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Nicholas McGaughey

Actor from Swansea

Nicholas McGaughey is a television and voice actor closely associated with Wales, best known to Welsh audiences for playing Brandon Monk in the long-running S4C soap opera Pobol y Cwm, a role he held from 2002 to 2011.

Public records place his birth in Portsmouth, England, though he has long been based in and closely linked with Swansea, and much of his acting career has been built around Welsh film, television and Welsh-language drama.

On screen, McGaughey played Chunky in the Swansea-set comedy Twin Town (1997), a Praetorian Officer in the Oscar-winning epic Gladiator (2000), and Officer Bolt in From Hell (2001). His other film and television credits include The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain (1995), Beautiful People (1999), Sharpe's Gold (1995), Casualty (1998), Agatha Christie's Poirot, Da Vinci's Demons, The Musketeers, Atlantis, New Tricks, War and Peace (2016), and the Harry Potter spin-off Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016).

Beyond acting, McGaughey is a published poet and short-story writer. His poem "Magic Hour" was performed at Holyhead as part of the 2017 Solstice Shorts Festival and later included in the 2018 anthology Dusk.

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Television actor closely linked with Swansea, best known as Brandon Monk in the Welsh soap Pobol y Cwm.

Career built around Wales and Welsh-language television, including nine years playing Brandon Monk in S4C's Pobol y Cwm; publicly associated with Swansea, though public records show his birth was in Portsmouth, England.

Career Highlights

  • Played Brandon Monk in the S4C soap Pobol y Cwm (2002-2011)
  • Played Chunky in the cult Swansea comedy Twin Town (1997)
  • Appeared as a Praetorian Officer in Gladiator (2000)
  • Appeared in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016)

ℹ️ Born in Portsmouth, England. Long based in and associated with Swansea, Wales.

Career built around Wales and Welsh-language television