Cal MacAninch (born 24 November 1963) is a Scottish actor, who is known for portraying the character of DI John Keenan in police drama HolbyBlue on BBC One from 2007 to 2008. Other notable appearances include his roles as Mr Thackeray in the ITV period drama Mr Selfridge, and Henry Lang in Downton Abbey, but he has played many leading roles in British television and film over the past thirty years.
Biography MacAninch played Rowan Collins in Series 4 of the ITV drama series Wild at Heart. He returned to the show for its fifth series as a main cast member. He also played Tauren, a sorcerer, in the BBC television series Merlin in the episode "To Kill the King". He starred in the 2001 BBC miniseries The Best of Both Worlds with Alice Evans. He appeared as Henry Lang, a valet, in the second series of Downton Abbey.Downton Abbey webpage , ITV.com, July 2011; retrieved 12 August 2014.
Personal life MacAninch and his wife, actress Shauna Macdonald, have three daughters and live in the Portobello district of Edinburgh.Portobello residents rally in bid to buy Bellfield church – Edinburgh Evening News, 1 July 2016 MacAninch is a keen marathon runner.
Radio Date Title Role Director Station Liam BBC Radio 4 Friday Play Soft Fall the Sounds of Eden Andy BBC Radio 4 Friday Play How Many Miles to Basra? BBC – Drama on 3 – How Many Miles to Basra? BBC Radio 3 Drama on 3 King James I BBC Radio 3 Drama on 3 – (series 4) BBC – Woman's Hour Drama – The Pillow Book (series 4) Yukinari BBC Radio 4 Woman's Hour Drama – DI Fin Macleod BBC Radio Scotland BBC – The Poet and the Echo – Grey Evening Reader BBC Radio 4 – Silence BBC – Book of the Week – Silence Erling Kagge BBC Radio 4 Book of the Week
Television + Television Year Title Role Notes Taggart Heckler Episode: "Hostile Witness" Angel Eyes Episode: "Chinese Whispers" Milligan 3 episodes Screen One Axle Episode: "Alive and Kicking" Evan Llyr TV miniseries 1994 Declan TV series: main cast Philip Tippett TV film The Big One Jeff TV film Dangerous Lady Geoff Ryan TV miniseries Screen Two Tom Kelso Episode: "Nervous Energy" Taggart Dr David Argylle Episode: "Devil's Advocate" Cooking Pigeons TV film Finn Episode: "The Lake of Darkness" Warriors Sgt Andre Sochanik TV serial Little Bird Tony O'Neill TV film Best of Both Worlds Mark Landucci 3 episodes Waking the Dead Alex Bryson/Sam Keel Episode: "A Simple Sacrifice" 2003 Rockface Ben Craig TV series: main cast Silent Witness Michael Patterson Episode: "Fatal Error" Murphy's Law DS Nic Winters Episode: "Bent Moon on the Rise" Mike Episode: "Hardcore" Sorted Radge TV series: main cast 2008 HolbyBlue DI John Keenan TV series: main cast Merlin Tauren Episode: "To Kill the King" 2010 Wild at Heart Rowan Collins Strike Back Major Chris Pemberton Episode: "Iraq: Part One" Downton Abbey Henry Lang Episodes: "Matthew's Return" and "General Sir Herbert Strutt" Garrow's Law Richard Lucas 1 episode Midsomer Murders Alan Robson Episode: "The Sicilian Defence" Silent Witness David Loader Episode: "Legacy" 2015 Mr Selfridge Mr Thackeray 11 episodes Banished Sergeant Timmins TV serial DCI Banks Detective Sergeant Martin Heston Episode: "Ghosts" Katie Morag Mr Cavendish Episode: "Katie Morag and the Worst Day Ever" Scott & Bailey Craig Widnes Episodes: "Nobody's Fool" and "Change" Frontier Angus Season 3 Christian Graham TV miniseries Hugo Snow TV film Father Brown George Oakley Episode: "The Tower of Lost Souls" Vera Thomas Walden Episode: "Parent Not Expected" Des Neil Sinclair TV Mini-Series: 2 episodes Time PO Galbraith 3 episodes Vigil Ben Oakley TV serial Trigger Point Inspector Lee Robins 6 episodes Michael Seaborne Episode: "The Blackwater" Mayflies Tibbs
