Lee Ross (born 1970) is an English actor known for his roles as nice guy Kenny Phillips in the classic

CITV CITV (short for Children's ITV, also known as the CITV Channel) is a British free-to-air children's television channel owned by ITV plc. It broadcasts content from the CITV archive and acquisitions, every day from 6 am to 9 pm which ...

dramedy ''

Press Gang ''Press Gang'' is a British children's television comedy drama consisting of 43 episodes across five series that were broadcast from 1989 to 1993. It was produced by Richmond Film & Television for Central, and screened on the ITV network in i ...

'' and as the violent and sadistic

Owen Turner Owen Turner is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', played by Lee Ross. He originally appeared in the show on 15 June 2006 and left the show in late 2006. In 2009, it was announced that Ross would return to the show; he ...

in the BBC soap opera ''

EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a Television in the United Kingdom, British 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 Ea ...

''. He is also known for his work in the drama series ''

Dodger, Bonzo and the Rest ''Dodger, Bonzo and the Rest'' was a television drama series which centred on the lives of Michael "Dodger" Dolan and his sister, Carol (Bonzo) who were part of a large foster family in London. It was aired in the early evenings on the ITV pro ...

'', '' Secrets & Lies'' and ''

The Catherine Tate Show ''The Catherine Tate Show'' is a British television sketch comedy written by Catherine Tate and Derren Litten. Tate also stars in all but one of the show's sketches, which feature a wide range of characters. ''The Catherine Tate Show'' airs on ...

''.

Career

Prior to his first acting role, Lee Ross attended Stockwood High School, Luton. He first became a familiar face on British television in 1983 as one of the children in a Colgate commercial which featured a parody of the hit

Madness Madness or The Madness may refer to: Emotion and mental health * Anger, an intense emotional response to a perceived provocation, hurt or threat * Insanity, a spectrum of behaviors characterized by certain abnormal mental or behavioral patterns * ...

song ''

Baggy Trousers "Baggy Trousers" is a song by English ska/pop band Madness from their 1980 album '' Absolutely''. It was written by lead singer Graham "Suggs" McPherson and guitarist Chris Foreman,Woodstra, Chris. Retrieved on 1 July 2007. and reminisces abou ...

''. His first acting role was as Fat Sam in

Micky Dolenz George Michael Dolenz Jr. (born March 8, 1945) is an American actor, musician, TV producer and businessman. He is best known as the drummer and one of three primary vocalists for the pop- rock band the Monkees (1966–1970, and multiple reunion ...

' West End production of ''

Bugsy Malone ''Bugsy Malone'' is a 1976 gangster musical comedy film written and directed by Alan Parker (in his feature film directorial debut). A co-production of United States and United Kingdom, it features an ensemble cast, featuring only child actor ...

''. He then went on to play Dodger in the TV series ''

'', which was a spin-off from the series ''

Dramarama Dramarama is an American, New Jersey–based alternative rock/power pop band, who later moved to Los Angeles. The band was formed in New Jersey in 1982 and disbanded in 1994. The band formally reunited in 2003 following an appearance on VH1's ...

''. The series ran from 1985 till 1986. He next played

Kenny Phillips Kenneth Phillips (born November 24, 1986) is a former American football safety. He was drafted by the New York Giants 31st overall in the 2008 NFL Draft and won Super Bowl XLVI with the team over the New England Patriots. He played college foot ...

in ''

'' from 1989 to 1991. He also had lead roles in two films in 1990, playing Bryan in ''

Amongst Barbarians ''Amongst Barbarians'' is a 1989 play by British playwright Michael Wall, first performed at the Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester prior to a transfer to the Hampstead Theatre in London. It was filmed as a made-for-TV movie in 1990, which was s ...

'' and Phil in ''Sweet Nothing''. He also had small roles in '' Buddy's Song'' in 1990, playing Jason, and in the 1999 film ''

Rogue Trader A rogue trader is person who makes financial trades in an unauthorised manner. Rogue trader may also refer to: * ''Rogue Trader'' (book), the autobiography of (and later a movie about) Nick Leeson, the man who caused the collapse of Barings Bank * ...

'', playing Danny. He had another lead role in the movie ''

Hard Men ''Hard Men'' is a 1997 British crime gangster black comedy film directed by J. K. Amalou. A forerunner to ''Lock, Stock And Two Smoking Barrels'', it was originally shown at the London Film Festival on 28 October 1996. It was released in cinema ...

