Phillip Glenister

**Philip Haywood Glenister** (born 10 February 1963) is an English actor, best known for his roles as DCI William Bell in _State of Play_, DCI Gene Hunt on the BBC series _Life on Mars_ and its sequel _Ashes to Ashes_, and Reverend Anderson in _Outcast_.

## Early life

Glenister was born in Harrow, Middlesex, and grew up in Hatch End. He is the son of director John Glenister and Joan Glenister, and the younger brother of fellow actor Robert Glenister. He is of Welsh ancestry from his maternal side. He attended Hatch End High School, and with the encouragement of his then-sister-in-law Amanda Redman, he pursued acting and attended drama school at the Central School of Speech and Drama.

## Career

In the early 1990s, Glenister appeared in various TV series including _Minder_, _The Ruth Rendell Mysteries_, _Heartbeat_, _The Chief_, _Dressing for Breakfast_ and _Silent Witness_. In 1997, he appeared in _Sharpe's Justice_ as Richard Sharpe's half-brother Matt Truman. He played William Dobbin in the 1998 mini-series _Vanity Fair_.

From 1998 to 1999, Glenister co-starred as a mini-cab driver who aspires to be a rock star in the series _Roger Roger_. He also played factory boss Mack Mackintosh in the first three series of _Clocking Off_ from 2000–02. In 2001, he appeared in two of the _Hornblower_ TV films as Horatio's antagonist Gunner Hobbs.

Glenister played the photographer who took nude photos for a Women's Institute fundraising calendar in the 2003 feature film _Calendar Girls_. Also in 2003, he appeared in the mini-series _State of Play_. Glenister played the German commandant, Baron Heinrich von Rheingarten, in the 2004 mini-series _Island at War_ about the Occupation of the Channel Islands during World War II.

In April 2006, Glenister read the Bedtime Story for the BBC's children's channel, CBeebies. He returned to the slot in February/March 2007.

Glenister played social reformer and estate manager Mr. Carter in the 2007 BBC costume drama _Cranford_, as part of a cast including Judi Dench and Francesca Annis.

Glenister is probably best known for his role as DCI Gene Hunt in _Life on Mars_ (2006–07), co-starring with John Simm as Sam Tyler,  and its sequel _Ashes to Ashes_ (2008–10), with Keeley Hawes as Alex Drake.  Glenister also worked with Simm on _State of Play_ and _Clocking Off_ and the 2008 crime film _Tuesday_. Upon announcement of the film, Glenister joked that he and Simm were contractually obliged to work with each other once a year.

Glenister starred as demon hunter Rupert Galvin in the 2009 ITV drama _Demons_. He used an American accent for the role, which received some criticism from reviewers. After the series was cancelled, he said he had problems with the role and felt that he may have been miscast.

In 2010, Glenister had a small role (credited as 'Poker Friend') in Woody Allen's _You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger_, and he played Charles Forestier in a 2011 feature film of Guy de Maupassant's _Bel Ami_. He starred in the 2011 conspiracy thriller _Hidden_ on BBC One.

In 2011, Glenister reunited with John Simm once more in the Sky TV mini-series _Mad Dogs_ about a group of old friends whose holiday in Majorca takes an unexpected turn. After a successful reception, the cast returned for a second run of the series in 2012. The show ran for two more seasons after that in 2013. Those two seasons consisted of four and two episodes respectively. Glenister played Captain Smollett in Sky1's adaptation of _Treasure Island_, broadcast at Christmas 2012. Glenister also appeared in the 2012 premiere of the play _This House_.

In 2013, Glenister starred in the final episode of _Agatha Christie's Poirot_, starring David Suchet, entitled "Curtain". He also played the role of Mr Trevor Gunn, a lothario PE teacher in David Walliams' BBC One comedy series _Big School_.

