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Richard Dalton

Sir Richard John Dalton KCMG is a former senior member of the British Diplomatic Service. His assignments included British Ambassador to Libya and Iran. He retired from the Diplomatic Service in 2006. He is currently an Associate Fellow at Chatham House's Middle East and North Africa Programme. He was knighted KCMG in the 2005 Queen's Birthday Honours. This article uses material from the Wikipedia article Richard_Dalton_(diplomat), which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License

John MacNeill

John Macneill trained at the (Royal) Central School of Speech & Drama on the three-year acting course. Upon graduation, and after an appearance at the Edinburgh Fringe, he joined Bedside Manners to play Bob Cratchet in A Christmas Carol, a small-scale musical tour of community venues in London. As an associate director of the company, John acted in, wrote and/or directed a further ten productions with the company, which ultimately toured to venues nationwide, including The West Yorkshire Playhouse, The Barbican Centre, and The Lyric Hammersmith. He appeared in Buddy and She Loves Me in the West End, as Tony in West Side Story at the National Theatre of Kenya, and has worked in various scales of theatre all over the UK. In 2002 he became Kneehigh's admin and marketing co-ordinator, then as co-director of Mundic Nation, he played Jack in Hell Fire Corner co-produced with Hall for Cornwall. John also played Pilia Borza in Barabas (Marlowe's Jew of Malta) and Helyar Jan in Never Say Rabbit in a Boat by Nick Darke at HfC. He played Rooster in Jerusalem touring outdoors for Common Players with Exeter Northcott. He played two shows back-to-back at the 2023 Edinburgh Fringe: Polko, and award-winning The Interrogation. A South West tour of one-man play The Coastguard in which he played Peter, received a five-star review. Television work includes Black Books, The Bill, Doc Martin, His Dark Materials, Beyond Paradise, and The Diplomat, as well as numerous commercials, while John is probably best known as Jacka Hoblyn in Poldark Series 2, 4 and 5. At AMATA John has worked closely with 2nd and 3rd Year students on performance, and acting for camera since 2015. His final productions The House of Bernarda Alba (2016) and The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui (2017) won Best Actor/Actress awards, with the cast of Ui also winning Best Ensemble Company at the AMATA festival.

Stacey Norris

Stacey Norris is known for Chantelle: Psychic P.D - Night Division (2018), The Diplomat (2023) and EastEnders (1985)

Penny Downie

Cast · Known for The Diplomat

Penny Downie is an Australian actress known for her stage and television appearances in the United Kingdom. From 2017 until 2021 she played Ellen in the British TV sitcom Back. She plays the US ambassador’s house manager Frances Munning in the 2023 Netflix political thriller series The Diplomat.

Gianna Kiehl

Gianna Kiehl is an Actress and Producer known for Silent Hill 2 (2024), Hanna (2019) and The Diplomat (2023). She received her BA from LAMDA in 2018

Sophia Carr-Gomm

Sophia Carr-Gomm has a diverse background in the film and TV industry, working as a director, writer, producer, and casting director. Initially trained as an actor at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, she appeared in TV series such as Shetland (BBC), Mr. Selfridge (ITV), and World’s End (BBC), as well as in theatre productions like The Cardinal at Southwark Playhouse and King Lear at The Citizens Theatre in Glasgow. In 2018, Sophia transitioned into directing, while also working in feature film script development, reading, and pre-production with Midsummer Films. Her debut short, The Wider Sun, premiered at BFI Southbank and won Best Director at the Oslo Film Festival. Notable follow-up films include Nobody’s Darling and Mine, which screened at BAFTA-qualifying festivals such as the London Short Film Festival, Cambridge Film Festival, and Raindance. In 2021, she was invited to judge at London Film Week, and that same year, she was featured in Pitch Fanzine’s “New Talent to Watch,” with Mine earning a Shiny Award. From 2022 to 2024, Sophia worked as sole casting assistant on TV projects The Diplomat (Alibi), Six Four (ITV), Payback (ITV), Molly & Mack (CBBC), and Shetland (BBC). She served as casting director for the short films Sleep Hunger (Stormjar) and We Have Till Dawn (NFTS Grad film), and in 2024, she was the local casting director for the feature film I Swear, directed by Kirk Jones and produced by Tempo Productions. She also cast the Short Circuit-funded (BFI & Screen Scotland) film This Desert Will Rust Your Bones. She regularly collaborates with MTP and cast coordinates and street casts for commercials. Sophia’s writing includes the libretto for Ben Rowarth’s music piece The Fall, set to premiere in 2025. She produced the documentary The Sound of the Wind for the Scottish Documentary Institute, which premiered at the Edinburgh International Film Festival in 2023. Additionally, her viral campaign for the charity Pregnant Then Screwed gained significant attention on Instagram. Currently, Sophia continues to work across multiple roles in the industry, including directing, writing and casting. She lectures in Acting for Camera and Casting at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and teaches Directing Narrative Filmmaking on the Film & Television course at Edinburgh University. She regularly participates in Q&As and hosts workshops on filmmaking, casting and acting for students. Her latest project, Return, funded by the Genesis Foundation, is being submitted to film festivals.

