998 | Ballykissangel | Leo McGarvey | 5 episodes of television series:
|
| 1997 | Common As Muck | Priest | 1 episode of television series:
|
| Comedy Premieres: Cold Feet | Adam Williams | Television pilot | |
| 1998–1999 | Playing the Field | John Dolan | 2 series of television series |
| 1998 | Touching Evil II | David Laney | 2 episodes of television series:
|
| 1998–2003, 2016–2020 | Cold Feet | Adam Williams | All 9 series |
| 2001 | Murphy's Law | DS Tommy Murphy | Television pilot |
| 2002 | Bloody Sunday | Ivan Cooper | Television film with limited theatrical release |
| 2003 | Tractor Tom | Matt (voice) | 1 series of animated television series |
| 2003–2007 | Murphy's Law | DS Tommy Murphy | 5 series of television series (also Creative Consultant, 2005–2007) |
| 2003 | The Canterbury Tales | Nick Zakian | 1 episode of anthology television series:
|
| 2004 | Wall of Silence | Stuart Robe | Television film |
| Passer By | Joe Keyes | 2-part television film | |
| Quite Ugly One Morning | Jack Parlabane | Television film | |
| 2005 | Big Dippers | Ray | |
| 2007 | Jekyll | Tom Jackman/Hyde | 6-part television serial |
| 2008 | Fairy Tales | Professor Hans Michael Prince | 1 episode of anthology television series:
|
| The Passion | Pontius Pilate | 4-part television serial | |
| Midnight Man | Max Raban | 3-part television serial | |
| 2009 | Five Minutes of Heaven | Joe Griffin | Television film with limited theatrical release |
| Occupation | Colour Sergeant Mike Swift | 3-part television serial | |
| 2010 | The Deep | Clem Donnelly | 5-part television serial |
| 2011–2012 | Monroe | Gabriel Monroe | 2 series of television series |
| 2013 | James Nesbitt's Ireland | Presenter/Himself | 1 series, 8 episodes |
| 2014 | Babylon | Commissioner Richard Miller | Pilot, series to resume in 2014. |
| The Missing | Tony Hughes | 1 series, 8 episode | |
| 2016–2018 | Stan Lee's Lucky Man | DI Harry Clayton | 3 series, 28 episodes |
| 2016 | The Secret | Colin Howell | 1 series, 4 episodes |
| 2018 | James Nesbitt: Disasters That Changed Britain | Presenter/Himself | 1 series, 6 episodes |
| 2019 | British Airways 24/7: Access All Areas | Narrator | 1 series, 3 episodes |
| 2021 | Bloodlands | DCI Tom Brannick | |
| 2021 | Line of Duty | Retired DCI Marcus Thurwell | 2 episodes (uncredited) |
| 2021 | Stay Close | DS Michael Broome | Netflix original drama |
| 2022 | Suspect | Detective Danny Frater | Channel 4 drama |
| 2023 | The Heist Before Christmas | Bank Robber | Sky Max film |
| 2024 | DNA Journey With Ancestry | Himself | 1 episode |
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | The End of the World Man Archived 18 February 2022 at the Wayback Machine | Policeman | Released as "The Bulldozer Brigade" in the US |
| 1991 | Hear My Song | Fintan O'Donnell | Based on the life of Josef Locke |
| 1996 | Jude | Uncle Joe | Based on "Jude the Obscure" by Thomas Hardy |
| 1997 | Welcome to Sarajevo | Gregg | Based on "Natasha's Story" by Michael Nicholson |
| The James Gang Archived 18 February 2022 at the Wayback Machine | Graham Armstrong | ||
| Resurrection Man | Ryan | ||
| This Is the Sea | Constable Hubert Porter | Named after "This Is the Sea" a song by "The Waterboys" from their 1985 album "This Is the Sea" | |
| Jumpers Archived 18 February 2022 at the Wayback Machine | Gerald Clarke | ||
| 1998 | Waking Ned | "Pig" Finn | Released as "Waking Ned Devine" in the US |
| 1999 | Women Talking Dirty | Stanley | |
| 2000 | The Most Fertile Man in Ireland | "Mad Dog" Billy Wilson | |
| Wild About Harry | Walter Adair | ||
| Furry Story | Dad | ||
| 2001 | Lucky Break | Jimmy Hands | |
| 2004 | Millions | Ronnie Cunningham | |
| 2005 | Match Point | Detective Banner | |
| 2006 | 0.0270270 (The Story of a Gambler) | Distraught Man | |
| 2008 | Blessed | Peter | |
| 2010 | Cherrybomb | Dave | |
| Outcast | Cathal | ||
| Matching Jack | Connor | ||
| The Way | Jack | ||
| 2011 | Coriolanus | Sicinius | |
