Tim Downie

Timothy Richard Downie (born 14 July 1977) is an English actor and writer. He is known for the television series Toast of London, Outlander and Upstart Crow, and the films Paddington and The King's Speech. Downie was born in Hitchin, Hertfordshire. Before starting his professional career, he trained at the Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts. Career Television Downie's first television appearance was in 1994 in an episode of ITV's police drama The Bill, followed by a guest spot on the series two premiere of ITV's comedy Conjugal Rites. In 1996 he joined the cast of CBBC's Out of Tune, a children's sitcom which focused on the lives of the member of a church choir, alongside James Corden and Jane Danson. He would go on to appear on BBC One's teenage game show To Me... To You... in 1998 before landing the role of Sam Smallwood in a seven episode stint on Channel 4's soap opera Hollyoaks. Next he would guest star in an episode of BBC One's courtroom drama Judge John Deed (2001) as Constable Hoskins. In 2002, Downie joined the cast of BBC's series Doctors, portraying Alex North in 112 episodes of the drama. 2004 saw him guest star on Fox Network's action/comedy Keen Eddie, which centered on an NYPD officer stationed in London, and the BBC's crime procedural New Tricks, which followed an Unsolved Crime and Open Case Squad (UCOS) of London's Metropolitan Police Service. From there he would guest star on CBBC's teenage drama M.I.High in the series two finale titled "Asteroid Attack" (2008) and BBC's sitcom The Legend of Dick and Dom in a series one episode titled "The Tears of Fury". In 2009, Downie co-starred in BBC Four's Micro Men, a comedic account of the rivalry between 1980's British computer giants Sir Clive Sinclair and Chris Curry, opposite Martin Freeman and Alexander Armstrong. For the next two years, between 2010 and 2011, Downie would star with fellow actor Sam Heughan in a series of television commercials as part of an ad campaign for Tennents Lager in the UK.