In 2014, Glenister had a leading role in the Kudos-produced BBC drama, _From There to Here_, which focuses on the aftermath of the IRA bombing of Manchester in 1996. The show featured his _Life on Mars_ co-star Liz White as his love interest.
That same year, he presented the Channel 4 series _For The Love Of Cars_ with fellow classic car enthusiast Ant Anstead. The two friends were set the challenge of restoring classic cars including a Mini Cooper, Land Rover, DeLorean, MG T-type, Ford Escort and a Triumph Stag. The first series ended after six episodes, in which all six classic cars were sold at a London auction, with the second series being aired in 2015.

In 2016, Glenister had a leading role in Robert Kirkman's TV adaptation of _Outcast_, where he played Reverend Anderson, and used an American accent. The show ran for 2 series on Cinemax, before it was cancelled in 2017.

In 2017, Glenister starred in an episode of _Inside No. 9_ called _The Bill_. He also worked with his _Clocking Off_ co-star, Lesley Sharp in _Living the Dream_. This show was about a British family that moved to America. It ran for 2 series before being cancelled in 2019. That year, Glenister presented the true-crime show, _What the Killer Did Next_ on _Crime & Investigation_.

Glenister appeared in Julian Fellowes' 2020 television adaptation _Belgravia_, based on Fellowes' novel of the same name. It aired on ITV in the UK and Epix in the USA.

## Publications

A book by Glenister on 1970s and 1980s culture, _Things Ain't What They Used to Be_, was published in October 2008.

## Charity work

Glenister is patron of the charity Momentum in Kingston upon Thames, which aims to help children and the families of children undergoing treatment for cancer in Surrey.

## Personal life

Glenister has been married to actress Beth Goddard since 2006. Together, they have two daughters named Millie and Charlotte.

Glenister is a supporter of non-league football team Wealdstone FC. He is also known to be a fan of Arsenal FC.

### Film

|Year|Title|Role|
| --- | --- | --- |
|1995|_I.D._|Charlie|
|2003|_Calendar Girls_|Lawrence|
|2005|_Kingdom of Heaven_|Squire|
|2008|_Tuesday_|Earp|
|2010|_You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger_|Poker Friend|
|2012|_Bel Ami_|Charles Forestier|

