Davood Ghadami (; born 13 June 1982) is a British actor. Following his appearances in Taggart in 2010, he appeared in the BBC medical programmes Doctors and Casualty in recurring roles. In 2014, he began playing Kush Kazemi in the BBC soap opera EastEnders, a role he stayed in until 2021 when the character was killed off. Following Ghadami's departure from EastEnders, it was announced that he had joined the cast of the BBC medical drama Holby City as Eli Ebrahimi.
Early and personal life Ghadami was born on 7 August 1982 in Harlow, Essex. He is of Iranian descent. He found it difficult at school, since being mixed race led to verbal bullying. He subsequently moved to Saint Nicholas School in Old Harlow. From 2010 to 2023, he was married to Isobel, they have two daughters.
Career In 2010, Ghadami played Duncan Clark in the final series of the ITV detective drama Taggart. He found the role challenging, since it involved looking at photos of genuine crime scenes. Following this, he appeared in the BBC soap opera Doctors in the recurring role of Aran Chandar from 2012 to 2013.
From 2013 to 2014, he appeared in the BBC medical drama Casualty as Ramin Tehrani. Other television credits include Life's Too Short, Law & Order, Skins Redux, Doctor Who, Top Boy, Fast Freddie, Silent Witness, Criminal Justice and Spooks.
On stage, he has played Amir in 13 at The National, as well as working for York Theatre Royal and Pilot Theatre.
In 2014, Ghadami joined the cast of EastEnders as series regular Kush Kazemi, for which he won the award for Best Newcomer at the TV Choice Awards. He was also nominated for Best Newcomer and Best Actor at The British Soap Awards.
In August 2017, Ghadami was announced as a contestant for the fifteenth series of Strictly Come Dancing. He was partnered with professional dancer Nadiya Bychkova. They were eliminated in week 11 of the competition, in the quarter-finals.
In April 2021, it was announced that Ghadami had joined the cast of the BBC medical drama Holby City as Eli Ebrahimi.
Filmography Year Title Role Notes 2005 Casualty Mero Hashid 2 episodes 2005 The Bill Faz Episodes: "Confessions of a Killer" and "Inferno" 2006 Spooks Prince Wissam Episodes: "Hostage Takers: Parts 1 & 2" 2006 Dream Team Izmet Episode: "Trust" 2007 The Omid Djalili Show Mafia Guy 4 episodes 2009 Doctors Tariq Kalbasi 2 episodes 2009 Criminal Justice Josh Hughes 2 episodes 2010 Bloody Foreigners Plautinianus Episode: "The Untold Invasion of Britain" 2010 Taggart Duncan Clark Series 27; 6 episodes 2011 Doctor Who Jim Episode: "Let's Kill Hitler" 2011 Top Boy Teacher 1 episode 2012–2013 Doctors Aran Chandar Recurring role 2013 Silent Witness Ali Kolathi Episodes: "Trust: Parts 1 and 2" 2013 Life's Too Short Waiter Episode: "Easter Special" 2013 Skins Raj Episodes: "Fire: Parts 1 & 2" 2013 Law & Order: UK Russell Episode: "Paternal" 2013–2014 Casualty Ramin Tehrani Recurring role 2014–2021 EastEnders Kush Kazemi Regular role; 641 episodes 2015 Valentine's Kiss Greg Miniseries; 1 episode 2017 Strictly Come Dancing Himself Contestant (series 15) 2020 EastEnders: Secrets from the Square Episode: "Martin and Kush" 2021–2022 Holby City Eli Ebrahimi Regular role 2022 The Chelsea Detective Nitin Shamsie Series 1 2023 Beyond Paradise Ben Tyler 1 episode 2023 Casualty Eli Ebrahimi Episode: "How to Save a Life" 2025 House of David Eliab Main cast 2026 Father Brown Howie Brooks Episode: "The Hole in My Heart"
Awards and nominations Year Award Category Work Result 2015 2015 British Soap Awards Best Newcomer EastEnders 2015 Inside Soap Awards Sexiest Male EastEnders 2015 Inside Soap Awards Best Affair (with Lacey Turner) EastEnders 2015 TV Choice Awards Best Soap Newcomer EastEnders 2016 21st National Television Awards Serial Drama Performance EastEnders 2016 2016 British Soap Awards Best Actor EastEnders 2016 Inside Soap Awards Sexiest Male EastEnders 2017 2017 British Soap Awards Best Actor EastEnders 2017 Inside Soap Awards Sexiest Male EastEnders 2018 TV Choice Awards Best Soap Actor EastEnders 2019 24th National Television Awards Serial Drama Performance EastEnders
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