| 2012 | The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey | Bofur | Based on "The Hobbit, or There and Back Again" by J.R.R Tolkien |
| 2013 | The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug | Based on "The Hobbit, or There and Back Again" by J.R.R Tolkien | |
| 2014 | The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies | Based on "The Hobbit, or There and Back Again" by J.R.R Tolkien | |
| Gold | Frank McGunn | Feature film |
Theatre
| Year | Title | Role | Director | Performance history |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | Pinocchio | Jiminy Cricket | — | Riverside Theatre, Coleraine. |
| 1983 | The Rocky Horror Show | Brad Majors | Paddy Scully | Arts Theatre, Belfast. |
| 1983 | Godspell | Jesus | — | Grand Opera House, Belfast. |
| 1984 | Philadelphia Here I Come! | Cast member | — | Arts Theatre, Belfast. |
| 1984 | Can't Pay, Won't Pay | Luigi | Michael Poynor | Arts Theatre, Belfast. |
| 1986 | West Side Story | Cast member | Michael Poynor | 3-month NI tour: Enniskillen, Belfast, Coleraine. |
| 1987 | Up on the Roof | Keith | Jane Prowse |
|
| 1989 | Up on the Roof | Keith | Jane Prowse | Regional tour. January–March 1989. |
| 1989 | As You Like It | Duke Frederick Duke Senior |
Paul Jepson | Rose Theatre Club, Kensington. June 1989. |
| 1989–1990 | Hamlet | Guildenstern Barnardo Second Gravedigger |
Yuri Lyubimov | Haymarket Theatre, Leicester. 19 September–7 October 1989. Old Vic, London, 21 November–3 December 1989. World tour, 1990: His Majesty's Theatre, Perth. 2–3, 5–10 March 1990 Adelaide. March 1990. Tokyo. April 1990. |
| 1991 | Translations | Doalty | Gwenda Hughes | Birmingham Repertory Theatre. May–June 1991. |
| 1992 | Una Pooka | Aidan | Mark Lambert and Nicolas Kent | Tricycle Theatre. July 1992. |
| 1994 | Paddywack | Damien | Michael Latimer | Cockpit Theatre. March 1994. Long Wharf Theatre. October 1994. |
| 1994 | Darwin's Flood | Jesus | Simon Stokes | Bush Theatre. May 1994. |
| 2005 | After Sun | Jimmy | Josie Rourke | Old Vic, London. 19 June 2005. |
| 2005 | Shoot the Crow | Socrates | Robert Delamere | Trafalgar Studios (Studio 1). 11 October–10 December 2005. |
| 2010 | The Laws of War | Cast member | Jeremy Herrin | Royal Court Theatre (Downstairs). 16 May 2010. |
Radio
| Year | Title | Role | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | James Nesbitt's World Cup Anthems | Presenter | Radio special |
| 2008 | Desert Island Discs | Guest | 1 episode:
|
| 2010 | Staring into the Fridge | Fridge | Afternoon Play |
Footnotes
- ^ Uncredited extra.
- ^ Credited television debut.
- ^ First appearance in a Michael Winterbottom production.
- ^ Also plays the uncredited roles of Henry Jekyll in Episode 5, and several zombies in Episode 6.
- ^ Some information relating to Nesbitt's theatrical career is not held in nationally published works, though may exist in individual theatre company archives or smaller, local publications.
- ^ 10-minute play.
- ^ Gala performance presented by Human Rights Watch.
References
- ^ "Nesbitt, James Archived 24 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine". British Film Institute. URL retrieved on 25 March 2010.
- ^ Swann, Yvonne (2 September 2004). "James Nesbitt: My cold feet about teaching Archived 5 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine". Daily Mirror (MGN): p. 57. URL retrieved on 25 March 2010.
- ^ Steiner, Susie (27 October 2001). "The Irish question Archived 2 December 2016 at the Wayback Machine". The Guardian (Guardian News & Media): p. 68 (Weekend supplement). URL retrieved on 15 April 2011.
- ^ ITV Press Centre (22 February 2011). "Monroe Press Pack Archived 18 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine " (.doc format). Press release: p. 11. URL retrieved 30 August 2011.
- ^ Bulbeck, Pip (20 March 2011). "'Hobbit' Filming Finally Under Way in New Zealand Archived 21 March 2011 at the Wayback Machine". The Hollywood Reporter (Prometheus Global Media). URL retrieved on 21 March 2011.
