Leon Ockenden (born 16 August 1978) is an English actor, director and writer who works in TV, film, theatre and radio. He grew up in the resort town of

Looe Looe (; kw, Logh, ) is a coastal town and civil parish in south-east Cornwall, England, with a population of 5,280 at the 2011 census. Looe is west of Plymouth and south of Liskeard, divided in two by the River Looe, East Looe ( kw, links= ...

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

. He is best known for his role as Norman Jayden in ''

Heavy Rain ''Heavy Rain'' is a 2010 adventure game developed by Quantic Dream and published by Sony Computer Entertainment. The game features four protagonists involved with the mystery of the Origami Killer, a serial murderer who uses extended periods ...

''.

Career

Ockenden left school at the age of 16 to become a baker. After working in hotel kitchens in Sweden and Germany for one year, he returned to Britain to work as a pastry chef at the Hilton Hotel on London's Park Lane. He studied performing arts at the College of Further Education in Plymouth. He then received a scholarship from the

London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) is a drama school located in Hammersmith, London. It is the oldest specialist drama school in the British Isles and a founding member of the Federation of Drama Schools. LAMDA's Principal is ...

, where he took a three-year acting course and graduated in 2003. Ockenden appeared in the British/Australian drama television series ''

Tripping Over ''Tripping Over'' is a British/Australian six-part drama series. Its first episode aired on Network Ten in Australia on 25 October 2006, and in the United Kingdom on Five on 30 October 2006. In the UK ''Tripping Over'' is repeated on Five Lif ...

'', playing a carpenter named Callum. He lent his voice and likeness to the 2010

video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...

'', in which he played

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, ...

profiler Norman Jayden. Before the show was cancelled in 2015, he was a regular of the British drama television series '' Waterloo Road'', in which he played the role of Hector Reid, a jocular and sometimes vitriolic teacher of PE. After Waterloo Road, Ockenden has had other roles as a recurring cast member. One of these roles includes the character of Will Chatterton in the long-running soap opera ''

Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' is an English soap opera created by Granada Television and shown on ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres around a cobbled, terraced street in Weatherfield, a fictional town based on inner-city Salford. Origi ...

''. He has also joined the presenting team on the chat show '' This Morning'' as one of its regular chefs for its cooking segment. He also appeared in a television advert for Verisure in 2021.

Personal life

Ockenden married actress Vanessa Hehir on 24 October 2010. They have a daughter.

Filmography

Films

Television

Video games

Music videos

Theatre

* ''How the Other Half Loves'' (2017) * ''Flare Path'' (2015) * ''Muswell Hill'' (2012) * ''Plague Over England'' (2008) * ''Women Beware Women'' (2006) * ''The Tempest'' (2006)

References

External links

* 1978 births 21st-century English male actors English male film actors English male stage actors English male soap opera actors English male video game actors Living people People from Looe {{England-tv-actor-stub