The first few weeks of 2024 have been a treat for telly fans. Yes, there have been hard-hitting dramas such as Mr Bates vs The Post Office, but for those in the mood for some serious escapism, it doesn’t get more gripping than Netflix’s new thriller Fool Me Once.
Adapted from the Harlan Coben book of the same name, it tells the story of ex-soldier Maya, who finds out that her husband (whom she saw killed in front of her) might not actually be dead after all. In addition to a twisting plot, it also boasts a stellar cast: here’s who’s playing who.
Maya Stern, played by Michelle Keegan
Michelle Keegan has form when it comes to playing soldiers: she was Lance Corporal Georgie Lane in beloved BBC military drama Our Girl. In this, she is Maya, a former soldier left traumatised after her husband is killed in front of her – until she spots him on her child’s nanny cam.
Born in Stockport in 1987, she went to Manchester School of Acting, but was working as a check-in agent at Manchester Airport before she landed her first role, on her second-ever audition, as Tina McIntyre in Coronation Street.
She was in the show for six years (Tina was killed off in 2013), but it was in 2016 that she made the switch to prestige drama, starring in Our Girl, followed by Brassic in 2019 and Ten Pound Poms last year.
DS Sami Kierce, played by Adeel Akhtar
Akhtar plays the detective investigating Joe’s murder, who also suffers from a mysterious illness that worsens over the course of the show.
The London actor, who was educated at Cheltenham College, initially studied law before switching and studying at the Actors Studo Drama School in New York and nabbed his first major role as hapless extremist Faisal in the dark 2010 comedy Four Lions.
Since then, he’s gone onto win a BAFTA for his role as Shahzad in 2016 BBC drama Murdered By My Father, appeared in 2017 romantic comedy The Big Sick and played Rob Singhal in the acclaimed 2016 BBC series The Night Manager (yes, the one with Tom Hiddleston). He also appeared in Killing Eve, Sherwood and the Enola Holmes film series on Netflix.
Joe Burkett, played by Richard Armitage
In the series, Joe's fate is one of the biggest question marks: a man who is shot dead in front of his wife, but returns from the dead (maybe, but just on a nanny cam). He comes from a very wealthy family, who look down on Maya for being working class.
Armitage is a Harlan Coben veteran: born in 1971, he started acting whilst at college and broke through into the mainstream in the 2004 BBC adaptation of North and South, playing factory owner John Thornton. Since then, he’s gone onto star in The Hobbit franchise (playing Thorin Oakenshield, leader of the dwarves), in spy thriller series Spooks and in two other Coben adaptations, Safe and The Stranger. He recently caused a stir by shedding his kit in Netflix erotic thriller Obsession.
Judith Burkett, played by Joanna Lumley
Judith is the undisputed matriarch of the Burkett family: wealthy and arrogant, her high-handed ways mean she often clashes with Maya, who suspects her of hiding something about Joe’s death.
Lumley is a veteran of British TV and film. Born in 1946 in India, she started her career as a model before going onto appear as a Bond girl in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, Coronation Street and The New Avengers as spy Purdey.
Her most famous turn is as the glamorous Patsy Stone, opposite Jennifer Saunders, in Absolutely Fabulous, but she has also appeared in The Wolf of Wall Street, Corpse Bride and Paddington 2.
Marty McGreggor, played by Dino Fetscher
Marty is the police officer assigned to investigate Joe’s murder. Young and enthusiastic, he often gets under the skin of his more dour senior officer, Sami Kierce.
Fetscher himself is a Welsh actor – born in 1988 in Cardiff, he has starred in Gentleman Jack (as Thomas Beech), Russell T Davies shows Years and Years, Cucumber and Banana, and The Split.
Shane Tessier, played by Emmett J Scanlan
Shane is one of Maya’s friends from her time in the military, and who ends up being a huge support for her as she struggles in the wake of Joe's death.
Tessier is an Irish actor, who is best known for playing Brendan Brady in the TV show Hollyoaks. Born in 1979, he has appeared on screen in work from BBC Two drama The Fall, to British remake of Call My Agent called Ten Percent and even in Guardians of the Galaxy, where he played a riot guard.
