Michael McKell (born 10 February 1959) is an English actor and singer. His career began in music, co-writing various songs for

Toyah Willcox Toyah Ann Willcox (born 18 May 1958) is an English singer-songwriter, actress, and television presenter. In a career spanning more than 40 years, she has had eight top 40 singles, released over 20 albums, written two books, appeared in over 40 ...

Dollar Dollar is the name of more than 25 currencies. The United States dollar, named after the international currency known as the Spanish dollar, was established in 1792 and is the first so named that still survives. Others include the Australian d ...

and

Julien Clerc Paul-Alain Auguste Leclerc (born 4 October 1947), better known by his stage name Julien Clerc (), is a French singer-songwriter. He rose to fame with his song "La cavalerie" (1968), that captured the "rebellious essence" of those times and becam ...

, as well as embarking on a brief solo career. McKell then focused on acting and became known for playing Inspector Trevor Hands in '' Murder Investigation Team'' (2003–2005), Dr. Nick West in ''

Doctors Doctor, Doctors, The Doctor or The Doctors may refer to: Titles and occupations * Physician, a medical practitioner * Doctor (title), an academic title for the holder of a doctoral-level degree ** Doctorate ** List of doctoral degrees awarded b ...

'' (2006–2008) and Nick Henshall in ''

Emmerdale ''Emmerdale'' (known as ''Emmerdale Farm'' until 1989) is a British television soap opera that is broadcast on ITV (TV network), ITV. The show is set in Emmerdale (known as Beckindale until 1994), a List of fictional towns and villages, fict ...

'' (2008–2011). Alongside various television and theatre roles, McKell has led an established film career since the 1990s, having appeared in numerous films including '' Essex Boys'' (2000), ''

Once Upon a Time in London ''Once Upon a Time in London'' is a 2019 British crime drama film directed by Simon Rumley, written by Will Gilbey, Rumley and Terry Stone, and starring Leo Gregory, Terry Stone, Holly Earl, Dominic Keating, Geoff Bell and Jamie Foreman. T ...

'' (2019) and '' Prizefighter: The Life of Jem Belcher'' (2022).

Early life

McKell was born on 10 February 1959 in

Tottenham Tottenham (, , , ) is a district in north London, England, within the London Borough of Haringey. It is located in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London. Tottenham is centred north-northeast of Charing Cross, ...

Haringey The London Borough of Haringey ( , same as Harringay) is a London borough in north London, classified by some definitions as part of Inner London, and by others as part of Outer London. It was created in 1965 by the amalgamation of three forme ...

, in his grandparents' house. He was initially to be named Paul, chosen by his mother, but after weeks of not having a registered name, his father registered him as Michael. Alongside his mother, a factory worker, and his father, a chargehand, moved to

Walthamstow Walthamstow ( or ) is a town within the London Borough of Waltham Forest in east London. The town borders Chingford to the north, Snaresbrook and South Woodford to the east, Leyton and Leytonstone to the south, and Tottenham to the west. At ...

in his youth. Growing up, the family had money troubles.

Career

Music

McKell started his working life as a musician. He was the singer/songwriter for the band The Park, penning hits for

and

. His solo career after deals with Phonogram, WEA and EMI was cut short by a near fatal car crash in August 1991. In 1985, he toured as Michael St James with French star Julien Clerc and worked with French singer–songwriter

Serge Gainsbourg Serge Gainsbourg (; born Lucien Ginsburg; 2 April 1928 – 2 March 1991) was a French singer-songwriter, actor, composer, and director. Regarded as one of the most important figures in French pop, he was renowned for often provocative rel ...

. McKell released an EP, ''Shower over Moon Street'', in 2009 and performed tracks from his album ''Shower over Moon Street'' at the

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London, England. It has a seating capacity of 5,272. Since the hall's opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the world's leading artists from many performance genres ...

in November 2009. "Save Me", the first single from the album, was released on 25 July 2010. In 2022, he released the album ''The Last Picture Show''.

Television

McKell is known for appearing in two British soap operas, ''

'', in which he played Dr. Nick West from 2006 until the character was run over and killed in 2008, and ''

'', in which he played DC Nick Henshall over two separate periods from 2008 to 2011, until the character committed suicide. He has also appeared in a third soap opera, ''

EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...

'', as the hitman Carter who supposedly killed Paul Trueman under the orders of Andy Hunter. For his role as Nick in ''Doctors'', McKell received nominations for Sexiest Male at the 2006, 2007 and 2008

British Soap Awards The British Soap Awards (BSAs) are an annual awards ceremony in the United Kingdom which honours the best moments in British soap operas. The ceremony is televised on ITV (TV network), ITV. The trophies given to the winners are made from metal a ...

