Daniel Mays

Daniel Alan Mays (born 31 March 1978) is an English actor.

Born the third of four boys, Mays was brought up in Buckhurst Hill, Essex, by his electrician father and bank cashier mother. He attended the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts before going on to win a place at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.

After graduating from RADA in 2000, Mays soon started appearing in a number of supporting roles ranging from a bit part in the BBC soap opera EastEnders in 2000 to playing a pilot in Jerry Bruckheimer's big-budget Pearl Harbor (2001). He was cast in the Mike Leigh film All or Nothing (2002) as Jason, a thug who abused his girlfriend, and also appeared in Leigh's next project, Vera Drake (2004), in which he played Sid, the protagonist's son. His performances for Leigh resulted in further offers of work.

One of Mays's most notable early roles was in the improvised BBC drama Rehab. Directed by acclaimed film maker Antonia Bird, Rehab was a drama about life inside a drug rehabilitation facility. He starred as Adam, a young heroin addict released from prison and sent directly to rehab. For his performance Mays was awarded the Best Actor award at the Palmare-Reims Television Festival in 2003