Chiké Okonkwo

Chiké Okonkwo (/ˈtʃiːkeɪ əˈkɒŋkwoʊ/;[1] born 18 March 1982)[2] is a Nigerian English actor. He is known for portraying PC Clark in New Tricks and DC Callum Gada in Paradox. He currently stars as Lee Truitt, the love interest of the title character on the BET series Being Mary Jane.

Chiké Okonkwo
Born (1982-03-18) 18 March 1982
Kingston upon Thames, London, England
OccupationActor
Years active2002–present
Websitehttp://www.chikeokonkwo.com

Background

Born and brought up in Kingston upon Thames,[3] Okonkwo is of Nigerian descent.[4] He attended Tolworth Infants/Juniors School and Southborough High School in Hook, and later turned down a number of places at the UK's leading drama schools in order to pursue a university education, gaining a First Class degree in Business Computing from the University of Surrey, graduating in 2003.[2] After completing his studies Okonkwo pursued an acting career full-time.[5]

Career

Okonkwo was one of ten actors selected from twelve thousand applicants for the BBC Talent Scheme in 2001, leading to his first professional acting role in Holby City.[5] He trained at the National Youth Theatre,[6] and was a member of the National Youth Music Theatre between 1999 and 2002.[7] Okonkwo is the patron of the Kingston-based International Youth Arts Festival.[8]

Okonkwo's stage credits include Oklahoma!, Into the Woods, Fixer, As You Like It, In Time and A Matter of Life and Death. He spent a year performing at the National Theatre, where he appeared in several productions including Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials.[9]

Okonkwo's film work includes Derailed (2005), Animal (2005) and Spirit Trap (2005). He has also appeared in the short films Tooting Broadway Flatmates and Knock Off.

On television, Okonkwo has made guest appearances in episodes of Holby City, Silent Witness, Casualty, M.I.T.: Murder Investigation Team and Roman Mysteries. He also appeared in Blood and Oil, a BBC Two drama about the oil conflict in the Niger Delta.[4] Okonkwo played the lead roles of PC Clark in the pilot and first series of New Tricks, and DC Callum Gada in Paradox.

Okonkwo is a long-standing member of the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) performing in their 50th Anniversary season in Stratford-Upon-Avon, and most recently in Gregory Doran's critically acclaimed production of Julius Caesar (play) at the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) in New York in 2013.

He co-starred in The Birth of a Nation, which premiered in competition at the Sundance Film Festival in 2016.

Filmography

Television
Year Show Role Notes
2002 Holby City Ian Clarke
- Judas Kiss (Part One) (2002)		 Medical drama
Silent Witness PC Ben Manning
- Closed Ranks: Part One (2002)
- Closed Ranks: Part Two (2002)		 Crime drama
2003 New Tricks PC Clark (2003–2004) Police drama
Doctors Jordan Alan
- Keeping the Peace (2003)		 Soap opera
2005 M.I.T.: Murder Investigation Team Marlon Raines
- Episode 2.3 (2005)		 Police drama
2006 The Royal Jermaine Johnson
- Seeking Refuge (2006)		 Medical drama
Shoot the Messenger Kwame Television play
2007 Roman Mysteries Kuanto
- The Pirates of Pompeii (2007)		 Children's TV series
Casualty Kristou Vadepied
- Take a Cup of Kindness Yet (2007)
- For Auld Lang Syne (2007)		 Medical drama
2008 Lewis Jonjo Read
- Life Born of Fire (2008)		 Police drama
Doctors Charlie Morgan
- Gathering Light (2008)		 Soap opera
2009 Paradox DC Callum Gada Sci-fi crime drama
2010 Blood and Oil Ebi TV serial
2015 Banshee Lennox TV serial
Class Ballon
-The Metaphysical Engine, or What Quill Did (2016)		 TV serial
2016–present "Being Mary Jane" Lee Truitt TV Series

Film
Year Film Role Notes
2005 Spirit Trap Edmund Joseph
Animal Doctor
Derailed Paramedic
2007 Treasured Island Sam
2008 Tooting Broadway Flatmates Adam Smith Short film
2008 The Last Jazz Musician Trane Short film
2010 Knock Off Michael Short film
2015 Genesis Abel
2016 The Birth of a Nation Will
2017 Burning Sands

References
  1. "Chike Okonkwo for THE SAVIORS by Travis Betz, Kevin Hamedani". The Black List. 11 December 2017. Retrieved 19 February 2018.
  2. IMDB – Biography Retrieved 2010-03-05.
  3. "Young people take centre stage in Kingston". Royal Kingston. Archived from the original on 8 June 2011. Retrieved 5 March 2010.
  4. Paradox press pack – Chike Okonkwo is DC Callum Gada BBC Press Office. Retrieved 2010-03-05.
  5. New Tricks characters – Chiké Okonkwo plays PC Clark BBC Press Office. Retrieved 2010-03-05.
  6. "Why Britannia still rules the stage". The Guardian. 10 June 2007. Retrieved 5 March 2010.
  7. National Youth Music Theatre Alumni 1976 – 2004 Archived 25 June 2012 at the Wayback Machine See relevant listing.
  8. Gore, Will (3 July 2009). "IYAF – Youth given a chance to shine". This is London. Archived from the original on 4 June 2011. Retrieved 5 March 2010.
  9. IMDB – Other works Retrieved 2010-03-05.
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