Jason Merrells

Jason Merrells
Born	Jason Scott Merrells Epping, Essex, England
Occupation(s)	Actor, director, writer, painter
Years active	1994–present
Children	5
Relatives	Simon Merrells (brother)[ citation needed ]

Jason Scott Merrells is an English actor, who is best known for his roles in Casualty , Queer as Folk , Cutting It , Waterloo Road and Emmerdale .

Early life and education

His brother Simon Merrells ^{[ citation needed ]} is also an actor. Merrells studied at Chichester University. ^[1]

Career

Merrells got his first role in 1994 with an appearance in the film To Die For , in which he played a small part. However, he soon established himself as a successful television actor with his role as receptionist Matt Hawley in the medical drama Casualty . In 1999 he portrayed Phil Delaney in the television series Queer as Folk . He continued to appear in more prominent roles for years to come including in films such as Do Not Disturb (1999). His television appearances also became more frequent, and he had a recurring appearance as Martin Leach in Clocking Off between 2000 and 2001. However it was his portrayal of stylist Gavin Ferraday in the BBC One television drama series Cutting It that brought him wide notice. This followed with appearances in television shows such as The Afternoon Play , Where the Heart Is and Murder City , and a starring role in the 2005 film The Jealous God .

Merrells announced that he had been cast in the role of headteacher Jack Rimmer in the BBC One school-based drama Waterloo Road , making Merrells one of the original stars of the show appearing in the very first episode. In 2009, Merrells appeared throughout series two of Lark Rise to Candleford as James Dowland.

From 2010 to 2014, Merrells achieved popularity through his role as shrewd businessman Declan Macey in the long-running ITV soap opera Emmerdale . In September 2014, it was announced that Merrells had decided to quit his role after four years on the soap. Declan left the following month, going into hiding after killing his half-nephew Robbie Lawson (Jamie Shelton) and attempting to murder his most recent wife, Charity Macey (Emma Atkins), whom he married earlier in the year. In 2015, Merrells appeared as Stuart Howe in the BBC TV series Death in Paradise episode 4.7. From 2016 onwards, Merrells has portrayed Sir Charles Fraith in Agatha Raisin . ^[2]

In January 2023, Merrells appeared as DC Stead in the third series of BBC drama Happy Valley for three episodes. ^[3]

Theatre

From August to October 2007, Merrells performed with the Royal Shakespeare Company at the Courtyard Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon. He played the role of Orsino in William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, or What You Will alongside his brother Simon Merrells who played Antonio. The Merrells brothers then went on to tour in A Comedy of Errors with the Royal Shakespeare Company from October to December 2007. ^[4] From March to April 2009 he appeared in the Theatre Royal Plymouth and Thelma Hunt production of Measure for Measure as Angelo alongside Alistair McGowan as the Duke. ^[5] The production transferred to the Almeida Theatre in February 2010. From May to June 2015, he starred as Juror number 8 in Bill Kenwright's touring production of Twelve Angry Men, alongside Andrew Lancel, Gareth David-Lloyd, Denis Lill and Drop the Dead Donkey's Robert Duncan.

From January to July 2023, Merrells starred as Frank Galvin in Middleground Theatre Company’s theatrical adaptation of Barry Reed's 1980 novel The Verdict. ^[6]

In January 2024, he reprised his role as juror 8 in a stage adaptation of Twelve Angry Men . ^[7]

Personal life

Jason lives part-time in London and spends the rest of his time in the North East of England. He has five children from three relationships. ^[8]