. His exit storyline later saw a nomination at the 2009 ceremony. He is also known for playing D.S./D.I. Trevor Hands in two series of the ITV drama '' Murder Investigation Team'', two series of Channel 4's '' Totally Frank'' and the BBC series '' Blessed'', playing Ronnie, a Jaggeresque musician.

Film

McKell starred in the cult film '' Essex Boys'' alongside

Sean Bean Sean Bean (born Shaun Mark Bean; 17 April 1959) is an English actor. After graduating from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, he made his professional debut in a production of ''Romeo and Juliet'' in 1983 at The Watermill Theatre. Retaining his ...

as drug dealer Wayne Lovell. Other films include ''Beneath Still Waters'', ''Acts of Godfrey'', ''The Low Down'', ''Blood'', ''Bar'', ''Death'', ''Freight'', ''Shouting Men'', '' Outpost: Rise of the Spetsnaz'', '' Hatton Garden: the Heist'' and ''Who Needs Enemies''. McKell played the titular roles in Steve Lawson's 2021 film ''

Jekyll and Hyde ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde'' is an 1886 Gothic horror novella by Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson. It follows Gabriel John Utterson, a London-based legal practitioner who investigates a series of strange occurrences between ...

'', and appeared in 2022's ''

Prizefighter Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional fights are supervised by a regulatory auth ...

'' with Matt Hookings,

Ray Winstone Raymond Andrew Winstone (; born 19 February 1957) is an English television, stage, and film actor with a career spanning five decades. Having worked with many prominent directors, including Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg, Winstone is known ...

and

Russell Crowe Russell Ira Crowe (born 7 April 1964) is an actor and film director. Russell Crowe filmography, His work on screen has earned him List of awards and nominations received by Russell Crowe, various accolades, including an Academy Award, two Gold ...

Theatre

McKell appeared in a production of ''

Macbeth ''The Tragedy of Macbeth'', often shortened to ''Macbeth'' (), is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, estimated to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the physically violent and damaging psychological effects of political ambiti ...

'' at the

Lyric Hammersmith The Lyric Theatre, also known as the Lyric Hammersmith, is a nonprofit theatre on Lyric Square, off King Street, Hammersmith, London."About the Lyric" > "History" ''Lyric'' official website. Retrieved January 2024. Background The Lyric Theatre ...

in the late 1990s. He has appeared in West End musicals, including '' Blood Brothers'' and the

Rod Stewart Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British singer and songwriter. Known for his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling music artists of all time, having sold ...

musical '' Tonight's the Night'', written and directed by

Ben Elton Benjamin Charles Elton is a British comedian, actor, author, playwright, lyricist and director. One of the major figures in the alternative comedy movement of the 1980s, his early stand-up style was Left-wing politics, left-wing political satire ...

. Elton later went on to write the character Ronnie for McKell in his BBC comedy ''Blessed''. McKell played "Lank" in the double Olivier winning production of ''Crazy for You'' in 2012 and returned to the role he created "Stoner" in the 2014 production of ''Tonight's the Night''. From January to July 2015, McKell co-starred with Tina Hobley,

Jamie Lomas James Lomas (born 21 April 1975) is an English actor, known for his soap opera roles as Warren Fox in ''Hollyoaks'' and Jake Stone in ''EastEnders''. Early life Jamie Lomas was born on 21 April 1975 in Manchester. Career Before joining ''Ho ...

, Rik Makarem and Gray O'Brien in a nationwide touring production of Peter James's ''Dead Simple''. From September to October 2015, McKell appeared with

Nick Moran Nick Moran (born 23 December 1969) is an English actor and filmmaker. His roles include Eddie the card sharp in ''Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels'' and as List of Harry Potter characters#S 2, Scabior in ''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hall ...

in ''Roaring Trade'' at the Park Theatre. From 7 December 2015 to 3 January 2016, McKell appeared in his first pantomime as Abanazar in ''Aladdin'' at the Derby Arena. McKell then portrayed Paul in Irvine Welsh's play ''Creatives'' at the Edinburgh Festival 2017. McKell embarked on a UK and Ireland tour when he appeared in ''

We Will Rock You "We Will Rock You" is a song by the British rock band Queen from their 1977 album '' News of the World'', written by guitarist Brian May. ''Rolling Stone'' ranked it number 330 of " The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" in 2004, and the RIAA it p ...

'' from 2019.

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McKell, Michael 1959 births 20th-century English male actors 20th-century English male singers 21st-century English male actors 21st-century English male singers English male soap opera actors English male musical theatre actors English male film actors English male television actors Living people Male actors from London People from Tottenham