Oludayo Koleosho (born 1984) is an English actor. After making appearances in the BBC medical series Holby City and Doctors, he embarked on a theatre career. Koleosho appeared in various theatre productions before returning to television, appearing in Strike and Casualty. Then in 2024, he was cast in the BBC soap opera EastEnders as Kojo Asare.
Early life Oludayo Koleosho was born in 1984 in Stoke Newington in the London Borough of Hackney. He is autistic. He attended Access All Areas, a theatre group in Hackney for adults with learning disabilities led by the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama.
Career Koleosho made his professional acting debut in a 2010 episode of the BBC medical drama series Holby City. A year later, he appeared in fellow BBC medical series Doctors. He appeared alongside Access All Areas classmate Yvonne Swift in a storyline that saw them portray a married couple. The pair had their first on-screen kiss with each other, to which Koleosho said: "I had to kiss Yvonne. At first I thought 'oh no', but you just have to get on with it". In 2014, he made his stage debut in Eye Queue Hear, which toured the UK.
In 2016, Koleosho appeared in an episode of the Channel 4 sitcom Damned. In 2018, he performed in Madness at the Lowry Theatre, as well as #crazyfuturelove at the Battersea Arts Centre a year later. In 2019 and again from 2021 to 2024, Koleosho toured the UK and Europe in productions of Faith, Hope and Charity. In 2022, he had a recurring role in the BBC drama series Strike, appearing in the BBC's medical drama Casualty the following year. In 2024, he was cast in the BBC soap opera EastEnders. Appearing in the regular role of Kojo Asare, he made his first appearance on 27 August 2024. He was introduced as the brother of established character George Knight (Colin Salmon).
Filmography Year Title Role Notes 2010 Holby City Billy Knight Episode: "Dandelions" 2011 Doctors Michael Dunham Episode: "Coming of Age" 2016 Damned Dave Guest role 2022 Strike Samhain Athorn Recurring role 2023 Casualty Jay Henderson Episode: "Tinderbox" 2024–present EastEnders Kojo Asare Regular role
Stage Year Title Venue 2014 Eye Queue Hear UK tour 2015 Behind Closed Drawers Black Cab Theatre 2015 Elexion Theatre503 2017 Masha and the Firebird Sleepless Theatre 2018 Madhouse Lowry Theatre 2019 #crazyfuturelove Battersea Arts Centre 2019, 2021–2024 Faith, Hope and Charity West End, European tour 2022–2022 UnReal City Brighton Dome 2021 Jitney Leeds Playhouse 2022 Jitney The Old Vic 2023 Imposter 22 Royal Court Theatre Sources:
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