This is where you recognise the cast of Four Lives from

BBC One’s horrifying new drama surrounding the “Grindr Killer” has made a lot of people feel a lot of emotions. From the murders themselves to the ingrained homophobia running rampant in the Met Police, Four Lives will no doubt be nominated for all the BAFTAs later on this year. 

The terrifying mini-series wouldn’t have been nearly as powerful as it was without the stunning cast. Stephen Merchant played serial killer Stephen Port in an understated, yet creepy way. Sheridan Smith smashed it out the park as usual with a majorly heart wrenching performance as grieving mum Sarah Sak.

The drama featured tons of recognisable faces, but I found it difficult to put my finger on exactly where I knew everyone from. If, like me, you caught yourself scrolling through Wikipedia for hours afterwards, here’s a complete rundown of every well-known actor in the Four Lives cast:

Stephen Merchant – Stephen Port 

Stephen Merchant is an absolute master of British – and American – comedy. He’s best known as part of a trio alongside Ricky Gervais and Karl Pilkington. If you love sitcoms, you’ll recognise his work in The Office (US and UK) as an actor, writer and executive producer. He’s also had roles in The Good Place, The Simpsons and Extras. 

He’s no stranger to big Hollywood blockbusters either, having starred in films like JoJo Rabbit, Logan and Netflix’s A Boy Called Christmas. Oh – and he *literally* created Lip Sync Battle. 

I thought it might be really hard to hate Stephen Merchant in absolutely anything, but the way he played Stephen Port – along with the robotic, emotionless voice and scary eyes had me properly unsettled. 

Sheridan Smith – Sarah Sak

Sheridan has been a mainstay in British TV for over 21 years. She made her first appearances in iconic comedies like The Royle Family and Two Pints Of Lager And A Packet Of Crisps. She also played Rudi/Smithy in Gavin and Stacey – and frankly deserves a bravery award for dating James Corden while playing his sister. 

She’s gone from strength to strength since then: starring as Cilla Black herself in ITV’s Cilla, Claire Webster in true crime drama The Widower, and performing at the West End as Fanny Brice in Funny Girl. 

Her role as Sarah Sak could be her toughest yet, as she struggles to comes to terms with suddenly losing her son – as well as the police incompetence which followed. 

Samuel Barnett – Ryan Edwards

I’m sure Samuel has a really recognisable face – and to be fair, he’s been in some major TV shows and films throughout his career. English literature A-Level enthusiasts may recognise him from the movie version of The History Boys. He played Posner, the only gay member of the group who had to deal with harassment from his teacher. 

His back catalogue of film roles also includes Jupiter Ascending and The Lady In The Van. Samuel plays a vital role in Four Lives as the neighbour of Stephen Port. His friendly face is a welcome break from the intensity of the serial killer’s presence. 

Robert Emms – Ricky

Ricky’s role in the Four Lives cast was quiet, sad and masterfully played. This isn’t surprising as Robert Emms has been in plenty of other terrifying true-life TV shows before. He had a starring role as Senior Reactor Engineer Leonid Toptunov in HBO’s Chernobyl.

The actor has also featured in plenty of other high-brow dramas such as His Dark Materials, War Horse and Atlantis. He recently had a role in Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. 

Michael Jibson – DC Slaymaker

We were desperate to see the back of DC Slaymaker throughout Four Lives. The character was deeply uncaring, homophobic and lazy – but that just goes to show the power of Michael Jibson’s acting. Every time he mispronounced “Anthony” a part of me died inside, and chances are Michael is one of the most well-known actors you’ve never heard of.

For starters, he had a part in Les Mis – all the way back in 2012. He ventured again into movie musicals when he played a tavern owner in Beauty and the Beast. Most recently, he had a role in the unsettling Last Night In Soho.

Rufus Jones – John Pape

Rufus’ role was particularly infuriating – in that he seriously needed someone to listen to him. The real John Pape has personally endorsed Four Lives, saying he hopes it’ll spread “wider awareness of a problem that we have with the Met Police”. Rufus and John got to know each other really well during the filming of the drama. 

Outside of the Four Lives cast, the actor is probably best known for his role in BBC mockumentary W1A, in which he plays the Commissioning Editor for “Primetime Factuality”.

Leanne Best – Kate

Leanne Best has been in all the latest BBC dramas – and even had a role in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. She’s starred in Black Mirror, Barbara Windsor biopic Babs and had a guest spot on Line Of Duty. 

She plays a supporting role in Four Lives as Kate, Sarah’s concerned sister and the aunt of first victim Anthony Walgate. 

Jaime Winstone – Donna Taylor

Jaime Winstone has been featuring regularly on our screens since 2006, and has starred in some pretty iconic TV shows and films. Anyone old enough to remember Kidulthood will know her as Becky, the girl who told everyone her mate was pregnant. She also starred in another BBC true crime mini-series, Five Daughters, which tells the story of five sex workers murdered by the “Suffolk Strangler” in 2007.

She played the late, great Barbara Windsor in Babs – and she even had a role in Love, Rosie. If you don’t recognise her from any of these, you’ll definitely know her famous dad, Ray.

Jaime starred in the Four Lives cast as Donna Taylor, the sister of murdered forklift driver Jack Taylor. According to The Mirror, she found herself forming a close friendship with the real-life version of Donna during filming.

Jason Done – Met Sergeant

Fans of Waterloo Road will likely know *exactly* who Jason Done is. The actor played teaching legend Tom Clarkson from series one, all the way through until the end of series eight. You might say he’s been typecast into another trustworthy, approachable role – but frankly it was good to see a friendly face after three episodes of police incompetence and homophobia.

As well as featuring in the Four Lives cast, he recently played a police officer in Netflix’s The Innocents. Jason’s other work includes a guest role in Casualty and narrating the UK version of Monsters Inside Me.

Four Lives is available to stream on BBC iPlayer now. 

Featured image via BBC.

Related stories recommended by this writer:

• Four Lives: The true story of the real ‘Grindr Killer’ and his victims
• Reactions to the BBC drama Four Lives proves people won’t stay silent on police failings
• These are all the real life filming locations from Stay Close on Netflix