Dominic West

Dominic Gerard Francis Eagleton West (born 15 October 1969) is an English actor, director and musician.

Dominic Gerard Francis Eagleton West was born on 15 October 1969 in Sheffield, West Riding of Yorkshire.

He is the sixth of seven siblings (five girls and two boys) born into a family of Irish descent; his maternal grandparents were born in Ireland, while his paternal grandmother was Irish-American.

His mother, Pauline Mary (née Cleary), was an actress, and his father, Thomas George Eagleton West, owned a plastics factory.

He is the first cousin once removed of American politician Thomas Eagleton.

West attended Eton College.

He has been unenthusiastic about the career benefits of being an Old Etonian, saying it "is a stigma that is slightly above 'paedophile' in the media in a gallery of infamy", but asked whether he would consider sending his own children there, said "Yes, I would. It's an extraordinary place. [...] It has the facilities and the excellence of teaching and it will find what you're good at and nurture it".

Following a gap year during which he spent four months working as a cattle herder in Argentina, he studied English literature at Trinity College Dublin, graduating in 1993.

His film debut came with his portrayal of Henry, Earl of Richmond in Ian McKellen's adaptation of Richard III (1995).

He graduated from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in 1995.

West's screen appearances include True Blue, Chicago, Richard III, and Mona Lisa Smile.

His most notable television role has been starring in The Wire as Baltimore police detective Jimmy McNulty.

West was praised for the accuracy of his character's American accent.

West made his television debut in 1998 BBC medical drama Out of Hours before appearing in the television films A Christmas Carol (1999), and Nicholas Nickleby (2001).

West starred as Lysander in the 1999 film version of William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream.

That same year, he appeared as Fred in A Christmas Carol.

In feature films, he portrayed the heavy metal guitarist Kirk Cuddy in the 2001 film Rock Star.

He is best known for playing Jimmy McNulty in HBO's The Wire (2002–2008), Noah Solloway in Showtime's The Affair (2014–2019), the latter of which earned him a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Drama nomination, Ebenezer Scrooge’s nephew Fred in A Christmas Carol (1999, with Patrick Stewart as Scrooge), and Charles, Prince of Wales, in the Netflix drama The Crown (2022–2023), the latter of which earned him another Golden Globe Award nomination.

His breakthrough came with the role of Detective Jimmy McNulty in the HBO series The Wire (2002–2008).

He has since appeared in Chicago (2002), Mona Lisa Smile (2003), 300 (2007), Punisher: War Zone (2008), John Carter (2012), Pride (2014), Testament of Youth (2014), Money Monster (2016), Genius (2016), The Square (2017), Tomb Raider (2018), Colette (2018), and Downton Abbey: A New Era (2022).

West played Fred Casely in the 2002 film Chicago.

In 2006 West played the Spartan politician Theron in 300 and made a guest appearance as an actor in a sketch in The Catherine Tate Show, alongside "Frankie Howerd impressionist".

In 2007 he played Detective Poppil in Hannibal Rising.

His debut as a director was while being on The Wire; he directed the episode "Took" (2008).

West played the disfigured supervillain Jigsaw in the 2008 film Marvel's Punisher: War Zone.

He also performed as "Dr. West", the opening track on Eminem's 2009 album Relapse, as a doctor discharging Eminem from a rehab facility.

West played the part over the phone in January 2009 while Eminem was recording it in a Miami studio.

In December 2009, West starred as Hank in a radio adaptation of Eugene O'Neill's play The Hairy Ape for BBC Radio 3, was a guest presenter on the BBC show Have I Got News for You, and ended the year alongside Joan Rivers and Sarah Jessica Parker with an appearance on Graham Norton's New Year's Eve Show.

In 2010 he had a role as General Virilus in Neil Marshall's adventure thriller Centurion.

West starred in the UK ghost film, The Awakening.

West has done other work on TV and radio.

He appeared in the role of Oliver Cromwell in the Channel 4 series The Devil's Whore.

He then starred in BBC series The Hour (2011–2012) earning a Golden Globe Award nomination.

He received a BAFTA Award for his performance as the serial killer Fred West in the ITV drama Appropriate Adult (2011) and a nomination for his portrayal as Richard Burton in BBC Four's Burton & Taylor (2013).

In 2011, West appeared as a news presenter on the BBC period drama series The Hour.

He also played serial killer Fred West (no relation) in the ITV two-part series Appropriate Adult, giving a performance that the serial killer's daughter described as capturing the "evil essence of [Fred West] – his character, his mannerisms, even his gait."

In 2012, West was offered the role of Mance Rayder in the HBO fantasy series Game of Thrones, but turned it down due to the amount of time he would have to spend away from his family.

He played Jean Valjean in the 2018 BBC miniseries Les Misérables.

West is currently playing the role of Dr Chris Cox in the Sky One series Brassic (2019–present).

He has since starred in the Netflix series Stateless (2020), and the Amazon Studios The Pursuit of Love (2021).