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James Nesbitt
James Nesbitt (born 15 January 1965) is a Northern Irish actor. Born in Ballymena, County Antrim, Northern Ireland, Nesbitt grew up in the nearby village of Broughshane, before moving to Coleraine, County Londonderry. He wanted to become a teacher, like his father, so began a degree in French at the University of Ulster. He dropped out after a year when he decided to become an actor, and transferred to the Central School of Speech and Drama in London. After graduating in 1987, he spent seven years performing in plays that varied from the musical Up on the Roof (1987, 1989) to the political drama Paddywack (1994). He made his feature film debut playing talent agent Fintan O'Donnell in Hear My Song (1991).
Nesbitt got his breakthrough television role playing Adam Williams in the romantic comedy-drama Cold Feet (1998–2003), which won him a British Comedy Award, a Television and Radio Industries Club Award, and a National Television Award. His first significant film role came when he appeared as pig farmer "Pig" Finn in Waking Ned (1998). With the rest of the starring cast, Nesbitt was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award. In Lucky Break (2001), he made his debut as a film lead playing prisoner Jimmy Hands. The next year, he played Ivan Cooper in the television film Bloody Sunday, about the 1972 shootings in Derry. A departure from his previous "cheeky chappie" roles, the film was a turning point in his career. He won a British Independent Film Award and was nominated for the British Academy Television Award for Best Actor.
Nesbitt has also starred in Murphy's Law (2001–2007) as undercover detective Tommy Murphy—a role that was created for him by writer Colin Bateman. The role twice gained Nesbitt Best Actor nominations at the Irish Film & Television Awards (IFTA). In 2007, he starred in the dual role of Tom Jackman and Mr Hyde in Steven Moffat's Jekyll, which earned him a Golden Globe Award nomination in 2008. Nesbitt has since appeared in several more dramatic roles; he starred alongside Liam Neeson in Five Minutes of Heaven (2009), and was one of three lead actors in the television miniseries Occupation (2009) and The Deep (2010). He also starred in the movies Outcast (2010) and Emilio Estevez's The Way (2011), and has been cast in Peter Jackson's The Hobbit (2012/13).
Nesbitt is married to former actress Sonia Forbes-Adam, with whom he has two daughters. He is a patron of numerous charities and in 2010 accepted the ceremonial position of Chancellor of the University of Ulster.
Known For | Acting |
---|---|
Most Rating | 5.677 |
Birthday | 1965-01-15 |
Place of Birth | Ballymena, County Antrim, Northern Ireland |
Also Known As |
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2007
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The 50 Greatest Television Dramas
0/0
Boasting an amazing selection of the most watched, most influential and most highly acclaimed programmes ever made, The 50 Greatest Television Dramas...
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The 50 Greatest Television Dramas