Ali Ahn

Cast · Known for The Diplomat

Ali Ahn (born 1980 or 1981) is an American actress. She has appeared in TV series such as Billions, Orange Is the New Black, Raising Dion, The Diplomat, and Agatha All Along. Description above from the Wikipedia article Ali Ahn, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

David Gyasi

Cast · Known for The Diplomat, Interstellar

David Kwaku Asamoah Gyasi (born January 2, 1980) is a British actor. He is best known for his roles in Cloud Atlas (2012) and Interstellar (2014). On television, he played the lead role of Lex Carnahan in The CW miniseries Containment (2016), Argeus in Carnival Row (2019 - 2023), and Foreign Secretary Austin Dennison in The Diplomat (2023 - present).

Sharif Dorani

Sharif was born in Kabul, Afghanistan, at the time of the Soviet Union's occupation of the country. The Soviet occupation, the Mujahideen Civil War and the Taliban's initial takeover of Kabul in 1996 forced Sharif (with his parents and siblings) to flee to many countries, including Pakistan, Iran and the Central Asian States. While the numerous journeys weren't easy, they had their advantage: the exposure enabled Sharif to learn about different cultures and speak numerous languages, including Pashto, Dari, Farsi, Urdu, Hindi, Russian, and some Arabic. After a long and dangerous voyage in late 1999, Sharif, along with his parents, claimed asylum in the UK. Although he'd come far away from the danger of the brutal wars, a new set of challenges presented themselves; chief among them was the language. But Sharif knew he had to learn English and catch up on his education. He committed to studying during the day and worked at night (in factories or as a pizza delivery driver). The hard work paid off: he gained undergraduate and master's degrees in Law from The University of Northampton and UCL, respectively, and a PhD in the United States' Middle Eastern Policy from Durham University. While he learned to love the UK and adopted it as a second home, his love for his native country has never diminished. He has authored several articles and two acclaimed books on Afghanistan: "The Lone Leopard", a novel set in Afghanistan, and "America in Afghanistan", published by Bloomsbury Publishing House. His passion, linguistic skills and in-depth knowledge of the Middle East and South Asia, as well as his postgraduate training from one of the most prestigious schools in London, have enabled Sharif to be part of some major projects by established production houses, including The Millennium Media' war movie and Critic Choice award nominee The Outpost, CBC Films/Lionsgate's action thriller film American Assassin, Channel 5's television movie Agatha and The Curse of Ishtar, Netflix's political thriller series The Diplomat, BBC's BAFTA Awards winner detective drama series Shetland, the Emmy Award-winning series Homeland, Fox's Drama series Deep State, Apple's thriller Disclaimer, Canal+'s French multi-awards winner series The Bureau, Channel 4's the Royal Television Society-UK winner series No Offence, ITV's longest-running police series The Bill and SKY's series Strike Back.

Tim Marshall

Timothy John Marshall is a British journalist, author, and broadcaster, specialising in foreign affairs and international diplomacy. Marshall is a guest commentator on world events for the BBC, Sky News and a guest presenter on LBC, and was formerly the diplomatic and also foreign affairs editor for Sky News. He has written seven books including Prisoners of Geography – a New York Times Best Seller[3] and #1 Sunday Times bestseller. He also released a children's illustrated version of this book in 2019, Prisoners of Geography: Our World Explained in 12 Simple Maps, nominated for Waterstones Book of the Year. This article uses material from the Wikipedia article Tim_Marshall_(journalist), which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License

