Mark Bonnar
Mark Bonnar (born 19 November 1968) is a Scottish actor. He is known for his roles as Max in Guilt, Duncan Hunter in Shetland, Bruno Jenkins in Casualty, Detective Finney in Psychoville, DCC Mike Dryden in Line of Duty, Colin Osborne in Unforgotten, Blackbeard in Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag, Townsend in Battlefield 1, Field in Summer of Rockets and Stephen Burns, the Lord Advocate, in Dept.
Also recorded as Richard Mark Bonnar
Mark Bonnar
- Name
- Mark Bonnar
- Birth Name
- Richard Mark Bonnar
- Born
- 19 November 1968
- Birthplace
- Edinburgh, Scotland
- Occupation
- Actor
- Nationality
- United Kingdom
- Education
- Leith Academy
- Languages
- English
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Documentary summary
Mark Bonnar (born 19 November 1968) is a Scottish actor. He is known for his roles as Max in Guilt, Duncan Hunter in Shetland, Bruno Jenkins in Casualty, Detective Finney in Psychoville, DCC Mike Dryden in Line of Duty, Colin Osborne in Unforgotten, Blackbeard in Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag, Townsend in Battlefield 1, Field in Summer of Rockets and Stephen Burns, the Lord Advocate, in Dept.
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wikidata · Q4845536 · wikipedia · Mark Bonnar
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Mark Bonnar • Birth Name — Richard Mark Bonnar • Born — 19 November 1968 • Birthplace — Edinburgh, Scotland • Occupation — Actor • Years Active — 2001–present • Children — 2 Richard Mark Bonnar (born 19 November 1968) is a Scottish actor. He is known for his roles as Max in Guilt, Duncan Hunter in Shetland, Bruno Jenkins in Casualty, Detective Finney in Psychoville, DCC Mike Dryden in Line of Duty, Colin Osborne in Unforgotten, Blackbeard in Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag, Townsend in Battlefield 1, Field in Summer of Rockets and Stephen Burns, the Lord Advocate, in Dept. Q.
Career
Career
On television, Bonnar has appeared as Peter Mayhew in BBC One's New Blood and Chris in the Channel 4 comedy Catastrophe, a role which he reprised in the following series. He also portrays the Rev. Adam Collingbourne in ITV's Home Fires, John Halliday in Undercover, as well as regular Duncan Hunter in Shetland for BBC One. Other television credits include Vera, Grantchester, Case Histories, The Paradise, Doctor Who, Psychoville, Taggart, Phoneshop and Paradox. In 2005, he portrayed regular Bruno Jenkins in the BBC One series Casualty. In 2018, he portrayed Dr Neil Sommer in the Channel 4 series Humans. In 2025, Bonnar starred in Netflix drama Dept. Q as Lord Advocate Stephen Burns. In September 2025, he joined the cast of BBC detective series Ludwig, playing newspaper editor Gareth Fisher in the upcoming second series. His theatre performances include Bosola in The Duchess of Malfi at the Old Vic, London in 2012, Philistines at the Lyttelton, National Theatre in May 2007, Phil in Mammals in a national tour in 2006, David in A Girl in a Car with a Man at the Jerwood Theatre Upstairs in December 2004, Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing at the Salisbury Playhouse in September 2004, Cyrano de Bergerac at the National Theatre in 2004 and Parade at the Donmar Warehouse in September 2007. Bonnar provided the voice and motion capture for Edward "Blackbeard" Thatch in the 2013 video game Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag. He also provides the voice and motion capture for Townsend in the 2016 game Battlefield 1. He also features in the Doctor Who series Doom Coalition from Big Finish Productions, where he portrays the Eleven, a villainous Time Lord who retains the personalities of his past incarnations in his mind. Bonnar also voices Twigs and Box in the CBeebies series Tree Fu Tom. In May 2025, Bonnar was announced as a contestant on the first series of The Celebrity Traitors. Bonnar competed as a Faithful before eventually being banished in the sixth episode.
