Born in Chichester, in southeast England, in 1988, Ed Speleers left his prestigious public school to star in the lead role in the film Eragon, with Jeremy Irons and John Malkovich. Since then, the young actor has been busy with roles in the thriller A Lonely Place to Die (2011), Love Bite (2012), and several upcoming productions, as well as launching a production and talent management company.

For his role as Jimmy Kent, a new footman at Downton Abbey, Speleers, like his character, had to join an already smoothly-running machine. "The first day was like a first day at a new school," he explains. "But luckily everyone's been very welcoming here. My character arrives a few episodes in, so it's not like I had a rehearsal period or a read through to really get to know everyone. I literally had to arrive in the middle of the scene…and hit the ground running. It meant I didn't have any time to think too much, and actually I think that that's the only way you can approach it: you just get on with it."