Dean Andrews

Acting

Dean Andrews

Born 1963-08-06 · Rotherham, Yorkshire, UK

Dean Andrews is an English actor. He is known for his role as DS Ray Carling in the BBC drama series Life on Mars. He continued the role in the sequel series, Ashes to Ashes, until 2010. As of April 2019, he appeared as Will Taylor on ITV soap opera Emmerdale. Andrews left the show on 26 December 2024 when his character Will died of a heart attack. Born in 1963 in Rotherham, Andrews went to Sitwell Junior School on Grange Road and Oakwood Comprehensive School on Moorgate Road. He went to school with Top Gear presenter James May. Dean Andrews started off as a mainstay of cruise ships as a talented entertainer and singer. He was discovered by film director Ken Loach, who was looking for people from Yorkshire to appear in the 2001 film, The Navigators. He then went on to play Barry Shiel in the Channel 4 drama Buried, which won the BAFTA Award for Best Drama Series in 2004. That year, he also had a small role, as Neil, in the Channel 4 series No Angels. In 2005, Andrews appeared in one episode of the ITV drama Wire in the Blood. The following year, he appeared in another BBC drama, Life On Mars, as DS Ray Carling. He then had roles in two BBC dramas, True Dare Kiss and The Street, in 2007. Andrews again played DC Carling in Ashes to Ashes, a 2008 spin-off series of Life on Mars. During the same year, he recorded voiceovers for Currys television advertisements. He had a guest role in 2010 on the BBC One series Waterloo Road. In 2011, Andrews appeared in: the BBC drama The Body Farm as Peter Collins; the BBC Two television film United, about the Manchester United "Busby Babes" team and the 1958 Munich air disaster; ITV's supernatural drama series Marchlands, playing one of the lead roles; and the five-part BBC One series The Case, in which he played the lead role as a man accused of murdering his terminally ill girlfriend. In November 2012, Andrews appeared in all four series of the BBC drama Last Tango in Halifax as Robert "Robbie" Greenwood. The following year, he portrayed Pete Lewis in the BBC show Being Eileen. Andrews played local hotel and barman Tom Asher in a 2015 episode of the popular series Midsomer Murders on ITV. In 2019, the actor joined the cast of ITV soap opera Emmerdale. He left the soap on 26 December 2024 when his character Will died of a heart attack. He has stated that he was not told about the character's demise. He narrated the Channel 5 documentary series, Our Great Yorkshire Life, in 2022. He also narrates the UK TV show Casualty 24/7 which centres on Barnsley Hospital.

Acting credits

Agatha and the Truth of Murder poster
6.4

England, December 1926. Although her personal life is in tatters, the famous writer Agatha Christie decides to leave everything behind to help unravel an unsolved murder committed on a train six years ago, unable to imagine the disproportionate consequences that such a selfless act will cause.

Agatha and the Truth of Murder

2018

My Summer of Love poster
6.2

In the Yorkshire countryside, working-class tomboy Mona meets the exotic, pampered Tamsin. To seal their friendship, Mona introduces Tamsin to her born-again Christian brother and helps her spy on her adulterous father. Bound together by their secrets, the two girls see their friendship deepen and enter into dangerous waters.

My Summer of Love

2005

Just Henry poster
6.6

Prompted by horrific nightmares, Henry delves into the mystery of his past and begins to uncover the truth about his father's death, triggering a series of revelations that will change his family forever.

Just Henry

2011

Missing poster
6.0

Sybil Foster escapes from a psychiatric hospital, only to find herself the prime suspect in a series of murders. The police investigation, led by DS Doug Duvall unearths skeletons from her past, and a link to a prominent political figure who may hold the key to unlock the secrets of the past - and open the door to solving the mysteries of the present.

Missing

2006

United poster
6.9

United is based on the true story of Manchester United's legendary "Busby Babes", the youngest side ever to win the Football League and the 1958 Munich Air Crash that claimed eight of the their number. The film draws on first-hand interviews with the survivors and their families to tell the inspirational story of a team and community overcoming terrible tragedy.

United

2011

Wish 143 poster
6.4

A fifteen-year-old boy with only months to live is granted one wish from the Dreamscape Charity. But David doesn't want to go to Disneyland or meet Gary Neville, what he really wants is an hour alone with a naked woman.

Wish 143

2009

Faith poster
9.0

A gripping story of love, deceit, betrayal and survival set against the backdrop of the Miners' Strike of 1984-85. Michelle is married to Gary, a young miner who goes on strike as soon as the dispute between the Thatcher government and the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) begins. Meanwhile, her sister Linda's husband Paul is a local policeman. Paul becomes more and more voluble in his opposition to the strike, while Linda looks around her and witnesses the women of her community suddenly find a voice and independence. The scene is set for political and personal conflicts which would change their lives forever.

Faith

2005

The Navigators poster
6.9

In South Yorkshire, a small group of railway maintenance men discover that due to privatisation, their lives will never be the same. When the trusty British Rail sign is replaced by one reading East Midland Infrastructure, it becomes clear that there will be the inevitable winners and losers as downsizing and efficiency become the new buzzwords.

The Navigators

2001

Dark River poster
5.6

After her father dies, a young woman returns to her Yorkshire village for the first time in 15 years to claim the family farm she believes is hers.

Dark River

2017

Torvill & Dean poster
6.7

Biopic of the British ice dancers and British, European, Olympic and World champions, Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean.

Torvill & Dean

2018

The Security Men poster
NR

A group of night security guards working at the fictional Whittington shopping centre in Greater Manchester must create an elaborate scheme to hide a robbery that has taken place on their watch.

The Security Men

2013

Weekender poster
5.4

The exploits of two friends who make the move from partying at illegal warehouse raves to becoming successful promoters at the peak of the Manchester, Amsterdam, and Ibiza rave scene in the early 90s.

Weekender

2011

Salvage poster
4.9

When a container washes ashore the residents of a sleepy cul-de-sac are plunged into violence, terror and paranoia. Ring fenced by the military a single mother must overcome all the odds to save her daughter.

Salvage

2009

Elfie Hopkins: Cannibal Hunter poster
4.9

An aspiring teen detective stumbles into her first real case, when investigating the mysterious new family in her neighborhood.

Elfie Hopkins: Cannibal Hunter

2012

Kandahar Break poster
6.4

In 1999, a British mine clearance engineer working for the Taliban government in Afghanistan must flee the country when he becomes embroiled in a deadly game of intrigue and betrayal.

Kandahar Break

2009

Love + Hate poster
5.9

This movie is a contemporary UK vision of an age old story as epitomised by Shakespeare, but with two at odds relationships adding a layer of complication. The situation, a volatile northern English town, typically Bradford, and characters, one Islamic Pakistani family and two prejudiced English families loosely representing the Capulets and the Montagues.

Love + Hate

2005

No artwork available
NR

A modern day love story, set in Manchester, about how coincidences bring two strangers together and take them on an eventful and beautiful life changing adventure, in just one day.

Girl Shaped Love Drug

2012

The Making of... Ashes to Ashes poster
NR

The documentary about the making of the critically acclaimed British TV sequel series to the show Life on Mars, featuring behind the scenes interviews with the cast and crew, ahead of the final season.

The Making of... Ashes to Ashes

2009

No artwork available
7.0

A documentary about the conclusion of Life on Mars

The End of 'Life on Mars'

2007