Personal life
Personal life
Bonnar was born in Edinburgh to environmental artist Stan and his wife Rosi. Stan's job as town artist for the Scottish New Towns meant the family moved around and Mark spent his childhood in Stonehouse, South Lanarkshire, attending Townhead Primary School in Stonehouse. Bonnar has presented a BBC documentary on the new towns titled Meet You at the Hippos. By 1981 the family had moved to Edinburgh and Mark attended Leith Academy. Mark attended school with future Guilt and Dept. Q co-star Jamie Sives. He married actress Lucy Gaskell on 28 December 2007. Their first child was born in July 2011, and their second in June 2015.
Filmography
Filmography
• Year — Title — Role — Notes • 2001 — Rebus — DI Jim Margolies — Episode: "Dead Souls" • 2002 — Wire in the Blood — Stevie McTeer — Episodes: "The Mermaids Singing: Parts 1 & 2" • 2003 — Loving You — DC Colin Morris — TV film • Taggart — Phillip Gardner — Episode: "An Eye for an Eye" • 2005 — Afterlife — Ben Varcoe — Episode: "Misdirection" • Casualty@Holby City — Bruno Jenkins — Episodes: "Teacher's Pet" & "Crash and Burn" • 2005–2006 — Casualty — 32 episodes • 2007 — The — Tommy — TV film • Nuclear Secrets — Penkovsky — Mini-series: Episode: "The Spy from Moscow" • The — Ray Moore — 8 episodes • The — DC Ed Harvey — Episode: "Know Thine Enemy" • Britz — Richard — Two-part TV drama • 2009 — Paradox — DS Ben Holt — Mini-series • 2010 — PhoneShop — Don — Episode: "Salesman of the Month" • Taggart — DCI Atkins — Episode: "Ends of Justice" • 2011 — Doctor Who — Jimmy / Jimmy's duplicate — Episodes: "The Rebel Flesh" & "The Almost People" • Psychoville — Detective Finney — 6 episodes • 2012 — Playhouse Presents — Gerry McCluskey — Series 1: Episode: "The Minor Character" • Twenty Twelve — Ben Farrell — Episode: "Clarence House" • The — Peter Adler — 2 episodes • 2013 — Silent Witness — Piers Christie — Episodes: "Trust: Parts 1 & 2" • Case Histories — Andy Marshall — Series 2: Episode: "Nobody's Darling" • Thirst — John Valentine — Short • Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag — Edward "Blackbeard" Thatch — Video game (Voice and motion capture) • 2013–2022 — Shetland — Duncan Hunter — 23 episodes • 2014 — Line of Duty — DCC Dryden — Series 2: 6 episodes • Law & Order: UK — Mark Glendon — Episode: "Hard Stop" • X Moor — Fox — Film • Grantchester — Dr Robinson — Episode: "Episode 3" • Camera Trap — Iain — Film • 2015 — Midsomer Murders — William Carnavon — Episode: "A Vintage Murder" • All the Ordinary Angels — Mr Taylor — Film • Vera — Danny Pryor — Episode: "Muddy Waters" • Home Fires — Reverend Adam Collingborne — 3 episodes • Sunset Song — Reverend Gibbon — Film • Sword Coast Legends — Izhkin — Video game (Voice) • Jekyll & Hyde — Lord Protheroe — Mini-Series: 5 episodes • The — Paul — Short • 2015–2019 — Catastrophe — Chris — 20 episodes • 2016 — Billionaire Ransom (aka Take Down) — Lawrence Close — Film • Undercover — John Halliday — Mini-series: 5 episodes • New Blood — Peter Mayhew — Case 1: 3 episodes; Case 2: 2 episodes • Battlefield 1 — Townsend — Video game (Voice) • 2016–2017 — Porridge — Officer Meekie — TV film and mini-series • 2017 — Unforgotten — Barrister Colin Osborne — Series 2 - BAFTA Scotland winner for this role • Apple Tree Yard — Gary Carmichael — Mini-series • Mission Galapagos — Narrator — Full series (For International Version) • Eric, Ernie and Me — Eric Morecambe — TV film • Edmund the Magnificent — Nate — Short • 2018 — Urban Myths — Billy — Series 2: Episode: "Agatha Christie" • Humans — Neil