James Nesbitt
James Nesbitt (born 15 January 1965) is a Northern Irish actor. Born in Ballymena, County Antrim, Northern Ireland, Nesbitt grew up in the nearby village of Broughshane, before moving to Coleraine, County Londonderry. He wanted to become a teacher, like his father, so began a degree in French at the University of Ulster. He dropped out after a year when he decided to become an actor, and transferred to the Central School of Speech and Drama in London. After graduating in 1987, he spent seven years performing in plays that varied from the musical Up on the Roof (1987, 1989) to the political drama Paddywack (1994). He made his feature film debut playing talent agent Fintan O'Donnell in Hear My Song (1991). Nesbitt got his breakthrough television role playing Adam Williams in the romantic comedy-drama Cold Feet (1998–2003), which won him a British Comedy Award, a Television and Radio Industries Club Award, and a National Television Award. His first significant film role came when he appeared as pig farmer "Pig" Finn in Waking Ned (1998). With the rest of the starring cast, Nesbitt was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award. In Lucky Break (2001), he made his debut as a film lead playing prisoner Jimmy Hands. The next year, he played Ivan Cooper in the television film Bloody Sunday, about the 1972 shootings in Derry. A departure from his previous "cheeky chappie" roles, the film was a turning point in his career. He won a British Independent Film Award and was nominated for the British Academy Television Award for Best Actor. Nesbitt has also starred in Murphy's Law (2001–2007) as undercover detective Tommy Murphy—a role that was created for him by writer Colin Bateman. The role twice gained Nesbitt Best Actor nominations at the Irish Film & Television Awards (IFTA). In 2007, he starred in the dual role of Tom Jackman and Mr Hyde in Steven Moffat's Jekyll, which earned him a Golden Globe Award nomination in 2008. Nesbitt has since appeared in several more dramatic roles; he starred alongside Liam Neeson in Five Minutes of Heaven (2009), and was one of three lead actors in the television miniseries Occupation (2009) and The Deep (2010). He also starred in the movies Outcast (2010) and Emilio Estevez's The Way (2011), and has been cast in Peter Jackson's The Hobbit (2012/13). Nesbitt is married to former actress Sonia Forbes-Adam, with whom he has two daughters. He is a patron of numerous charities and in 2010 accepted the ceremonial position of Chancellor of the University of Ulster.
The 50 Greatest Television Dramas
(Self)
Bloody Sunday
(Ivan Cooper)
Millions
(Ronnie)
Cherrybomb
(Crilly)
Lucky Break
(James 'Jimmy' Hands)
Welcome to Sarajevo
(Gregg)
Matching Jack
(Connor)
Five Minutes of Heaven
(Joe Griffin)
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
(Bofur)
Blessed
(Peter)
The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Trenches of Hell
(Yuri)
The Coronation Concert
(Self)
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
(Bofur)
The Way
(Jack)
Quite Ugly One Morning
(Jack Parlabane)
Coriolanus
(Tribune Sicinius)
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
(Bofur)
Women Talking Dirty
(Stanley)
Resurrection Man
(Ryan)
Wall of Silence
(Stuart Robe)
Occupation
(Mike Swift)
Big Dippers
(Ray)
Match Point
(Detective Banner)
Virtuoso
(Young Man)
The Heist Before Christmas
(Bank Robber)
Wild About Harry
(Walter Adair)
Gold
(Frank McGunn)
Jude
(Uncle Joe)
Ireland's Rugby Number 10
(Narrator)
Go Now
(Tony)
Waking Ned
(Pig Finn)
Hear My Song
(Fintan O'Donnell)
Outcast
(Cathal)
The End of the World Man
(Policeman)
Love Lies Bleeding
(Niall)
James Nesbitt Presents Eat My Goal
(Presenter)
Here Comes the Summer: The Undertones Story
(Narrator)
James Ellis: An Actor's Life
(Himself)
Lost Lives
This Is the Sea
(Constable Hubert Porter)
James Nesbit: A Game of Two Halves
(Himself)
The Cry
(B Special (uncredited))
River Deep, Mountain High: James Nesbitt in New Zealand
(Self)
The Most Fertile Man in Ireland
('Mad Dog' Billy Wilson)
Alex Higgins: The People's Champion
(Narrator)
The James Gang
(Graham Armstrong)
Top Gear
(Self)
Jekyll
(Dr. Tom Jackman)
Soccer Aid
Cold Feet
(Adam Williams)
Soccer AM
(Self)
The One Show
(Self - Guest)
Friday Night with Jonathan Ross
(Self)
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles
(Yuri)
The Terry and Gaby Show
Bloodlands
(DCI Tom Brannick)
Between the Lines
Ballykissangel
Lovejoy
(Jerry Boyle)
Murphy's Law
(Thomas Murphy)
Occupation
(Mike Swift)
Fairy Tales
The Passion
(Pilate)
Midnight Man
(Max Raban)
The Hollywood Greats
The Jonathan Ross Show
(Self)
Chris Moyles' Quiz Night
(Self)
GMTV
(Self)
The Deep
(Clem Donnelly)
Monroe
(Gabriel Monroe)
Playing the Field
The Missing
(Tony Hughes)
Babylon
(Richard Miller)
Stay Close
(DS Michael Broome)
James Nesbitt: Disasters That Changed Britain
Canterbury Tales
(Nick Zakian)
Ballykissangel
(Leo McGarvey)
Stan Lee's Lucky Man
(Harry Clayton)
Common As Muck
The One Show
(Self)
The Secret
(Colin Howell)
The John Bishop Show
(Self)
The Graham Norton Show
(Self)
Stan Lee's Lucky Man: The Bracelet Chronicles
(Harry Clayton)
Suspect
(Danny Frater)
OFI Sunday
The Late Late Show
(Self)
Never Mind the Buzzcocks
(Self)
Michael McIntyre's Big Show
(Self)
Soldier Soldier
(Corporal Bryan Casey)
Passer By
(Joe Keyes)
Tractor Tom
(Matt (voice))
Parkinson
(Self)
DNA Journey
(Self)