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Meet the cast of The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe

Eddie Marsan stars as John Darwin


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Nicky Morris
TV and film writer
17 April 2022
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ITV's new true-crime series, The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe starts on Sunday night and tells the story of former prison officer John Darwin who faked his own death in an elaborate plan to claim life insurance money. 

MORE: Everything you need to know about The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe 

Eddie Marsan and Monica Dolan star as John and Anne Darwin in the new drama. Find out who else appears in the cast. 

WATCH: Are you enjoying the drama? 

Eddie Marsan plays John Darwin

Eddie Marsan plays John Darwin, a former teacher and prison officer who faked his own death in 2002 in order to avoid bankruptcy after racking up over £700,000 in debt. John and his wife, Anne, were jailed for over six years after being found guilty of fraud in 2008. 

Viewers may recognise Eddie for his roles in The World's End, Vice, Hobbs & Shaw, Deadpool 2, War Horse and Sherlock Holmes. He also starred as Terry in Ray Donovan and Soly Malinovsky in the BBC's Ridley Road

john darwin© Photo: ITV

Eddie stars as fraudster John Darwin

Monica Dolan plays Anne Darwin

Monica Dolan plays Anne Darwin, who went along with her husband's plan and claimed life insurance, telling their two sons that their father had died by drowning. 

The actress has previously appeared in Black Mirror, W1A, Inside No. 9 and A Very English Scandal. She has also featured in The Dig, Official Secrets and Vanity Fair, and won a BAFTA for her role as Rosemary West in the ITV series Appropriate Adult

anne darwin© Photo: ITV

Monica is a BAFTA-winning actress

Mark Stanley plays Mark Darwin

Mark Stanley plays John and Anne Darwin's son, Mark, who was unaware of his parents' scheme and believed his father to be dead. 

Viewers may recognise him for his role as Grenn in Game of Thrones. He also plays Lord Babington in Sanditon and more recently, starred as DI Thom Youngblood in ITV's Trigger Point

darwin mark© Photo: ITV

Mark recently starred in ITV's Trigger Point

Dominic Applewhite plays Anthony Darwin

Dominic Applewhite plays Anthony Darwin, the son of John and Anne Darwin, who, along with his brother, was unaware of his parents' scam. 

Dominic has appeared in The Crown, The King's Speech, The Inbetweeners, Sex Education and Postcode.

darwin son© Photo: ITV

Dominic plays Anthony Darwin

Karl Pilkington plays DC Phil Bayley

Karl Pilkington plays DC Phil Bayley, a police officer who questions John Darwin. Karl is a comedian and actor who is best known for his collaborations with Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant.

He rose to prominence after producing Ricky Stephen's XFM radio show before becoming a co-host of The Ricky Gervais Show. He also presented the Sky travel comedy series, An Idiot Abroad, and made his acting debut in Ricky's comedy-drama, Derek.  

karl pilkington© Photo: ITV

Karl is known for his collaborations with Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant

David Fynn plays Dave Leigh

David Fynn plays Dave Leigh, a journalist who discovered Anne Darwin in Panama in 2007 and interviewed her after John gave himself up to the police. 

David has appeared in Game of Thrones, Sherlock, Doctor Who, The Inbetweeners and The Pembrokeshire Murders. He was also nominated for an Olivier Award for playing Dewey Finn in the West End production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical School of Rock. 

journalist© Photo: ITV

David plays journalist Dave Leigh

The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe starts on Sunday 17 April at 9pm on ITV. 

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