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]

Dunster 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.^{[citation needed]} 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.^{[citation needed]}

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 footballer 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 Ellie Heydon since November 2017.^[15][16][1] They announced their engagement In August 2024.^[17] In March 2026, Dunster confirmed the two had married.^[18]