Nikesh Patel is a British actor probably best known for playing an actor, Tom Kapoor, opposite Rose Matafeo’s Jessie in the BBC Three romcom Starstruck – about the on-off relationship between a movie star and a “civilian”. The show, which first aired in 2021 and is rekindled for a third series this month, has been a global hit: it has had more than 8m streams on iPlayer and has been sold to 96 countries. The 38-year-old Patel has also appeared in Indian Summers, Mindy Kaling’s Four Weddings and a Funeral, and The Devil’s Hour on Prime Video, with Peter Capaldi and Jessica Raine. He lives in London with his fiancee, the actor and broadcaster Nicola Thorp.
Had it not been for the pandemic, you wouldn’t be Tom in Starstruck…
Yeah, it was meant to go [start shooting] in March 2020. Covid happened. Didn’t go in March 2020. Anyway, long story short, by the time it came around to me, the lead actor had dropped out because of scheduling, so I felt like a complete goal hanger because this beautifully formed job came along, getting to be Rose’s romantic tennis partner. It was a real scrappy gift.