Sope Aluko

Cast · Known for Venom, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

Sope Aluko ("Shaw-peh Ah-loo-koh") was born in Nigeria (West Africa). Sope is a multilingual, dual citizen of both the US and the UK. She speaks five languages, including her native language, Yoruba/Nigerian, French, and Bahasa/Indonesian. Sope's early years were spent living in some of the most beautiful countries in the world, including France, Switzerland, Tanzania, Trinidad & Tobago, and Indonesia. Her father being in the diplomatic service, exposed Sope and her sisters to appreciate the beauty of these countries, as well as the people, their languages, struggles and politics. Sope reflects that she and her sisters grew up feeling like "gypsy children" in the best possible way. All the world was a classroom and the people were their teachers. As early as she could talk, Sope loved to perform. She decided as a very young girl that she would be an actor. Sope cultivated her acting chops in the UK, primarily Shakespearean stage plays, certified by the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts (LAMDA) and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts (RADA). As an extended artistic expression to her acting, Sope studied various forms of dance, including Balinese and African dance. She had the privilege of performing the world famous South African "Ipi Tombi" dance at the National Arts Theater in Nigeria. A lover of education, Sope obtained an undergraduate degree in Engineering and Master's degree in Marketing. She had a successful corporate career in England and America for several years before returning to her acting career. Sope is a wife and mom of two young boys and lives in Los Angeles and Miami. - IMDb Mini Biography

Jannik Schümann

Jannik Schümann is a German actor, musical performer, and voice actor. He studied English Studies and Media Studies at Humboldt University of Berlin, where he wrote his bachelor thesis on queer-coding in Disney films. Schümann lives in Berlin with his partner Felix Kruck; they announced their engagement in March 2024. He began his TV career in 2003 with The Rescue Pilots. He had roles in A Life So Far Away (2007) and Tatort: Love Hunger (2007). In 2011, he gained wider recognition by playing Henry in the TV movie Homevideo and made his film debut in Barbara (2012) as Mario. That same year, he played the principal’s son in Middle Maturity. In 2015 he starred as Finn Wilke in My Son Helen (2015). He played the role of Nicholas in the film adaptation of Andreas Steinhöfel’s bestselling novel Center of My World (2016). And he's played Nikolaus Tanz in The Diplomat since 2016. Other appearances include Monster Hunter (2020), Tribes of Europa (2021), and Charité at War (2019).

Jennifer Arnold

Jennifer Arnold is an Emmy-nominated director who was raised a drama-geek / skateboard kid in Santa Barbara, California. Her summers were spent living off the grid, without electricity, in the Trinity Alps and Alaskan wilderness with her extended family. She became a world traveler at age sixteen; moved to Kenya at nineteen and continues to work and travel abroad. She credits her story sense to her adventurous upbringing. In the episodic space Arnold has most recently directed "Based on a True Story," "P-Valley" and the pilot for "XO Kitty." which went number one on Netflix within 24 hours. Her other television credits include "Emily in Paris," "American Horror Story," "Younger," "Shameless," "The L-Word: Generation Q," "Brooklyn Nine-Nine," and "The Last Man on Earth among others. Her independent and documentary work has premiered at prestigious festivals around the world, including four appearances at Sundance. Arnold's feature documentary A Small Act (HBO) won the Humanitas Prize, a NAMIC Vision Award, and was nominated for the Best Documentary Emmy. Her other documentaries include The Diplomat (ESPN), Tig (Netflix), and Thicker Than Water, about Greg Louganis for ESPN's 30 for 30 shorts series. She has been an advisor at the Sundance labs and CNEX workshops in Asia and traveled to Kazakhstan with American Film Showcase. She attended UCLA's Graduate Film School and studied African History as an undergrad at UCLA and University of Nairobi. She lives in Los Angeles with her wife, the esteemed ASC cinematographer Patti Lee.

Reza Diako

Reza Diako is an English/Persian actor of Austrian nationality and Iranian origin. He has taken over the role of 'Apostle Philip' in the worldwide influential TV series "The Chosen." A historical drama based on the life of Jesus and those who knew him, the popular series returns in February via its fourth season with a singular viewing experience releasing bi-weekly in theaters. On the big screen, Reza has two upcoming projects: the indie film "The Astronaut" (Kate Mara and Laurence Fishburne) as 'Ethan Marshall' the director of NASA and "Reading Lolita in Tehran" alongside award-winning actress Golshifteh Farahani and Zar Mir Ebrahimi. The film is based on the best-selling memoir, and Reza portrays 'Bahri', an intellectual literature student caught in the middle of his role as a leading member of the student Islamic society at the University of Allameh Tabatabei in Tehran, and his deep love and respect for both literature for his professor, Azar Nafisi (Golshifteh Farahani), under the backdrop of the early days of Iranian Revolution and the Iran/Iraq War in the early 1980s. In 2018, Reza was cast as ' Harry Razavi' in "Transparent," a feature film about homelessness in Central London. He subsequently had lead roles as ' Misha' in "Tummyache," a feature film about an ex-famous child actor struggling with addiction, winning several festival awards, and as 'Eli' in Son of Man, a theatre production reflecting on the life of Jesus Christ during his adolescence. He was later featured in the theatre production, Fatherless Son, a drama about gang violence in the streets of London. Reza then made his way into mainstream TV and Film projects. He was cast as a regular for both seasons of Apple TV's Original International Emmy Award winning drama, "Tehran," in the regular role of 'Shahin.' He also played 'Henri' in ITV's new series, "A Spy Among Friends," and featured in the BBC series, "Around the World in 80 Days" and in "The Son," directed by Florian Zeller. More recently,Reza appeared in Sundance's 2023 Audience Award and Best Screenwriter Award winning film, "The Persian Version," as 'Hamid.' He also played series regular, 'Zak,' in HBO Max and Sky Atlantic's second season of "I Hated Suzie." He can also be seen in MBC1 and Shahid Series, "London Class," in the regular role of 'Aslan,' in a story about an Iranian family close to the King of Iran, the Shah, who was forced to take refuge in London after the Shah's downfall in 1978. Reza also appears in the role of 'Haadee,' in Guy Ritchie's feature, "The Covenant" and in the Netflix Drama, "The Diplomat," in the role of 'Basir.'