Film + Film Year Title Role Notes 1993 Splitting Heirs CID Officer Dr. Fitzpiersfilm round-up – The Independent, 6 February 1998 1998 Speak Like a Child Billy, Age 30 1998 Sentimental Education August 1999 Martin 2000 Best Paddy 2000 Breathtaking Mick Wilmott 2001 Horst 2004 Dear Frankie Davey 2005 Rag Tale Paul (Mac) MacAvoy, Sports Editor 2007 Jetsam Jack 2011 Screwed Eddie 2018 Calibre Al McClay 2019 Intrigo: Dear Agnes Erich Neumann-Hansen 2019 Intrigo: Samaria Erich Neumann-Hansen 2020 Ben Tuttle 2021 Nobody Has to Know Peter
Theatre
Date Title Role Director Company / Theatre – Macbeth Cal MacAninch CV – Curtis Brown Macbeth Unnatural Acts Theatre – How Like An Angel Peter Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh – Tis Pity She's A Whore Grimaldi Citizens Theatre, Glasgow – Frankenstein Walton/Clerval Citizens Theatre, Glasgow – Not About Heroes Wilfred Owen Heroes Theatre Company – The Passer By Dundee Repertory Theatre – John Dundee Repertory Theatre – Defence Citizens Theatre, Glasgow – Enrico Four Arialdo Citizens Theatre, Glasgow – Oedipus Rex THEATRE: Thebes of the North: Richard Loup-Nolan compares versions of the Oedipus myth in Edinburgh and Glasgow – Richard Loup-Nolan, The Independent, 16 March 1994 Oedipus Citizens Theatre, Glasgow – Hamlet Good my lord, as Hamlet thinks afresh – Mark Fisher, The Herald, 17 September 1996 Hamlet Citizens Theatre, Glasgow – Review: THEATRE: The Wood Demon Playhouse, London – Paul Taylor, The Independent, 19 June 1997 Wood Demon Playhouse Theatre, London – Harry Carney Citizens Theatre, Glasgow – Under the Black Flag Review: Under the Black Flag – Michael Billington, The Guardian, 20 July 2006 John Silver Shakespeare's Globe – Pentheus National Theatre of Scotland Lincoln Center, New York – Peter Pan Captain Hook National Theatre of Scotland – Wee Andy The Surgeon Òran Mór, Glasgow – Anna Karenina Vronsky Shared Experience – King Lear Duke of Cornwall Citizens Theatre, Glasgow – Betrayal Stepping back in time – The Herald, 21 February 2012Betrayal – review, Four stars, Citizens, Glasgow – Mark Fisher, The Guardian, 12 Mar 2012 Robert Citizens Theatre, Glasgow – Robbie Ross Hampstead Theatre – Gaiety Theatre, Dublin – Theatre Royal Bath – Richmond Theatre – Theatre Royal, Brighton – Cambridge Arts Theatre – Duke of York's Theatre, London – Ed Mirvish Theatre, TorontoThe Judas Kiss in Toronto. Toronto.Eventful.com. March 22, 2016 – May 1, 2016. – Brooklyn Academy of Music, New YorkThe Judas Kiss (theatre program). Brooklyn Academy of Music. 11 May – 12 June 2016. My Eyes Went Dark My Eyes Went Dark – Daisy Bowie-Sell, Timeout, 28 August 2015My Eyes Went Dark, theatre review: High-octane acting transcends its stage – Fiona Mountford, London Evening Standard, 10 September 2015 Nikolai Koslov Finborough Theatre, London Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh 59E59 Theaters, New York – Review: The Mistress Contract, Tron, Glasgow, Four Stars – Neil Cooper, The Herald, 3 May 2019 Tron Theatre, Glasgow
References
External links
Works of Robert Burns, as read by MacAninch