Sommer — Series 3: 7 episodes • Say My Name — Dec — Film • 2019 — The — Mr Jeffreys — Film • Summer of Rockets — Field — Mini-series: 6 episodes • Defending the Guilty — Miles — 3 episodes • 2019–2023 — Guilt — Max — Mini-series: 12 episodes • 2020 — Quiz — Paul Smith — Mini-series • Zog and the Flying Doctors — The Unicorn (voice) — Short film • Assassin's Creed Valhalla — Ceolwulf II of Mercia — Video game (Voice) • 2021 — Meet Me at the Hippos — Presenter — Documentary • Operation Mincemeat — Jock Horsfall — Film • 2022 — Litvinenko — Clive Timmons — Main role • 2022–2024 — The Heroic Quest of the Valiant Prince Ivandoe — Additional voices • 2023 — Calamity James — Dad — Short film • Napoleon — Jean-Andoche Junot — Film • 2023–2025 — The Rig — Alwyn Evans — 2 episodes • 2023 — World on Fire — Sir James Danemere — Main role • 2023 — Murder is Easy — Reverend Arthur Humbleby — Two-part drama • 2024 — Inside No. 9 — Raymond — Episode: "Boo To a Goose" • 2025 — Lockerbie: A Search for Truth — Roderick McGill — TV series • Last Breath — Craig — Film • The Celebrity Traitors — Himself — Contestant; series 1 • Dept. Q — Stephen Burns — Main role • 2026 — Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced — Edward "Blackbeard" Thatch — Video game (Voice and motion capture) • Ludwig — Gareth Fisher, a journalist at the East Anglia Advertiser — Season 2 • Marble Hall Murders — Elmer Waysmith — Six-part series • TBA — Rambling — Gerry — Lead role
Audio work
Audio work
• Date — Title — Role — Director — Station • – — Westway — Denny Hampton — BBC World Service • A Tiny Light in the Darkness — Daniel — Lu Kemp — BBC Radio 4 Afternoon Play • Cut to the Heart — Pete — Kirsty Williams — BBC Radio 4 Afternoon Play • Piper Alpha — Toby Swift — BBC Radio 3 Drama on 3 • 13 January 2015 — Doctor Who: The English Way of Death — Porteus — Nicholas Briggs — None, Big Finish Productions • 12 October 2015 – present — Doctor Who: Doom Coalition — The Eleven — Various — None, Big Finish Productions • Doctor Who: Ravenous • A History of Paper — Him — Kirsty Williams — BBC Radio 4 Afternoon Play • January 2019 – March 2021 — For The Love of Leo — Leo Fabiani — Marilyn Imrie, Michael Chaplin, Catherine Bailey — BBC Radio 4 • 13 September 2019 – present — Space 1999 — Commander John Koenig — Nicholas Briggs — None, Big Finish Productions • November 2021 – November 2022 — UNIT: Nemesis — The Eleven — Ken Bentley — None, Big Finish Productions • November 2025 — The Archers — Finlay — Various — BBC Radio 4
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 1 entries
1968
Mark Bonnar born at Edinburgh.
Awards and nominations
• Year — Award — Category — Work(s) — Result — Ref References • 2014 — British Academy Scotland Awards (BAFTA Scotland) — Best Actor in Television — Line of Duty • 2015 — British Academy Scotland Awards (BAFTA Scotland) — Best Actor in Television — Catastrophe • 2017 — British Academy Scotland Awards (BAFTA Scotland) — Best Actor in Television — Unforgotten • 2018 — Broadcasting Press Guild (BPG) Awards — Best Actor — Unforgotten, Eric, Ernie and Me, Catastrophe • 2022 — British Academy Scotland Awards (BAFTA Scotland) — Best Actor in Film — Operation Mincemeat • 2026 — Prague Independent Film Festival — Best Actor — The Confession
References
Citations
References
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His recorded language was English. He married Lucy Gaskell.
Identity and origins
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 27 August 2026.
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