Phil Davis

Born: July 30 1953
Where: Grays, Essex, UK

The actor has appeared on the big screen in roles ranging from Mike Leigh's acclaimed Vera Drake to a villain in Alien3.

He made his big screen debut in 1975 in the musical version of The Old Curiosity Shop alongside Anthony Newley.

He went on to make his first film with director Leigh with the TV movie Who's Who in 1979.

Dividing his time between TV and feature work, he went on to enjoy supporting roles in The Who's Quadrophenia and Pink Floyd's The Wall as a roadie.

In 1984, he starred in The Bounty and went on to play Lazarus in Underworld and Finn in the drama Dead Lucky.

He is probably best known to British audiences as Cyril, the motorcycle courier, in Leigh's High Hopes in 1989.

The same year he also starred in Alan Clark's soccer violence drama The Firm alongside Gary Oldman.

Davis made his directorial debut with the TV film Skulduggery (he went on to helm Prime Suspect 5 and Real Women).

In 1992, he starred in David Fincher's Alien3 with Sigourney Weaver and also appeared as a detective in the courtroom drama In The Name of the Father.

He reunited with Leigh for Secrets & Lies in 1996 and the following year appeared in the British gangster thriller Face with Blur's David Albarn.

Roles followed in Photographing Fairies and the rock music comedy Still Crazy.

Davis concentrated on TV work, including North Square and Zadie Smith's White Teeth before returning to the big screen with Nicholas Nickleby.

Recent work includes Leigh's critically acclaimed Vera Drake as the husband of Imelda Staunton's backstreet abortionist.