Phil Dunster

Philip James Dunster^{[citation needed]} was born in Northampton, England.^[1]

He attended Leighton Park School in Reading, where he served as head boy.^[2][3] He played rugby as a child, though he realised at the age of fifteen that he was too small after a failed trial for London Irish. He also considered following in the footsteps of his father and brother and joining the military.^[4]

He went on to train at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Acting in 2014.^[5]

In 2015, Dunster played Claudio in the Reading Theatre production of Much Ado About Nothing and made his television debut in the Channel 4 sitcom Catastrophe. He also played Dickie Baker in the low budget film The Rise of the Krays, a role he would reprise in its sequel the following year The Fall of the Krays.^{[citation needed]}

Dunster starred as Arthur in Pink Mist at the Bristol Old Vic and Bush Theatre in London,^[6] for which he received an affiliate Laurence Olivier Award nomination in 2016. That same year, he appeared in The Entertainer at the Garrick Theatre^[7] and two episodes of the Sky One crime drama Stan Lee's Lucky Man.

From 2017 to 2018, Dunster was in the main cast of Strike Back as Lance Corporal Will Jensen for its sixth series, also known as Strike Back: Retribution, also on Sky One.^{[citation needed]} He had recurring roles in the Sky Atlantic drama Save Me as BJ McGory, and the third series of the Channel 4 science fiction series Humans as Tristan.^{[citation needed]} He also appeared in the films Megan Leavey, Murder on the Orient Express, and All Is True.^{[citation needed]} In 2019, he appeared in the Sky Atlantic miniseries Catherine the Great as well as the films Judy and The Good Liar.^{[citation needed]}

In 2020, Dunster began starring as Jamie Tartt in the Apple TV+ sports comedy Ted Lasso,^{[citation needed]} which earned him a nomination for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series in 2023.^[8]

In 2020 he played Jamie Cole in the ITV comedy-drama The Trouble with Maggie Cole,^[9][10] and appeared in the BBC One three-parter Dracula.^[11] He played Mike Stevens in the 2022 Amazon Prime thriller The Devil's Hour.^[12]

In January 2026, it was announced that Dunster would play Eret in Universal’s live-action remake of How to Train Your Dragon 2.^[13]

Dunster is a lifelong football fan, supporting AFC Wimbledon.^[14] He has been in a relationship with filmmaker Eleanor "Ellie" Heydon since November 2017.^[15][16][1] In August 2024, Dunster confirmed he and Heydon are engaged.^[17]