- ^ Canby, Vincent (23 October 1994). "A Good, Sharp 'Paddywhack'". The New York Times (The New York Times Company): p. A5.
- ^ "The Stage Archive Archived 8 July 2012 at archive.today". The Stage Newspaper Ltd. URL retrieved on 13 March 2011.
- ^ Austin, Jeremy (12 October 2005). "Review: Shoot the Crow Archived 11 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine". The Stage Online. URL retrieved on 25 March 2010.
- ^ Nesbitt, James (2009). "Made in Northern Ireland: An Actor's View" (.pdf). BBC. URL retrieved on 21 March 2010.
- ^ Lord, Derek (10 October 2008). "Lights, camera, action as the B Specials are put in spotlight Archived 12 February 2012 at the Wayback Machine". Press and Journal (Aberdeen Journals). URL retrieved on 10 October 2008.
- ^ Page N Archived 28 July 2010 at the Wayback Machine . ulsteractors.com. URL retrieved on 25 March 2010
- ^ McLean, Craig (31 July 2010). "Thrown in at the deep end". The Times (Times Newspapers): p. 24 (Play supplement).
- ^ Jeffrey, Morgan (14 November 2012). "James Nesbitt's 'Monroe' axed by ITV1". Digital Spy. URL retrieved on 15 November 2012 (archived by WebCite on 15 November 2012).
- ^ Swain, Marianka (19 April 2021). "Meet DCI Marcus Thurwell, James Nesbitt's new character in Line of Duty". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 19 April 2021. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
- ^ Grater, Tom (28 October 2020). "Cush Jumbo, James Nesbitt & Richard Armitage To Star In Harlan Coben Adaptation 'Stay Close' For Netflix & 'The Stranger' Producer Red". Deadline. Archived from the original on 1 November 2020. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
- ^ "First look: James Nesbitt and Richard E. Grant in Suspect – Channel 4's thrilling new drama". channel4.com/press. Archived from the original on 7 December 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
- ^ "The Heist Before Christmas". sky.com. Archived from the original on 12 December 2023. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
- ^ "DNA Journey With Ancestry". itv.com/presscentre. Retrieved 22 October 2024.
- ^ Muir, Johnny (director) (28 February 2013). The Arts Show: In Conversation with James Nesbitt. [Television broadcast]. BBC Two Northern Ireland.
- ^ "Plymouth: Up on the Roof". The Stage and Television Today: p. 14. 2 February 1989
- ^ "Rose: As You Like It". The Stage and Television Today: p. 15. 15 June 1989.
- ^ "Theatre Week". The Stage and Television Today: p. 9. 14 September 1989.
- ^ Billington, Michael (2 November 1989). "At the Theatre with Michael Billington". Country Life: p. 175.
- ^ "Festival of Perth Programmes Archived 6 April 2011 at the Wayback Machine" (.pdf). State Library of Western Australia. 22 October 2009. URL retrieved on 25 March 2010.
- ^ Compass News Features (12 December 1989). "All-new Hamlet to go on world tour". New Straits Times: p. 9 (archived at Google News Archive).
- ^ "Birmingham: Translations". The Stage and Television Today: p. 15. 20 May 1991.
- ^ "Theatre Week". The Stage and Television Today: p. 9. 2 July 1992.
- ^ "The Cockpit: Paddywack". The Stage and Television Today: p. 22. 31 March 1994.
- ^ "Bush Theatre: Darwin's Flood". The Stage and Television Today: p. 15. 2 June 1994
- ^ Jebb, Louis (20 June 2005). "No time for writers' block in dramatic race against clock". The Independent (Independent News & Media): p. 11.
- ^ Bosanquet, Theo (11 May 2010). "Galas: Court Laws, Cardboard Seats & Grateful Archived 15 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine ". Whatsonstage.com (Bandwidth Communications). URL retrieved on 11 May 2010.
- ^ Johns, Ian (10 June 2006). "Radio choice Archived 4 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine". The Times (Times Newspapers): p. 47. URL retrieved 15 April 2011.
- ^ "Desert Island Discs: James Nesbitt Archived 22 June 2020 at the Wayback Machine". BBC Online. URL retrieved on 15 April 2011.
- ^ "Staring into the Fridge Archived 23 September 2010 at the Wayback Machine". BBC Online. URL retrieved on 15 April 2011.
External links
- James Nesbitt at IMDb
- 0.0270270 (The Story of a Gambler). De Novo Pictures (hosted on MySpace Video). URL retrieved on 5 March 2011.