James Cook (born 31 January 1983), better known as James Sutton, is an English actor. His television roles include John Paul McQueen in the Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks (2006–2008, 2012–2017, 2019–present) and Ryan Lamb in the ITV soap opera Emmerdale (2009–2011).
James Sutton | |
|---|---|
 Sutton in September 2007 | |
| Born | James Cook 31 January 1983 Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands, England |
| Alma mater | Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 2006–present |
| Spouse |
Rachael Collin (m. 2018) |
Early life
editSutton was born James Cook[1] on 31 January 1983 in Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham, the son of Jeanette and Donald Cook. It is from his hometown that he derived the stage name "Sutton".[1] He has a younger brother and two younger sisters.[2] He grew up in Haughton, Staffordshire, and attended King Edward VI School in Stafford. At the age of 14, he moved to Newport, Shropshire, where he attended the Burton Borough School.[1] He went on to study drama at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in Cardiff.[3]
Career
editPrior to Hollyoaks, Sutton had roles in the Dream Team spin-off Dream Team 80s, playing Terry Glover, and in Lynda La Plante's Trial and Retribution X, playing a character called Barry Milne.[4]
In September 2006 he joined the cast of Hollyoaks as John Paul McQueen. During this portrayal, his character came out as being gay and started having an affair with his best friend, Craig Dean. The storyline was nominated for, and won, many awards. He left the soap on-screen in September 2008. In Sutton's first post-Hollyoaks role, he guest starred as Eli Taylor who suffered from narcolepsy and cataplexy on the BBC series Casualty, in the episode titled 'Doing The Right Thing' which aired 13 December 2008.[5]
On 23 March 2009, it was announced that Sutton would join the cast of ITV1's Emmerdale. Sutton played the role of mechanic Ryan Daniel Lamb, son of newcomer Faye Lamb and already established character Mark Wylde. Ryan's first appearance was on 15 June 2009.[6]
On 8 February 2011, it was announced that Sutton would leave Emmerdale after approximately two years in the show. His last day on the show was 18 March 2011. His last episode was aired on Tuesday 26 April 2011.
In 2011 he took on the role of Orsino from Twelfth Night in the BBC Learning project "Off By Heart Shakespeare" and delivered the speech "If music be the food of love, play on".[7]
Sutton made a brief appearance in the second series of Bedlam on Sky Living together with Lacey Turner (EastEnders) in Spring 2012. His character was a paramedic called Andy.
Sutton made two guest appearances in episodes of the BBC1 series Doctors on Friday 9 March 2012 "Firestarter" and Monday 8 January 2019 “The Affair”. He also made a guest appearances in the second series of the hit ITV1 drama series Scott & Bailey which returned to the screens on Monday 12 March 2012 and Holby City on BBC1.
His return to Hollyoaks was announced on Digital Spy on 12 October 2012. He returned to the show on 18 December 2012.
In May 2012, he announced on Twitter that he had a new company, Broken Leg Workshops, which runs pop-up workshops for new actors offering help and advice of the kind he wished he had received when he first entered the business. The first workshop was held in Liverpool, followed by Manchester and Leeds.
Theatre
editSutton met playwright Ian Salmon through The Anfield Wrap and this led to Sutton appearing in Salmon's play Venus Rising at the Hope Street Theatre in Liverpool in 2018.[8]
Personal life
editSutton is a fan of Liverpool FC[9] and a regular contributor to The Anfield Wrap.[10]
Filmography
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Trial & Retribution | Barry Milne | Episode: "Sins of the Father" |
| 2006 | Dream Team 80s | Terry Glover | |
| 2006–2008, 2012–2017, 2019–present | Hollyoaks | John Paul McQueen | Regular role (474 episodes) |
| 2008 | Casualty | Eli Taylor | Episode: "Doing the Right Thing" |
| 2009–2011 | Emmerdale | Ryan Lamb | |
| 2012 | Scott & Bailey | Gavin Bishop | Series 2, Episode 6 |
| 2012 | Holby City | Floyd Shepherd | Episode: "A Woman's Work" |
| 2012 | Bedlam | Andy | Series 2 |
| 2020 | Hollyoaks Later | John Paul McQueen | 2020 special |
Awards and nominations
editHollyoaks was named Broadcast of the Year at the 2007 Stonewall Awards, held at London's Victoria and Albert Museum. The award was given for the portrayal of James Sutton's and Guy Burnet's gay affair storyline. Stonewall, an organisation that campaigns for LGBT equality, praised the show for its "sympathetic and convincing handling" of the "gritty and emotional" storyline.[11]
Sutton was nominated for 'Sexiest Male', 'Best Actor'[12] and 'Best Dramatic Performance'[12] for The British Soap Awards 2007. He had been short-listed along with Gerard McCarthy (Kris Fisher)[13] for 'Best Newcomer' for his role as John Paul McQueen, however McCarthy was chosen for the final nomination.
