Playing Nice cast: who are ITV cast members and where have you seen them before?

• Playing Nice has had audiences talking since it started in January 2025.
• The final two episodes will air on ITV on January 12 and 13.
• It features an all-star cast - and you might wonder where you’ve seen them before.

ITV’s Playing Nice started the year strong for the broadcaster. The emotional drama about two couples who discover their children were switched at birth.

It has certainly got audiences talking - as many were left making the same complaint after its debut. The last two episodes will air on January 12 and January 13 - although you can already watch it all, if you so wish.

Playing Nice boasts an all-star cast and you may find yourself wondering ‘where do I know them from’. Here’s the main actors and their most memorable roles.

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James Norton - Pete Riley

Playing Nice on ITV. | ITV

Not only does James Norton play the lead role, he is also one of the executive producers behind the show. In the ITV drama he plays Pete - and the actor should be very familiar to TV audiences.

James has had many prominent roles on the small screen over the last decade, including his star-making role as Tommy Lee Royce in all three seasons of BBC’s Happy Valley. He was also played Sidney Chambers in the first few years of Grantchester - and also had roles in War & Peace, McMafia and was in the 2024 film Bob Marley: One Love.

Niamh Algar - Maddie Williams

The Irish actor plays Maddie in Playing Nice on the ITV drama. She broke onto the scene in as Dinah in The Virtues - for which she won best actress at the 2020 IFTA Film & Drama Awards.

Playing Nice on ITV. | ITV

She was also part of the cast for HBO’s Ridley Scott produced series Raised by Wolves and you may have seen her as Dr. Lucinda Edwards in ITV’s Malpractice in 2023.

James McArdle - Miles Lambert

The biological father of Theo in the ITV drama, James McArdle is perhaps best known for his theatre work. He won the Ian Charleson Award for his role as Mikhail Platonov in Platonov.

Away from the stage, he has started to carve out a career on the small screen. He was part of the main cast of the Sexy Beast TV reboot - playing Gal.

Audiences may recognise him from his role as Deacon Mark Burton on HBO’s Mare of Easttown, which featured Kate Winslet. He also appeared in three episodes of the first season of Andor in 2022.

Jessica Brown Findlay - Lucy Lambert

Playing the biological mother of Theo, Jessica Brown Findlay is Lucy in the ITV series. Audiences may recognise her as Lady Sybil Crawley in Downton Abbey, while she also played Charlotte Wells in the period drama Harlots.

For Netflix viewers, you may recognise her voice from the animated series Castlevania. She voiced Lenore in the acclaimed video game adaption.

What have you made of Playing Nice so far? Share your thoughts by emailing me: [email protected].