Eubha Akilade

Cast · Known for Shetland

Eubha Akilade ( born 27 June 1998) is a Scottish actress, dancer, and filmmaker. She is known for her roles as Lily Watson on the CBBC series Eve (2015–2017) and Ines Le Breton on the Hulu series Find Me in Paris (2018–2020). Akilade was born on 27 June 1998 in Cathcart, Scotland. She is of Nigerian descent, was born to mother Christine, a Macmillan Cancer Support nurse, and she has a brother and a sister. Akilade began attending the Dance School of Scotland in Knightswood, but quit when she secured her role in Eve. Akilade made her professional debut as Lily Watson in the CBBC children's series Eve in 2015, a role she portrayed until 2017, despite having no formal training. Then in 2017, she appeared in two episodes of the BBC Three series Clique as a receptionist. Later that year, she was cast as Ines Le Breton in the Hulu series Find Me in Paris, a role she portrayed until 2020. On her casting, Akilade commented: "Within two weeks of the audition, I found out that I’d got the part and that I was flying to Paris for the next six months two weeks later". In 2020, Akilade joined the cast of the BBC Scotland crime drama Shetland for its seventh series as PC Lorna Burns. She also appeared in episodes of the soap operas Doctors and Casualty. In 2023, she had recurring roles as Olivia O'Neill in the ITVX thriller Six Four and Amy Callaghan in the Alibi thriller The Diplomat. Akilade made her professional stage debut originating the role of Rebecca in the musical Starter for Ten at the Bristol Old Vic.

Simon Chandler

Simon Chandler (born Simon Timothy Chandler, 4 June 1953 in Luton, Bedfordshire, England) – British film, television, and theatre actor, educated at Bedford School, active since 1976. Often cast as senior establishment figures such as Members of Parliament, civil servants, and officials. His most notable film roles include Private Simmonds in A Bridge Too Far (1977), Merry Brandybuck (voice) in The Lord of the Rings (1978), David Nelson in The Bounty (1984), Hawkins in The Man Who Knew Too Little (1997), Mr. Wells in Vera Drake (2004), Mayor of Grasse in Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (2006), Lord Dawson in The King's Speech (2010), a Cabinet Minister in The Iron Lady (2011), Sir Augustus Wall Callcott in Mr. Turner (2014), John Taylor in The Theory of Everything (2014), and Sidney Rawle in The Mercy (2018). On television he is best known for Clement Attlee in The Crown (2016), Septon Eustace in House of the Dragon (2022), Mr. Hobbs in Jonny Briggs (1985, 28 episodes), and appearances in Hitler: The Rise of Evil (2003), The Thick of It (2009), Midsomer Murders, Coronation Street (2008), and The Diplomat (2023). On stage he has appeared in Hamlet, Macbeth, King Lear, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, and High Noon (2025, West End).

Torri Higginson

Cast · Known for Stargate Atlantis

Torri Higginson (born Sarah Victoria Higginson) is a highly regarded Canadian actress and producer best known for her commanding yet compassionate science-fiction roles. She is universally recognized for portraying the pragmatic diplomat Dr. Elizabeth Weir in Stargate Atlantis (2004–2008), a role she originated and reprised across the Stargate franchise. She is also a theater actress and has appeared in Three Tall Women, Weldon Rising and Picasso at the Lapin Agile.

