Johnny Harris

Johnny Harris dropped out of school to pursue his dream of professional boxing but ended up becoming a well-known film and TV actor instead. After winning a junior boxing title and spending several years in Paris, Harris returned to England with a newfound interest in acting. He worked his way up from small parts in minor theater productions to cameo roles in television series like the long-running British soap opera "EastEnders" and "The Bill," which follows a group of tough London police officers. He followed up his recurring role as DC Sanders on the first season of the crime series "Whitechapel" with a breakout performance in the critically-acclaimed miniseries "This is England '86." The show, a small-screen sequel to director Shane Meadow's influential film "This is England," explored the lives of a group of working-class teens at the height of Thatcherite England; Harris' brutal portryal of Mick, Lol's (Vicky McClure) cruel and abusive father, was nominated for numerous awards. In addition to his television success, Harris has enjoyed a steady film career; he won praise for his role as a dangerous pimp in the crime thriller "London to Brighton," and appeared in Terry Gilliam's high-profile "The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus." In 2011 he was cast as Paul, a mysterious man with the ability to see vengeful spirits, in the supernatural TV drama "The Fades."