Neil Morrissey

Neil Anthony Morrissey (born 4 July 1962) is an English actor, businessman, narrator and presenter.

He is known for his role as Tony in Men Behaving Badly.

Other notable acting roles include Deputy Head Eddie Lawson in the BBC One school-based drama series Waterloo Road, Nigel Morton in Line of Duty, and Rocky in Boon.

Morrissey also provided the voice of the titluar character, Roley, Lofty, and others in Bob the Builder.

Morrissey was born in Stafford on 4 July 1962, the third of four sons of Irish parents who were both psychiatric nurses.

He and his older brother Stephen spent much of their childhood in separate foster homes, Morrissey spending most of his time at Penkhull Children's Home, under the care of Margaret Cartlidge.

He attended Thistley Hough High School in Penkhull, where he passed all nine CSEs with O-Level equivalent grades, despite purportedly being downgraded from taking GCE exams on account of his being raised in care.

He went on to further study for his A-levels at the City of Stoke-on-Trent Sixth Form College.

Morrissey had developed his skills and reputation as an actor through his teenage years at Stoke Schools Theatre, Stoke Repertory Theatre, performing at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 1979.

He further studied acting at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, after receiving an educational grant, and he 'sofa-surfed' with friends, and performed street theatre, to survive first year.

In 1984, Morrissey, in his film debut, played Able Seaman Matthew Quintal in historical mariner drama The Bounty, alongside Mel Gibson, Anthony Hopkins and Laurence Olivier.

In 1987, Morrissey rose to notoriety as dim biker Rocky in the ITV drama series Boon, alongside Michael Elphick.

Many of the actors from Boon, were also involved in the 1990 British spoof horror film I Bought a Vampire Motorcycle, where he played the lead role of Noddy.

In 1992, Morrissey took on the role of Tony in Men Behaving Badly, created to replace Harry Enfield, who departed after series one.

The series became one of the most popular UK sitcoms of the 90s and Morrissey became a national celebrity.

Neil also voice Wilfred Toadflax and Dusty Dogwood in Brambly Hedge (1997), which was produced by HIT Entertainment.

In 1998, Morrissey starred in the John Godber rugby league film Up 'n' Under.

Because of this, Neil voiced several characters in the HIT Entertainment children's television series Bob the Builder, including the lead character, Bob, for over a decade between 1999 and 2011.

During his voice acting role, he achieved two UK number 1 singles, with "Can We Fix It?" (which was the 2000 UK Christmas No 1), and "Mambo No 5" in 2001.

He later provided voice narration for Morph, and Maisy.

In 2000, Morrissey starred in TV comedy film Happy Birthday, Shakespeare, where he played a coach driver, in a cast that included Amanda Holden, Les Dennis, and Freddie Highmore.

In 2002, Morrissey returned to TV screens in the drama series Paradise Heights, which ran for two series.

He then had a starring role in the BBC sitcom Carrie and Barry from 2004 until 2005.

His work in West End theatre work includes Speed, Robin Hood, The Daughter In-Law and his critically acclaimed West End performance in A Passionate Woman. In 2005 Morrissey performed in Victoria Wood's musical adaptation of Acorn Antiques alongside Julie Walters, Celia Imrie, Duncan Preston and Josie Lawrence.

Morrissey took over the role of Nathan Detroit from Nigel Lindsay in the London revival of Guys and Dolls from March to June 2006.

On 1 April 2006, a BBC Three spoof programme titled Neil Morrissey's Secret documented sides of Morrissey's life that were previously unknown to the world at large.

In 2007, he appeared in British TV show Skins, as Marcus Ainsworth, the father of Hannah Murray's character Cassie Ainsworth.

In 2007, he appeared in the BBC One school-based drama series, Waterloo Road as the new deputy headteacher, Eddie Lawson.

In January 2012, Morrissey took on the role of Fagin in Lionel Bart's musical Oliver at the Palace Theatre in Manchester.

He reprised the role in 2013, when appearing in both parts of Skins Pure.

Morrissey starred alongside Adrian Edmondson, Robert Webb and Miles Jupp in the play Neville's Island at Duke of York's Theatre, London during Autumn 2014.

In 2015, he played a character called Keith, who is Johnny (Joe Maw) and Tee's (Mia McKenna Bruce) villainous mother's former boyfriend, in the CBBC sitcom The Dumping Ground.

In December 2015, Morrissey starred in BBC Two's comedy-drama A Gert Lush Christmas, playing the father of Russell Howard's character.

In 2016, he joined the cast of Grantchester for the second series, where he played the role of Harding Redmond.

Also in 2016, he took part in the second series of ITV's reality series Bear Grylls: Mission Survive.

From 2017, Morrissey played Greg McConnell in ITV's The Good Karma Hospital, for several seasons until 2022.

He portrayed Peter Carr in Series 3 of Unforgotten in 2018.

In 2021, he starred as Frank Stevenson in series four of the BBC series The Syndicate, starring alongside Katherine Rose Morley.

In 2023, he was the subject of DNA Journey with Adrian Dunbar.

Morrissey played the part of Captain Perrot, an accomplice of Colonel Blood, in The Crown Jewels, a humorous play written by screenwriter Simon Nye and performed at the Garrick Theatre in London in 2023, about Blood's theft of the Crown Jewels) in 1671. The part of Blood was played by Aidan McArdle, Al Murray played King Charles II, and the cast also included Mel Giedroyc.