Robert Glenister

Robert Lewis Glenister (born 11 March 1960) is an English actor. He is best known for his television roles as Ash "Three Socks" Morgan in the crime drama series Hustle (2004–2012) and Nicholas Blake in the spy drama series Spooks (2006–2010).

Early life
Glenister was born in Watford on 11 March 1960. He is the son of Joan Fry Lewis and television director John Glenister, and the older brother of actor Philip Glenister. Until the age of eight he had a slight speech impediment. After starting school, he began to show a talent for acting. He decided to pursue a professional acting career after being encouraged by his father and leaving Harrow Weald Grammar School. He started his career by taking several theatre roles.

Career
Glenister made his television debut in the BBC sitcom Sink or Swim, which ran from 1980 until 1982. He has also appeared in shows such as Soldier Soldier, Only Fools and Horses (as Myles the millionaire garden centre owner and chairman of the SWANS committee), A Touch of Frost and Inspector George Gently as well as several films.

He had a starring role in the BBC drama Hustle as Ash Morgan, a high-level con-man who has to convincingly play various roles or characters to pull off a con and lure a 'mark'. He is the only actor who has appeared in every episode of the series. He has also had regular starring roles in the BBC drama Spooks and appeared in Spartacus. He appeared as an Irish-American mob boss in Ben Affleck's crime drama Live by Night, which was released in December 2016. He has been cast twice in Doctor Who, playing Salateen in The Caves of Androzani (1984) (opposite his Sink or Swim co-star Peter Davison) and Thomas Edison in "Nikola Tesla's Night of Terror" (2020).

In June 2022 he appeared as Detective Inspector Salisbury in Sherwood, a BBC serial written by James Graham. In 2024, he plays Tony, a cab driver in the Channel 5 thriller series The Night Caller.

Personal life
Glenister married actor Amanda Redman in 1984; the couple had a daughter before they divorced in 1992. He later married BBC Radio producer and director Celia de Wolff, with whom he has a son.

In April 2019, it was reported that lawyers acting for a company owned by Glenister – Big Bad Wolff – had lost an appeal in a long-running battle with HM Revenue and Customs regarding liability for National Insurance contributions. Glenister subsequently said that he would have to sell or remortgage his house as a result of the ruling, since he now faced a bill of £147,000 plus interest.

Selected theatre

 * Edward Voysey in The Voysey Inheritance by Harley Granville Barker. Directed by Greg Hersov at the Royal Exchange, Manchester. (1989)
 * Prince Muishkin in The Idiot by Gerard McLarnon. World premiere directed by Greg Hersov at the Royal Exchange, Manchester. (1991)
 * Lord Gorin in An Ideal Husband by Oscar Wilde. Directed by James Maxwell at the Royal Exchange, Manchester. (1992)
 * Astrov in Uncle Vanya by Anton Chekhov. Directed by Greg Hersov at the Royal Exchange, Manchester. (2001)
 * Wilson Tikkel in Great Britain by Richard Bean at the National Theatre/Theatre Royal Haymarket, 2014–15.
 * Dave Moss in Glengarry Glen Ross by David Mamet at The Playhouse Theatre 2017–2018
 * Sorin in The Seagull by Anton Chekhov at the Harold Pinter Theatre, London (2022)

Radio
Alexandre Dumas."The Three Musketeers" [Athos] 1994 6 episodes Radio Play. BBC Radio 4
 * The Party Party 1987
 * Paradise Lost – Christ (1992, 41 episodes, BBC Radio 4)
 * Paradise Regained – Christ (1992, 9 episodes, BBC Radio 4)
 * The Wench is Dead – Sgt. Lewis (1992, BBC Radio 4) opposite John Shrapnel as Inspector Morse
 * Last Seen Wearing – Sgt. Lewis (1994, BBC Radio 4) opposite John Shrapnel as Inspector Morse
 * The Sound of Fury (Mike Warner) – Stuart Colman (1994, BBC Radio 4) opposite Anton Lesser as Billy Fury
 * The Silent World of Nicholas Quinn – Sgt. Lewis (1996, BBC Radio 4) opposite John Shrapnel as Inspector Morse
 * Barrymore Plus Four (1995)
 * Mansfield Park – Edmund Bertram (1997, Classic Serial, BBC Radio 4)
 * Ghost on the Moor – Graham (2001, Afternoon Play, BBC Radio 4)
 * A Game of Marbles – Lord Elgin (2004, Afternoon Play, BBC Radio 4) opposite Paul Scofield
 * The Woman in Black – Arthur Kipps (2004, 4 episodes, BBC Radio 5)
 * Henry's Girls – Henry Purcell (2007, Afternoon Play, BBC Radio 4)
 * The Fiery World – William Blake (2007, Drama on 3, BBC Radio 3)
 * The Gibson – Saul Judd (2008, 6-part Drama, BBC Radio 4)
 * The Time Machine – Time traveller (2009, Drama on 3, BBC Radio 3)
 * The Journey – Stephen (2010, Afternoon Play, BBC Radio 4)
 * The Exorcist – Father Damien Karras (2014, 2 episodes, BBC Radio 4) opposite Ian McDiarmid as Father Merrin

Audio drama

 * Doctor Who: Absolution (2007) – Aboresh

Audiobook

 * The Death of Kings (2008)
 * The Gates of Rome (2010)
 * The Cuckoo's Calling (2013)
 * The Silkworm (2014)
 * Career of Evil (2015)
 * Lethal White (2018)
 * Troubled Blood (2020)
 * The Ink Black Heart (2022)
 * The Running Grave (2023)