Lorcan Cranitch

Born in Dublin, Lorcan Cranitch became involved in drama while a student.^{[citation needed]} He attended secondary school at Terenure College.^{[1][verification needed]}

In 1980 he moved to London, where he trained at Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.^{[citation needed][2][dead link][failed verification]}

Cranitch had a role on British television in a series eventually presented on Masterpiece Theater, Parnell and the Englishwoman,^[3] a 1991 BBC drama series, with his portrayal of Tim Healy being his first television role.^{[citation needed]} He had a recurring role in the British series Cracker,^[3] and it was through his prtrayal of the troubled DS Jimmy Beck (1993-1995) that he became a familiar face to viewers.^{[editorializing][citation needed]} He then played a recurring rile in the series Ballykissangel,^[3][when?] which marked his return to the BBC, in the role of Sean Dillon, a part specially written for him.^{[citation needed][4]}

In 2001 he starred in the short-lived drama series McCready and Daughter, taking on a role originally intended for his former Ballykissangel co-star, Tony Doyle, who died shortly before the series was due to be filmed.^{[citation needed]} Cranitch appeared in the American series, Rome,^[3] in 2005, in the villainous role of the underworld baron Erastes Fulmen, an HBO/BBC production.^{[citation needed]} He played Melvin in the series, New Tricks (episode, "Communal Living"), in 2008,^{[citation needed]} and in the 2009 BBC drama, Best: His Mother's Son, he played Dickie Best, the father of footballer George Best.^{[citation needed]} In 2011 he appeared as Liam Cullen in the episode "The Gift of Promise", in the series, Lewis.^{[citation needed]} He appeared in the BBC series Death in Paradise, 2016,^{[citation needed]} and in 2017 he played Assistant Chief Constable Nicholls in the first part of the final series of the BBC drama ,Inspector George Gently.^{[citation needed]}

In February 2021, Cranitch took a lead role as Detective Chief Superintendent Jackie Twomey in the BBC crime drama series Bloodlands.^[5]

Cranitch has appeared in several other British television dramas, including briefly as DI Littlejohn in the Sky Atlantic series Fortitude,^{[citation needed]} and as Deacon Brodie (with Billy Connolly),^{[when?][citation needed]} Shackleton (as Frank Wild) with Kenneth Branagh,^{[when?][citation needed]} Omagh,^{[when?][citation needed]} Hornblower (with Ioan Gruffudd),^{[when?][citation needed]} The Street,^{[when?][citation needed]} Waking the Dead,^{[when?][citation needed]} Spooks,^{[when?][citation needed]} Silent Witness,^{[when?][citation needed]} and New Tricks.^{[when?][citation needed]}

Cranitch married Susan Jackson, a journalist and newsreader with RTÉ.^[7] They adopted an Ethiopian child in 2010,^[8] but separated in 2016.^{[citation needed]}

• Nisbet, Megan (18 November 2025). "Cooper & Fry Cast List in Full: Who Stars Alongside Downton Abbey's Robert James-Collier?". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 1 August 2026.