Angus Wright

Angus Wright (born 11 November 1964) is an American-born British actor. Wright was born in Washington, D.C., the youngest child of Virginia and Patrick Wright. His father's career in the British Diplomatic Service took the family to the UK, the U.S., Lebanon, Egypt, Bahrain, Luxembourg, Syria and Saudi Arabia. He gained an M.A. in Art History at the University of Edinburgh and then trained at the Central School of Speech and Drama. He has since worked extensively in theatre, film and television.

Chris Tashima

Chris Tashima is an award-winning American actor and director. He has starred in numerous independent feature films, most notably as the romantic lead opposite Joan Chen, Allison Sie, Kelly Hu and Autumn Reeser, in Eric Byler's Americanese which won a Special Jury Prize for Outstanding Ensemble Cast at SXSW. He was awarded Best Actor in a Supporting Role, at the inaugural Love International Film Festival, for his portrayal of Papa Nakaji in Tim Savage's World War II family drama Under the Blood Red Sun produced by Dana Satler Hankins. He portrayed real-life educator/activist Shigeo Yoshida in the 442nd RCT origin story Go For Broke from producer/screenwriter Stacey Hayashi. Most recently, he played the hard-nosed Uncle Bob in the generational family comedy No No Girl from writer/director Paul Daisuke Goodman--for which he received two nominations at the Austin Revolution Film Festival, and he plays Hiro in Brian M. Tang's action/fantasy short Kodama, receiving its world premiere at SXSW 2023. Tashima received an Academy Award® for directing the dramatic short film Visas and Virtue, a re-telling of the heroic actions of Holocaust rescuer Chiune Sugihara. In addition he co-wrote the screenplay adapting a one-act play by Tim Toyama, and starred as the Humanitarian diplomat Sugihara. He also directed, co-wrote and starred in the WWII Japanese American internment short film Day of Independence which was nominated for a NATAS Northern California Area Emmy®. These two directorial works came from Tashima's own Cedar Grove Productions, an indie entertainment house aiming to "Boldly defy mainstream Hollywood by giving Asian Americans the close-up onscreen."

Kim Darroch

Kim Darroch, Baron Darroch of Kew, KCMG is a former British diplomat. He served as the British Ambassador to the United States between January 2016 and December 2019, and previously as National Security Adviser and UK Permanent Representative to the European Union. On 10 July 2019, following the leak of diplomatic cables in which he had been critical of the Trump presidential administration, he resigned from his position as HM Ambassador in Washington. Darroch concluded his post in December 2019 upon retirement from HM Diplomatic Service after a career spanning 40 years of public service.

Scilla Andreen

Costume Design · Known for Party of Five

CEO and Co-Founder of IndieFlix.com Scilla Andreen is a producer, director and Emmy nominated costume designer with deep roots in the entertainment industry; producing several award winning films including festival favorites, "Outpatient", "The Flats" and Sundance hit, "Bit Players". Her first film, "Mutual Love Life", received Oscar Consideration. Scilla has worked in print, television, commercials, industrials and features here and abroad. She has spoken on numerous panels at Sundance, SXSW, Women in Film etc. and is immersed in film related organizations. She began her career in film while attending NYU as a political science major, working part time as a photographer covering the United Nations for the Wall Street Diplomatic World Bulletin. She and her partner Carlo Scandiuzzi created IndieFlix to be a fee-free, one-stop shop for filmmakers to reach the broadest on-line audience while keeping their rights and the lion share of the profits. She has spoken on numerous panels and immersed herself in film related organizations worldwide. Her favorite past times are thinking up tag lines, reading, sailing, Fly fishing, cooking and napping on the beach. She is best known for her contagious loud laughter and when she's not staying up too late working or buying domain names, Scilla can usually be found hanging out with friends and family.

Ban Ki-moon

Ban Ki-moon is a South Korean diplomat who was the eighth Secretary-General of the United Nations from January 2007 to December 2016. Before becoming Secretary-General, Ban was a career diplomat in South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and in the United Nations.

John Kerry

An American politician and diplomat, currently serving as the first United States special presidential envoy for climate. He previously served as the 68th United States secretary of state from 2013 to 2017. An attorney and former naval officer, Kerry first drew public attention as a decorated Vietnam veteran turned anti-war activist. He went on to serve as a prosecutor and as Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts, before serving as United States Senator from Massachusetts from 1985 to 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the Democratic nominee for President of the United States in the 2004 election, which he lost to incumbent President George W. Bush.

Miguel Berger

Miguel Berger is a German diplomat who has served as German Ambassador to the United Kingdom since May 2022. He was State Secretary at the Federal Foreign Office from 2020 to 2021.