Best Known For:
A string of roles.
Early-life:
Michael was born in Belfast in 1963 to Alice and Frank and grew up in Holywood in Co Down, Northern Ireland. He has a brother, John, and a sister, Collette. Michael worked on various building sites before landing a job as a cycle courier. He began doing stand-up in 1993 after accepting a bet at an open-mic night. He was performing one-man shows in Edinburgh when he got the chance to make his acting debut in the Channel 4 sitcom Spaced.
Career:
Acting roles for Smiley followed in the likes of Time Gentlemen Please, 15 Storeys High, Hustle, Rose and Maloney, Nearly Famous, Law & Order: UK and Doctor Who. On the big screen, he has starred in Shaun of the Dead (2004), Outpost (2007), The Other Boleyn Girl (2008), Burke and Hare (2010), Kill List (2011), The World's End (2013), The Lobster (2015) and Orthodox (2016). He has had recurring roles in Bleak House, Wire in the Blood, Father Figure and Luther. He indulges his passion for bikes in the travel series Something to Ride Home About.
Quote:
"I spent a long time not knowing what I wanted to do and being fearful of life and worrying about not being able to support my wife and family."
Trivia:
Smiley shared a flat with Simon Pegg and Nick Frost in the 1990s.