Brendan coyle

A place to rave about Brendan Coyle, and all things Downton Abbey (mainly the Bates Family). Not a spoil free blog!

Brendan Coyle, who played two seasons at Belfast’s Lyric Theatre and whose father hailed from Co Tyrone, is back on an Irish stage for the first time since he found global fame as Downton’s Mr Bates.

The actor, who played valet Mr Bates in the ITV period drama, spent four weeks over Christmas in rehab for his alcohol addiction

Wondering which famous faces first made their appearanc ein a Catherine Cookson made-for-TV drama? We've found them all out and you might be surprised!

Downton Abbey S3 Brendan Coyle as "John Bates"

Downton’s heart-throb Mr Bates tells us about the unusual fan mail he receives (underpants sent in by a man...), his favourite leading ladies and the search for Miss Right.

A young "Mr. Bates" - quite a handsome chap.

Former Downton Abbey regular Brendan Coyle has rounded out the cast of Mary, Queen Of Scots, the Working Title and Focus Features movie starring Saoirse Ronan. Ronan was attached back in 2012, so it's been a long road to the period drama, which is currently filming in England and Scotland.