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Irish Mirror
Irish Mirror
Entertainment
David Kent

Where are the stars of The Office now? Bankruptcy hell, Netflix hits and US success

The Office celebrates it's 21st anniversary later this year, with the BBC mockumentary sitcom now regarded as one of the best-loved British shows of all time.

The show, which followed the workers at the fictional Slough branch of the Wernham Hogg paper company, made superstars of its cast and spawned an international franchise, with the US equivalent also being a ratings hit.

Though the show had a short run, lasting just two seasons and a Christmas special, the cast of characters have become TV legends, with the likes of David Brent, Gareth Keenan and Jennifer Taylor-Clarke still being referenced in popular culture, two decades on from the show ending.

Here, we take a look at where the stars are now.

Ricky Gervais (David Brent)

Ricky was one of the mastermind co-creators of the show alongside pal Stephen Merchant.

The duo initially didn't think the sitcom would be a success but were still adamant to produce some good quality TV.

That they did, with the Ricky's bumbling Brent being a highlight.

Ricky has come a long way since the mockumentary (BBC/Ricky Gervais)

His iconic dance moves and social awkwardness gave fans huge laughs - and Gervais has gone on to have a hugely successful comedy career in the aftermath.

Gervais has written and starred in the likes of Extras and Derek but is known best in recent times for the brilliant After Life on Netflix.

He stars as Tony Johnson, whose life is turned upside down after his wife dies from breast cancer.

David Brent played by Ricky Gervais, does his comedy dance. (BBC)

Ricky did bring David Brent back in a 2016 film - David Brent: Life on the Road - though it was nowhere near as successful as the show.

Martin Freeman (Tim Canterbury)

Martin was known as hapless romantic Tim, who secretly had a crush on receptionist Dawn for the entirety of the show's run.

The Aldershot native has since become a big hit in both the UK and the US.

Martin Freeman stars in The Responder now but was known as Tim for a long spell thanks to his role in the show (BBC)

He played Dr Watson in the BBC's Sherlock alongside Benedict Cumberbatch- before narrating and starring in Fargo.

On top of that he's created Breeders and stars as the main character, with the show recently being picked up for a third series.

On the big screen, roles such as Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit trilogy, John in Love Actually and panicked teacher Paul in the original Nativity film have seen him earn plaudits.

He's also entered the Marvel Cinematic Universe starring as Everett K .Ross in both Black Panther and Captain America: Civil War.

(Galloway News)

Ironically, Martin didn't even go for the role of Tim initially.

“I originally read for the part of Gareth," Martin said in an interview with Beyond The Joke. "It was only as I was leaving that Ricky asked me to read for Tim.”

Mackenzie Crook (Gareth Keenan)

Instead, the role of Gareth went to Mackenzie Crook.

In the show, Gareth was incredibly proud of his army roots, and even prouder of his role as Team Leader, which meant virtually nothing in the grand scheme of things.

After missing out on a BAFTA nomination for his portrayal of Gareth, Mackenzie finally scooped one after for writing and starring in his own comedy show Detectorists, which aired on BBC Four and revolved around the lives, loves, and metal detecting ambitions of Andy and Lance, members of the Danebury Metal Detecting Club.

Mackenzie Crook played office lackey Gareth (BBC)

Outside of that he's appeared in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise as Ragetti and even had a short stint on Game of Thrones as a warg in season three of the massive HBO show.

And, of course, he's the star of the remake of Worzel Gummidge.

Lucy Davis (Dawn Tilsley)

Poor Dawn was often the brunt of Brent's dad jokes and did an awful lot of his work for him.

However, Lucy Davis, who portrayed her, was anything but a dogsbody and that has continued since the show came off the air.

She's had a number of cameo roles in the likes of Ugly Betty, Family Guy, NCIS and Holby City.

However, she's best known these days for two huge US roles.

Lucy Davis has since starred in a number of US hit shows (BBC/Netflix)

On the small screen, she played Hilda Spellman in The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina on Netflix, which aired it's final series in 2020 after Covid caused it to be cancelled.

That came shortly after she followed Freeman into the MCU, playing Etta Candy, a pal of Wonder Woman, in 2017.

Ralph Ineson (Chris Finch)

Chris was the de facto villain of the show, often seen to be mean to those who were beneath him, including David Brent who he regularly mocks.

Ralph Ineson was the de facto villain in The Office (BBC/Getty)

Ralph Inseon had had plenty of roles on his CV before taking up the evil Chris but has since appeared in the likes of Coronation Street, Waterloo Road, Peaky Blinders and Chernobyl.

Arguably his most famous appearances are in the Harry Potter series, playing another bad guy in Amycus Carrow in the final three films, and Game of Thrones, where he was Iron Islander Dagmer Cleftjaw for five episodes.

But he told the Daily Mail last year: “To say I’m tired of every part I’ve played for the last 20 years being cross-referenced with Finchy would be an understatement.”

Ewen MacIntosh (Keith Bishop)

Welsh actor Ewen has gone through hell and back since the BBC show finished up.

In 2016, he was declared bankrupt after struggling to find consistent work in the aftermath of playing Keith, a quiet accountant known for his deadpan humour.

Ewen MacIntosh is finding his feet again after going through "bad times" earlier this year - two decades after playing Keith in the BBC show (BBC)

However, he was helped out in the aftermath by old friend Gervais, who gave him a role in the final season of After Life.

Earlier this year, though, he was rushed to hospital, telling fans he had "bad times."

Stephen Merchant (Oggy)

Okay, we're slightly cheating here as Stephen only actually appeared in one episode of the show as Nathan 'Oggy’ aka The Oggmonster.

But we couldn't leave him out as he, alongside Gervais, has become by far the most successful in the aftermath of The Office.

Working with Ricky, he wrote and directed Extras and Life's Too Short, as well as co-producing the JS version of The Office itself.

Stephen only appeared in one episode of The Office in front of the camera, but was one of the main men behind it (BBC)

Outside of that, he's been credited with developing An Idiot Abroad starring Karl Pilkington as well as co-creating Lip Sync Battle alongside John Krasinski (who himself played Jim Halpert in the US adaptation of The Office)

Then you have at his cameos in the likes of Modern Family, 24, The Big Bang Theory and that's before we even talk about his stand-up comedy and stage careers.

Most recently, Stephen created, directed and starred in the crime thriller The Outlaws on BBC and Amazon Prime Video.

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