'' playing the part of a gangster and in 1995 he played Gumbo in the film '' I.D.'' In 1991 he played Justin Parrish, the son of

Jim Broadbent James Broadbent (born 24 May 1949) is an English actor. He won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award for his supporting role as John Bayley in the feature film '' Iris'' (2001), as well as winning a BAFTA TV Award and a Golden Globe for ...

's character, in ''Work!''. In 1992 and 1993 he had roles in ''The Guilty'', '' Between the Lines'', '' Casualty'', '' Westbeach'', ''

The Bill ''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, first broadcast on ITV from 16 August 1983 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, '' Woodentop'', broadcast in August 1983. The programme focused o ...

'' and ''

The Upper Hand ''The Upper Hand'' is a British television sitcom broadcast by ITV from 1 May 1990 to 14 October 1996. The programme was adapted from the American sitcom '' Who's the Boss?''. As in the former series, affluent single woman Caroline Wheatley ...

''. He had many more roles in the late 1990s including ''

Trial & Retribution ''Trial & Retribution'' is a feature-length ITV police procedural television drama series that first aired on 19 October 1997. Written and devised by Lynda La Plante as a follow-on from her successful television series ''Prime Suspect'', each e ...

'' He played Paul, the boyfriend of Roxanne (Cynthia Purley's daughter) in the critically acclaimed 1996

Mike Leigh Mike Leigh (born 20 February 1943) is an English film and theatre director, screenwriter and playwright. He studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) and further at the Camberwell School of Art, the Central School of Art and Des ...

film Secrets & Lies, appearing in just white briefs in his opening scene. He provided the voice for Hawkbit in all three television series of the 1999 ''

Watership Down ''Watership Down'' is an adventure novel by English author Richard Adams, published by Rex Collings Ltd of London in 1972. Set in Berkshire in southern England, the story features a small group of rabbits. Although they live in their natural ...

'' series. Most recently in 2012 he performed on stage at the Royal Court in London. He played Barry in David Eldrige's ''In Basildon''. He has appeared on ''

'' in many sketches, working alongside

Catherine Tate Catherine Jane Ford (born 5 December 1969), known professionally as Catherine Tate, is an English actress, comedian and writer. She has won numerous awards for her work on the BBC sketch comedy series '' The Catherine Tate Show'' (2004–2007) ...

and

Niky Wardley Nichola Petra "Niky" Wardley (born 11 August 1973) is an English stage and screen actress. Her most notable role is schoolgirl Lauren Cooper's sidekick in the BBC's Emmy and BAFTA-nominated sketch series '' The Catherine Tate Show'' (2004–2 ...

. He has also had many guest roles in a variety of television shows, including '' Waking the Dead'', '' Hustle'', ''

Jericho Jericho ( ; ar, أريحا ; he, יְרִיחוֹ ) is a Palestinian city in the West Bank. It is located in the Jordan Valley, with the Jordan River to the east and Jerusalem to the west. It is the administrative seat of the Jericho ...

'', '' M.I.T.: Murder Investigation Team'' and recurring roles in ''

Mutual Friends ''Mutual Friends'' is a British comedy drama television series broadcast in six episodes on BBC One in from 26 August until 30 September 2008. The series starred Marc Warren, Alexander Armstrong, Keeley Hawes, Sarah Alexander, Claire Rushbrook ...

'' and ''

Life on Mars The possibility of life on Mars is a subject of interest in astrobiology due to the planet's proximity and similarities to Earth. To date, no proof of past or present life has been found on Mars. Cumulative evidence suggests that during the ...

''/'' Ashes to Ashes''. In 2018, Ross starred as retired drag queen Hugo Battersby/ Loco Chanelle in the hit West End musical

Everybody's Talking About Jamie ''Everybody's Talking About Jamie'' is a coming-of-age stage musical with music by Dan Gillespie Sells and book and lyrics by Tom MacRae. The musical is inspired by the 2011 British television documentary ''Jamie: Drag Queen at 16'' directed ...

. Lee was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from Bedfordshire University in 2014 for his Outstanding Contribution to the Acting Profession. Other awards include Best Actor BBC Audio Awards 2014, Best Actor in a leading role Massachusetts Film Festival 2016. Nominated for Laurence Olivier Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Jack Firebrace in ''Birdsong'' at The Comedy Theatre.

Filmography

Films

TV

Video games

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ross, Lee English male voice actors English male television actors English male stage actors Male actors from London 1971 births Living people Liberty Records artists Male actors from Bedfordshire Actors from Luton