2002
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Bloody Sunday
7.273/315
The dramatised story of the Irish civil rights protest march on January 30 1972 which ended in a massacre by British troops.
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Bloody Sunday
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2004
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Millions
6.41/384
Two boys, still grieving the death of their mother, find themselves the unwitting benefactors of a bag of bank robbery loot in the week before the Uni...
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Millions
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2009
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Cherrybomb
5.6/113
Teenagers Luke, Malachy, and Michelle embark on a wild weekend of drink, drugs, shop-lifting and stealing cars. But what starts out as a game turns de...
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Cherrybomb
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2001
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Lucky Break
6.2/34
Half-way through his 12-year prison sentence for an incompetent armed robbery, Jimmy Hands gets a lucky break: he's transferred to a prison from which...
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Lucky Break
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1997
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Welcome to Sarajevo
6.438/112
Follow a group of international journalists into the heart of the once cosmopolitan city of Sarajevo—now a danger zone of sniper and mortar attacks wh...
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Welcome to Sarajevo
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2010
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Matching Jack
6.2/36
A woman struggles with her son's illness and her husband's infidelity, but, after a chance encounter with an Irish sailor and his son, her life is tur...
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Matching Jack
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2009
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Five Minutes of Heaven
6.2/206
The story of former UVF member Alistair Little. Twenty-five years after Little killed Joe Griffen's brother, the media arrange an auspicious meeting b...
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Five Minutes of Heaven
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2012
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The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
7.358/18587
Bilbo Baggins, a hobbit enjoying his quiet life, is swept into an epic quest by Gandalf the Grey and thirteen dwarves who seek to reclaim their mounta...
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The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
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2008
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Blessed
5.8/4
A successful city trader suddenly loses everything he truly cares about. Seeking comfort in isolation on a remote island, his life is turned upside do...
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Blessed
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2002
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The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Trenches of Hell
5.4/17
As a young soldier in the Belgian Army, Indy learns firsthand the savagery of warfare while participating in the Battle of the Somme. Almost succumbin...
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The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Trenches of Hell
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2023
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The Coronation Concert
6/2
Take That, Lionel Richie, Katy Perry, Andrea Bocelli, Sir Bryn Terfel, Freya Ridings and many more perform live from Windsor Castle in celebration of...
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The Coronation Concert
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2013
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The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
7.572/13313
The Dwarves, Bilbo and Gandalf have successfully escaped the Misty Mountains, and Bilbo has gained the One Ring. They all continue their journey to ge...
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The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
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2010
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The Way
7.1/579
When his son dies while hiking the famed Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route in the Pyrenees, Tom flies to France to claim the remains. Looking for in...
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2004
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Quite Ugly One Morning
5/4
Investigative reporter Jack Parlabane stumbles across the aftermath of a murder scene in Edinburgh, and when he shows little sign of shock at the grue...
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Quite Ugly One Morning
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2011
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Coriolanus
5.9/451
Caius Martius, aka Coriolanus, is an arrogant and fearsome general who has built a career on protecting Rome from its enemies. Pushed by his ambitious...
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Coriolanus
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2014

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
7.326/14436
Immediately after the events of The Desolation of Smaug, Bilbo and the dwarves try to defend Erebor's mountain of treasure from others who claim it: t...
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The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

2001
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Women Talking Dirty
5/18
A lively, outspoken single mother develops an unlikely friendship with a shy cartoonist.
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
1998
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Resurrection Man
6.1/11
Belfast, in 1970s. Victor Kelly is a young protestant man who hates the Catholics so much that one night he begins to brutally murder them. A reporter...
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Resurrection Man
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2004
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Wall of Silence
8/5
The tale of a gang killing near a south-east London council estate.
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Wall of Silence
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2009
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Occupation
7.8/10
Three ex-servicemen return to Basra, each for a different reason.
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Occupation
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2005
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Big Dippers
0/0
Two small time crooks steal a briefcase and are amazed to find it contains £2million. But when it seems that the money was going to be used to pay the...
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Big Dippers

2005
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Match Point
7.4/4093
Chris, a former tennis player, looks for work as an instructor. He meets Tom Hewett, a wealthy young man whose sister Chloe falls in love with Chris....
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Match Point

1989
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Virtuoso
0/0
In 1962, the young pianist, John Ogdon wins international success in Moscow and embarks on a whirlwind career. Ten years later he suffers the onset of...
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Virtuoso

2023
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The Heist Before Christmas
5/7
After a bank robber dressed as Santa Claus holds up a bank, a child disillusioned with Christmas encounters a man in the woods who, also dressed as Sa...
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The Heist Before Christmas
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2000
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Wild About Harry
6.1/13
A sleazy chef is forced to face the truth about the man he has become and realizes that he has the chance to begin again.
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Wild About Harry
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2014
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Gold
6.3/29
An offbeat comedy about an estranged father who returns to his hometown after an absence of ten years in order to reconnect with his daughter and ex-w...
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Gold
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1996
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Jude
6.3/129
In late 19th-century England, Jude aspires to be an academic, but is hobbled by his blue-collar background. Instead, he works as a stonemason and is t...
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Jude
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
Ireland's Rugby Number 10
10/1
The number 10 in rugby is arguably the most important player on the pitch. They are the master tactician and the playmaker, the goal kicker and the pe...
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Ireland's Rugby Number 10