Filmography

Film and television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1994	To Die For	Nigel	Film
1994–1997	Casualty	Matt Hawley	Series regular; 70 episodes
1997	Thief Takers	Steve Lunt	1 episode
	The Bill	Richard McAuliffe	1 episode
1998	Verdict	Ben Clayton	1 episode
1999	Queer as Folk	Phil Delaney	Supporting role; 3 episodes
	Do Not Disturb	Chris Mulder	Film
2000	Small Time Obsession	Chris
	Calling The Wild	Matt	TV short
2000–2001	Clocking Off	Martin Leach	Main role; 12 episodes
2000–2002	Fat Friends	Carl Whittaker/Carl Watkinson	Supporting role; 3 episodes
2002	A Touch of Frost	Mike Patterson	2 episodes
	The Inspector Lynley Mysteries	Steve Shepherd	1 episode
	The Project	Dougie	Television film
2002–2005	Cutting It	Gavin Ferraday	Series regular; 25 episodes
2003	Sweet Medicine	Dr. Nicholas Sweet	Main role; 9 episodes
2005	The Afternoon Play	John Priestley	Episode: "The Hitch"
	The Jealous God	Vincent Dungarven	Film
	Where The Heart Is	Ryan Saunders	1 episode
2006	Murder City	Mark Drummond	1 episode
2006–2008	Waterloo Road	Jack Rimmer	Series regular; 27 episodes
2009	Lark Rise to Candleford	James Dowland	Main role; 11 episodes
2010	Marple	Dr. Kerrigan	1 episode
2010–2014	Emmerdale	Declan Macey	Series regular; 661 episodes
2015	Death in Paradise	Stuart Howe	1 episode
	Safe House	David Blackwell	4 episodes
	Elsewhere	Travelling Salesman	Short
2016	Bumps	Richard
2016–2022	Agatha Raisin	Sir Charles Fraith	Main role; 15 episodes
2018	Midsomer Murders	Paul Taylor	1 episode
	Legends of Tomorrow	Various
2019	Jesus: His Life	Pilate	5 episodes
	Trick or Treat	Bizzie	Film
2020	Endeavour	Martin Gorman	1 episode
2021	Finding Alice	Harry Walsh	Supporting role
2023	Happy Valley	DC Stead	Series 3; 3 episodes [9]

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Work	Result	Ref.
2003	9th National Television Awards	Most Popular Actor	Cutting It	Nominated	[10]
2012	The British Soap Awards	Villain of the Year	Emmerdale	Nominated	[11]
2014	19th National Television Awards	Serial Drama Performance		Nominated	[12]
2014	The British Soap Awards	Best Actor		Nominated	[13]
2014	Inside Soap Awards	Best Actor		Nominated	[14]
2015	20th National Television Awards	Serial Drama Performance		Nominated	[15]

References

1. "Chichester, University of". Independent.co.uk . 25 July 2014.
2. "Agatha Raisin's Mathew Horne gives season 4 update". Digitalspy.com. Retrieved 24 March 2022.
3. Cormack, Morgan (30 January 2023). "Meet the cast of Happy Valley season 3". Radio Times. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
4. A Comedy of Errors Archived 12 November 2012 at the Wayback Machine
5. Measure for Measure Archived 28 February 2009 at the Wayback Machine
6. "The Verdict". The New Wolsey Theatre. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
7. "From Emmerdale to ultimate courtroom drama Twelve Angry Men at the Lowry". Lancashire Telegraph. 24 February 2024. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
8. Palmer, Alun (5 May 2014). "Emmerdale's Declan Macey is getting married but twice divorced actor Jason Merrells is taking it slow". Daily Mirror .
9. "Jason Merrells Filmography" . Retrieved 6 February 2023.
10. "National Television Awards". thecustard.tv. Archived from the original on 17 December 2007. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
11. Kilkelly, Daniel (27 February 2012). "British Soap Awards 2012 voting opens, nominations revealed". Digital Spy . Retrieved 20 July 2012.
12. Kilkelly, Daniel (17 September 2013). "Corrie, EastEnders, Emmerdale, Hollyoaks stars up for NTAs - full list". Digital Spy . Retrieved 20 September 2013.
13. Kilkelly, Daniel (17 March 2014). "British Soap Awards 2014 voting opens, longlist announced". Digital Spy . Retrieved 10 July 2014.
14. Dainty, Sophie (29 July 2014). "Inside Soap Awards 2014 longlist revealed". Digital Spy . Retrieved 29 July 2014.
15. Kilkelly, Daniel (14 October 2014). "National Television Awards 2015 - Which soap stars made the long list?". Digital Spy . Retrieved 10 January 2015.

External links

• Jason Merrells at IMDb