### Television

|Year|Title|Role|class="unsortable"|Notes|
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|rowspan=4|1991|_Minder_|Greg Hunter|Series 8, Episode 3: "Whatever Happened to Her Indoors"|
|_The Ruth Rendell Mysteries_|Brian Gregson|Series 5, Episodes 4–6: "Murder Being Once Done" parts 1–3|||
|_Drop the Dead Donkey_|Harrison|Series 2, Episode 11: "George's Daughter"|||
|_Bergerac_|Philip|Series 9, Episode 11: "All for Love"|||
|rowspan=3|1992|_Love Hurts_|Mark|Series 1, Episode 6: "Stormy Weather" Series 1, Episode 7: "A Day in the Life"|
|_Heartbeat_|Julian Cantley|Series 1, Episode 7: "Face Value"|||
|_A Fatal Inversion_|Young Detective|Episodes 2 and 3|||
|rowspan=2|1993|_The Detectives_|Uniformed Officer|Series 1, Episode 2: "Hostage"|
|_In Suspicious Circumstances_|Herbert Bennett|Series 3, Episode 6: "Good as Gold"|||
|rowspan=3|1994|_Law and Disorder_|David MacNamara|Series 1, Episode 6: "Safe as Houses"|
|_The Chief_|Angus Shadwell|Series 4, Episode 8|||
|_Blue Heaven_|Paul Twice|Series 1, Episode 6|||
|rowspan=2|1995|_Loved Up_|Ray|TV film|
|_Dressing for Breakfast_|Mark|Series 1, Series 1, Episode 2: "Mark"|||
|rowspan=4|1996|_True Love_|Phil|TV film|
|_Silent Witness_|PC Jerry Denning|Series 1, Episodes 5–6: "Darkness Visible" parts 1–2|||
|_Frontiers_|DS Danny Curtis|TV mini-series|||
|_Soldier Soldier_|Jimmy Reece|Series 6, Episode 3: "All for One"|||
|1996–97|_My Wonderful Life_|Phil|Series 1, Episode 0: "True Love" Series 1, Episode 3: "Convent Girl" Series 1, Episode 6: "Portugal"||
|rowspan=4|1997|_The Perfect Blue_|Tom|TV film|
|_Have Your Cake and Eat It_|Joe Martin|TV mini-series|||
|_Sharpe's Justice_|Matt Truman|TV film|||
|_Wycliffe_|DS Eric Findlay|Series 4, Episode 9: "Dance of the Scorpions"|||
|1998|_Vanity Fair_|William Dobbin|TV mini-series||
|1998–99|_Roger Roger_|Phil|Series 1–2: 13 episodes||
|2000–02|_Clocking Off_|James 'Mack' Mackintosh|Series 1–3: 11 episodes||
|rowspan=2|2001|_Lloyd & Hill_|DCI Danny Lloyd|TV film|
|_The Hunt_|Rob Campbell|TV film|||
|2002|_Hornblower: Mutiny_ _Hornblower: Retribution_|Gunner Hobbs|TV film||
|rowspan=4|2003|_The Other Boleyn Girl_|William Stafford|TV film|
|_State of Play_|DCI William Bell|TV mini-series|||
|_The Vice_|Jason Grant|Series 5, Episode 7: "Lust"|||
|_Byron_|William Fletcher|TV film|||
|2004|_Island at War_|Oberst Heinrich Baron Von Rheingarten|TV mini-series||
|rowspan=4|2005|_The Stepfather_|Dougie Molloy|TV film|
|_The Walk_|Eddie|TV film|||
|_Last Rights_|Speers|TV mini-series|||
|_Vincent_|DCI David Driscoll|Series 1, Episodes 1–3|||
|2006–07|_Life on Mars_|Gene Hunt|Lead role; TV series 1–2: 16 episodes||
|2007|_Cranford_|Mr. Carter|TV mini-series||
|2008–10|_Ashes to Ashes_|Gene Hunt|Lead role;  TV series 1–3:  24 episodes||
|2009|_Demons_|Rupert Galvin|Lead role; TV series:  6 episodes||
|2011–13|_Mad Dogs_|Quinn|TV mini-series 1-4:  14 episodes||
|2011|_Hidden_|Harry Venn|Lead role;  TV mini-series:  4 episodes||
|2012|_Treasure Island_|Captain Smollet|TV mini-series||
|2013|_Agatha Christie's Poirot_|Sir William Boyd-Carrington|Episode: "Curtain"||
|2013–14|_Big School_|Mr Trevor Gunn|Television sitcom series||
|rowspan=2|2014|_Jumbo: The Plane that Changed the World_|Documentary|Narrator|
|_From There to Here_|Daniel Cotton|TV series|||
|2014–2016|_For the Love of Cars_|Presenter|Documentary TV series||
|2015|_Prey_|David Murdoch|Lead role; Second series:  3 episodes||
|2016|_The Hollow Crown: The Wars of the Roses_|Talbot|BBC2 TV series (Henry VI, Part I)||
|2016|_The Level_|Frank Le Saux|TV mini-series||
|2016–2017|_Outcast_|Reverend Anderson|Lead role;  TV series:  20 episodes||
|2017|_Inside No. 9_|Craig|TV series,  Episode The Bill||
|2017–2019|_Living the Dream_|Mal Pemberton|Lead role;  TV series:  12 episodes||
|2019|_What the Killer Did Next_|Presenter|Documentary TV series||
|2020|_Belgravia_|James Trenchard|Lead role;  TV mini-series:  6 episodes||

## Other websites

- Philip Glenister: The Official Website
- Philip Glenister Fans - unofficial Philip Glenister fan site.
- Life on Mars at the BBC
- BBC Ashes To Ashes official website

## Infobox (person)

- **name**: Philip Glenister
- **image**: Philip Glenister (cropped).jpg
- **caption**: Glenister in 2016
- **birth name**: Philip Haywood Glenister
- **birth place**: Harrow, London, Harrow, Middlesex, England
- **nationality**: British
- **occupation**: Actor
- **yearsactive**: 1990present
- **children**: 2
- **parents**: John Glenister
 Joan Fry Lewis
- **relatives**: Robert Glenister (brother)