1995
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Go Now
6.6/16
Nick, is a young Scottish soccer player living in the big city. He meets Karen, and the two fall in love and move in together. Soon after, Nick exhibi...
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Go Now
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1998
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Waking Ned
7/301
When a lottery winner dies of shock, his fellow townsfolk attempt to claim the money.
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Waking Ned

1991
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Hear My Song
5.9/29
Singer Josef Locke fled to Ireland 25 years ago to escape the clutches of the tax man and police Chief Jim Abbott. What he also left behind was the lo...
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Hear My Song

2010
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Outcast
5.273/44
When Mary and her teenage son, Fergal, move to yet another new home, it soon becomes clear they live their lives on the run, hiding from someone or so...
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Outcast
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1986
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The End of the World Man
3/1
When some Belfast children find out that city planners intend to "develop" a wooded area called the Glen that the girls use as a retreat from the pres...
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The End of the World Man

1993
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Love Lies Bleeding
0/0
Conn, a member of the IRA and a former hunger striker, is serving a life sentence for murder. During peace talks, he is released on a 24-hour parole a...
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Love Lies Bleeding
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2004
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James Nesbitt Presents Eat My Goal
0/0
Eat My Goal is the search for the ultimate moment of footballing humiliation. Join die hard footie fan James Nesbitt as he celebrates the lighter side...
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James Nesbitt Presents Eat My Goal

2012
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Here Comes the Summer: The Undertones Story
0/0
In 1978 the Undertones released Teenage Kicks, one of the most perfect and enduring pop records of all time - an adolescent anthem that spoke to teena...
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Here Comes the Summer: The Undertones Story

2007
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James Ellis: An Actor's Life
0/0
Documentary tracing the life of James Ellis, one of Northern Ireland’s best loved actors.
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James Ellis: An Actor's Life

2019
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Lost Lives
6/1
This poignant testament to the physical and emotional cost of war, centres on the Troubles in Northern Ireland.
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Lost Lives
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1997
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This Is the Sea
5.7/6
The film is set in Northern Ireland shortly after 1994 cease-fire. Hazel is a Protestant and Malachy a Catholic. Romance between them is threatened by...
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This Is the Sea
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2020
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James Nesbit: A Game of Two Halves
0/0
James Nesbitt travels round the globe to see the impact of Soccer Aid across the world.
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James Nesbit: A Game of Two Halves
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1984
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The Cry
0/0
Ulster 1959. A young journalist visiting his quiet hometown is awakened by a scream in the night. He catches sight of a youth being beaten up and drag...
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The Cry
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2013
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River Deep, Mountain High: James Nesbitt in New Zealand
5/1
James Nesbitt moved to New Zealand in 2011 when he landed the role of Bofur in Peter Jackson's Hobbit trilogy, but he says the country remains largely...
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River Deep, Mountain High: James Nesbitt in New Zealand
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2000
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The Most Fertile Man in Ireland
5.7/7
Unimpressive, 24-year-old virgin, Eamonn (Kris Marshall) lives in Belfast with his mother, during the Troubles. Local girl, Mary Malloy (Tara O'Neil)...
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The Most Fertile Man in Ireland
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2010
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Alex Higgins: The People's Champion
7.7/3
One man transfixed television viewers during snooker's golden age - Alex 'Hurricane' Higgins. This poignant documentary charts the remarkable rise and...
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Alex Higgins: The People's Champion
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1997
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The James Gang
5/1
After an audacious jewellery robbery the whole James family heads for home on the run with the obsessive detective Julia Armstrong in hot pursuit.
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