Sutton was nominated for 'Best Actor' and 'Sexiest Male' at the 2007 Inside Soap Awards, for 'Best Storyline' for "John Paul falls for Craig and comes out as gay", and, with Guy Burnet (Craig Dean) for 'Best Couple'.[14] He did not win in any of the categories. Sutton was shortlisted for 'Most Popular Actor' at the National Television Awards 2007, alongside Charlie Clements (EastEnders), David Tennant (Doctor Who) and Antony Cotton (Coronation Street). The awards were voted for by the public and the ceremony took place on 31 October 2007.[15][16] The award was won by David Tennant. Sutton was voted 'Most Popular Actor' and the John Paul/Craig storyline won 'Storyline of the Year'.[17] Sutton was again nominated for the award of Best Newcomer, losing to Coronation Street's Craig Gazey.
References
edit- ^ a b c Wilson, Jule (9 June 2006). "Sambrook man lands Hollyoaks role". Newport Advertiser. Shropshire Newspapers Ltd. Archived from the original on 23 May 2007. Retrieved 5 May 2012.
- ^ "Biography". www.jamessutton.org. Archived from the original on 31 August 2007.
- ^ "Actor James Sutton is a name to watch". Retrieved 16 June 2010.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Trial and Retribution: Trial & Retribution X: Sins Of The Father (1)". TV.com. Archived from the original on 19 January 2009. Retrieved 4 July 2009.
- ^ Kris Green (7 November 2008). "James Sutton to guest in 'Casualty'". Digital Spy. Retrieved 8 November 2008.
- ^ Kris Green (23 March 2009). "James Sutton joins 'Emmerdale'". Digital Spy. Retrieved 23 March 2009.
- ^ "Schools – Teachers – Off By Heart Shakespeare: Twelfth Night "If music be the food of love, play on"". BBC. 22 March 2011. Retrieved 8 July 2011.
- ^ "Hollyoaks star James Sutton on headlining in Liverpool's newest theatre". 4 June 2018.
- ^ "@thejamessutton" on Twitter
- ^ "James Sutton Archives". Anfield Wrap.
- ^ "'Hollyoaks' honoured at Stonewall Awards". Digital Spy. 3 November 2007. Retrieved 4 November 2007.
- ^ a b "British Soap Awards 2007: The Nomination Short-list". Digital Spy. 22 May 2007. Archived from the original on 13 September 2007. Retrieved 9 November 2007.
- ^ "Hollyoaks star Gerard's hoping to clean up with soap nomination". The Belfast Telegraph. Archived from the original on 7 June 2007. Retrieved 3 March 2007.
- ^ Kris Green. "Inside Soap Awards 2007: The Nominations". Digital Spy. 3 July 2007. Retrieved 3 October 2007.
- ^ "Doctor Who tops awards shortlist". BBC News. 15 October 2007. Retrieved 15 October 2007.
- ^ Beth Hilton. "'Doctor Who' leads TV Awards nominees". Digital Spy. 15 October 2007. Retrieved 15 October 2007.
- ^ "EastEnders wins Digital Spy prize". BBC News. 21 March 2008. Retrieved 4 April 2008.
External links
edit- James Sutton at IMDb