Dean Andrews (born 6 August 1963) is an English actor. He is known for his role as DS Ray Carling in the BBC drama series Life on Mars. He continued the role in the sequel series, Ashes to Ashes, until 2010. As of April 2019, he appeared as Will Taylor on ITV soap opera Emmerdale. Andrews left the show on 26 December 2024 when his character Will died of a heart attack.
Early life and education Born in 1963 in Rotherham, Andrews went to Sitwell Junior School on Grange Road and Oakwood Comprehensive School on Moorgate Road. He went to school with Top Gear presenter James May.Q&A with Dean Andrews feature - 2008 - Features - Top Gear
Career
Dean Andrews started off as a mainstay of cruise ships as a talented entertainer and singer. He was discovered by film director Ken Loach, who was looking for people from Yorkshire to appear in the 2001 film, The Navigators. He then went on to play Barry Shiel in the Channel 4 drama Buried, which won the BAFTA Award for Best Drama Series in 2004. That year, he also had a small role, as Neil, in the Channel 4 series No Angels.
In 2005, Andrews appeared in one episode of the ITV drama Wire in the Blood. The following year, he appeared in another BBC drama, Life On Mars, as DS Ray Carling. He then had roles in two BBC dramas, True Dare Kiss and The Street, in 2007. Andrews again played DC Carling in Ashes to Ashes, a 2008 spin-off series of Life on Mars. During the same year, he recorded voiceovers for Currys television advertisements.Dean Andrews official blog , 2 November 2008 He had a guest role in 2010 on the BBC One series Waterloo Road.
In 2011, Andrews appeared in: the BBC drama The Body Farm as Peter Collins; the BBC Two television film United, about the Manchester United "Busby Babes" team and the 1958 Munich air disaster; ITV's supernatural drama series Marchlands, playing one of the lead roles; and the five-part BBC One series The Case, in which he played the lead role as a man accused of murdering his terminally ill girlfriend.
From November 2012, Andrews appeared in all four series of the BBC drama Last Tango in Halifax as Robert "Robbie" Greenwood. The following year, he portrayed Pete Lewis in the BBC show Being Eileen. Andrews played local hotel and barman Tom Asher in a 2015 episode of the popular series Midsomer Murders on ITV. In 2019, the actor joined the cast of ITV soap opera Emmerdale. He left the soap on 26 December 2024 when his character Will died of a heart attack. He has stated that he was not told about the character's demise. He narrated the Channel 5 documentary series, Our Great Yorkshire Life, in 2022. He also narrates the UK TV show Casualty 24/7 which centres on Barnsley Hospital.
Filmography Year Title Role Other notes 2001 The Navigators John BAFTA-winning for screenwriter 2002 EastEnders Dean Episode dated 3 April 20022003 Buried Barry Sheil 3 episodes Clocking Off DS Hughes Episode: "Colin's Story" Between the Sheets Steve Ashby 6 episodes2004 No Angels Neil 3 episodes Casualty Reg Summerston Episode: "Don't Go There" Blue Murder Will Harmon Episode: "Lonely" My Summer of Love Ricky BAFTA-winning film2005Love + HateDerek Wire in the Blood Steve Maynard Episode: "Bad Seed" Faith Davey Television film2006 Shameless Geoff Mulligan Episode #3.1 Missing Mark Lanser 2 episodes New Street Law Dennis Longwell Episode: "Shock to the System" 2006–2007 Life on Mars DS Ray Carling Series 1–2; 16 episodes2007 True Dare Kiss Vinny 2 episodes The Street Cleggy Episode: "The Letter" 2008–2010 Ashes to Ashes DS Ray Carling Series 1–3; 24 episodes 2009 Wish 143 Bus Driver Short film2010 Waterloo Road Gary Vale Episode #5.11 Doctors Jonty Stephens Episode: "A Spoonful"2011 Marchlands Eddie Maynard 5 episodes The Body Farm Peter Collins Episode: "No Peace for the Wicked" The Case Tony Powell 5 episodes Just Henry Bill Television film 2012–2016 Last Tango in Halifax Robbie Series 1–4; 20 episodes2013 Being Eileen Pete Lewis 6 episodes The Security Men Ray Episode: "Pilot" Frankie Joseph Corden 3 episodes Vera Jonah Regan Episode: "Poster Child"2015 Midsomer Murders Tom Asher S17E3: "The Ballad of Midsomer County" Banana Alan Episode #1.4 New Tricks Barry Warnock Episode: "The Russian Cousin"2016 Silent Witness Tony Hamilton Episode: "After the Fall" Jericho Jack Laggan Episode #1.1 Father Brown Michael Negal Episode: "The Star of Jacob" 2017 The Moorside PC Steve Kinchin 2 episodes 2018 Agatha and the Truth of Murder Wade Television film Delicious Steven Green TV series, episode: "The Heart"2019London Kills Jacob HoltTV series, Episode: “Stag Night” 2019–2024 Emmerdale Will Taylor Series regular2026Number One FanStewart JonesTV series
Awards and nominations Year Award Category Work Result 2011 TV Choice Awards Best Actor Marchlands 2019 Inside Soap Awards Best Bad Boy Emmerdale
References
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