Joseph Michael Cole (born 28 November 1988) is an English actor from

Kingston, London Kingston upon Thames (hyphenated until 1965, colloquially known as Kingston) is a town in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, southwest London, England. It is situated on the River Thames and southwest of Charing Cross. It is notable as ...

. Some of his most notable roles include: Luke in '' Skins'', Tommy in '' Offender'', John Shelby in ''

Peaky Blinders The Peaky Blinders were a street gang based in Birmingham, England, which operated from the 1880s until the 1910s. The group consisted largely of young criminals from lower- to middle-class backgrounds. They engaged in robbery, violence, rack ...

'', Marzin and Beckwith in ''

Secret in Their Eyes ''Secret in Their Eyes'' is a 2015 American thriller film written and directed by Billy Ray and a remake of the 2009 Argentine film of the same name, both based on the novel ''La pregunta de sus ojos'' by Eduardo Sacheri. The film stars Chiwete ...

'', Reece in ''

Green Room In show business, the green room is the space in a theatre or similar venue that functions as a waiting room and lounge for performers before, during, and after a performance or show when they are not engaged on stage. Green rooms typically have ...

'', Billy Moore in '' A Prayer Before Dawn'', Frank in the ''

Black Mirror ''Black Mirror'' is a British anthology television series created by Charlie Brooker. Individual episodes explore a diversity of genres, but most are set in near-future dystopias with science fiction technology—a type of speculative fiction ...

'' episode "

Hang the DJ "Hang the DJ" is the fourth episode of the fourth series of the British anthology series ''Black Mirror''. It was written by series creator Charlie Brooker and directed by Tim Van Patten. The episode first aired on Netflix, along with the rest ...

", Sean Wallace in '' Gangs of London'' and Iver Iversen in ''

Against the Ice ''Against the Ice'' is a 2022 historical survival film directed by Peter Flinth and written by Nikolaj Coster-Waldau and Joe Derrick, based on the true story recounted in '' Two Against the Ice'' by Ejnar Mikkelsen. It stars Coster-Waldau, Jo ...

''.

Career

Cole's acting career began when he was accepted into the National Youth Theatre. He obtained his first roles in a one-night show in the West End, on ''

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 '' Holby City'', and then in roles on stage at the Bush Theatre's sell-out ''School Season''. Cole has also penned a comedy series with

Matt Lucas Matthew Richard Lucas (born 5 March 1974) is an English actor, comedian, writer, and television presenter. He is best known for his work with David Walliams on the BBC sketch comedy series ''Little Britain'' (2003–2006, 2020) and '' Come Fl ...

. He starred as John Shelby in the British historical

crime drama Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combin ...

''Peaky Blinders''. He also played a part in a season 4 episode of Charlie Brooker's ''Black Mirror'', earning a BAFTA nomination for Best Actor. For his role as Billy Moore in ''A Prayer Before Dawn'', Cole won Best Actor at the 2018 ''

British Independent Film Awards The British Independent Film Awards (BIFA) is an organisation that celebrates, supports and promotes British independent cinema and filmmaking talent in United Kingdom. Nominations for the annual awards ceremony are announced in early November, ...

''.

Personal life

Cole grew up in Kingston upon Thames in London, and attended Hollyfield Secondary School in Surbiton. The oldest of five boys, Cole's younger brother

Finn Cole Finlay Lewis J. Cole is an English actor from Kingston, London. He is known for his role in the BBC series ''Peaky Blinders'' as Michael Gray. He is currently starring as Joshua "J" Cody in TNT's '' Animal Kingdom'', and played young Jakob Tor ...

is also an actor and co-starred alongside him in ''Peaky Blinders''.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* * English male television actors Year of birth uncertain Living people English male film actors Male actors from London People from Kingston upon Thames 21st-century English male actors National Youth Theatre members {{England-actor-stub