Frank Blake is an Irish stage, television and film actor.
Early life and education
Frank Blake was born to Michael and Mary Blake and is the youngest of three children. He is from Tuamgraney, in County Clare.
He attended the annual amateur drama festival circuit each year from the age of four in his home town, with plays staged in the school hall. He was educated at Scariff Community College. He made his stage debut aged 17, in the community musical performance of Jesus Christ Superstar.
Blake spent a year at NUI Galway studying drama, German, and philosophy, and also appeared in eight plays in Dramsoc that year. He moved to Dublin and graduated from The Lir Academy in 2016.
Stage
Blake's stage performances include a role with an all-star cast in Druid Theatre Company's Richard III which was also performed at venues including the Lincoln Center in New York.
He played Neoptolemus in a stage version of Hecuba by Rough Magic.
He appeared in a stage adaptation of Louise O'Neill's novel Asking For It produced by Landmark Productions and the Everyman Theatre, Cork which was also seen at the Abbey Theatre. He also appeared in Tennessee Williams play The Glass Menagerie at the Gate Theatre, Dublin.
Screen
On television, he played Constable Pip Bircher in The Frankenstein Chronicles before playing Alan Sheridan on the Lenny Abrahamson television adaptation of Sally Rooney's Normal People. He had roles in Bridgerton, Game of Thrones, and the Tom Holland-led film Cherry. He had a recurring role in the second season of Sanditon, as Captain Declan Fraser, as well as in Netflix series Vikings: Valhalla.
In 2024, he began to portray Shane Bradley in BBC One police drama Blue Lights, joining the show in the second series. He portrayed Seamus Wright in Disney+ historical drama series Say Nothing (2024).
Personal life
His great aunt was the author Edna O'Brien. He told The Irish Times in 2022 that his family run an equestrian centre.