{{Short description|British actor, comedian, and writer (1991)}} {{Use British English|date=December 2013}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}} '''Samson Kayo''' (born 1991/1992<!--per WP:BLP, do not add a birthday to any living person without reliable sources-->)<ref name=nme>{{cite news |title=Samson Kayo: "I've been given an opportunity to tell Black British stories" |url=https://www.nme.com/features/tv-interviews/samson-kayo-interview-bloods-p-diddy-3183823 |access-date=9 April 2022 |work=NME |date=16 March 2022}}</ref> is a British actor, comedian, producer, and writer. He was nominated for the British Academy Television Award for Best Male Comedy Performance in 2018 for the BBC sketch show ''Famalam'' (2017–2020). He created, wrote and starred in the Sky One sitcom ''Bloods'' (2021–2022), and received a nomination for the same award in 2022. He won the Royal Television Society Programme Awards for Best Male Comedy Performance in the latter role in 2022, having also been nominated in 2019 and 2023. He also created and stars in ''Sliced'' (2019–2020), and his other credits include ''Youngers'' (2013), ''Timewasters'' (2017), and ''Our Flag Means Death'' (2022–2023).
==Biography== Kayo is of Nigerian descent.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Power |first1=Tom |title=Samson Kayo Gets Real About 'Truth Seekers' and Black People's Place in Horror |url=https://observer.com/2020/10/samson-kayo-truth-seekers-amazon-prime-video/ |access-date=17 November 2022 |work=The New York Observer |date=22 October 2022 |quote=As a Nigerian, there are myths about witchcraft and voodoo, so I do believe that those sorts of things are real.}}</ref> He said that growing up in Peckham, he only wanted to be a footballer, but developed an interest in comedy through Jim Carrey, Robin Williams, and British comedian Jocelyn Jee Esien, who inspired him as a black person to enter comedy. He was a childhood friend of John Boyega, with whom he attended church.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Ganatra |first1=Shilpa |title=Samson Kayo: 'I'm a London boy. I love my home' |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/tv-radio-web/samson-kayo-i-m-a-london-boy-i-love-my-home-1.4818662 |access-date=9 April 2022 |newspaper=The Irish Times |date=12 March 2022}}</ref> When he went out to pick up an iron for his mother, he found an open audition for the Channel 4 comedy ''Youngers'', and was cast.<ref name=irish/> In 2017, he played a fictionalised version of will.i.am in the BBC Three improvised comedy series ''Murder in Successville''.<ref name=murder>{{cite web |title=A Murder in Ye Olde Successville |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p04zwqh1 |publisher=BBC Three |access-date=28 May 2024}}</ref>
Kayo was nominated for Best Male Comedy Performance at the 2018 British Academy Television Awards for his part in the BBC sketch show ''Famalam''.<ref name=famalam>{{cite news |last1=Lawson |first1=Mark |title=Bafta TV awards 2018: who will win – and who deserves to |url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2018/may/11/bafta-tv-awards-2018-who-will-win-and-who-deserves-to |access-date=9 April 2022 |work=The Guardian |date=11 May 2018}}</ref> From 2017 to 2019, he was part of the main cast of the ITV2 sitcom ''Timewasters'', in which a Black British jazz quartet are transported through time to the London of the 1920s and 1950s in each series.<ref name=timewasters>{{cite news |last1=Kanter |first1=Jake |title='Timewasters': UK Comedy Series Travels To IMDb TV In The U.S. |url=https://deadline.com/2021/05/timewasters-imdb-tv-big-talk-1234762753/ |access-date=9 April 2022 |work=Deadline Hollywood |date=24 May 2021}}</ref> He is the creator, writer and lead of the takeaway-based sitcom ''Sliced'' on Dave since 2019.<ref name=irish>{{cite news |last1=Humphreys |first1=Georgia |title=TV Quickfire: Samson Kayo on the return of his hit sitcom Sliced |url=https://www.irishnews.com/lifestyle/2021/05/31/news/tv-quickfire-samson-kayo-on-the-return-of-his-hit-sitcom-sliced-2334186/ |access-date=9 April 2022 |publisher=Irish News |date=31 May 2021}}</ref> He also created and plays the lead Maleek on paramedic-focused sitcom ''Bloods'', which debuted on Sky One in 2021 while being based on an eight-minute short film on Sky Arts.<ref name=nme/> He was nominated for Best Male Comedy Performance at the 2022 British Academy Television Awards for this role,<ref>{{cite news |title=Bafta TV Awards 2022: The nominations |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-60925307 |access-date=9 April 2022 |publisher=BBC News |date=30 March 2022}}</ref> and won the same award at the year's Royal Television Society Programme Awards.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Yossman |first1=K. J. |title=RTS Program Awards 2022 Start With a Slap Before Honoring Winners Including Jack Thorne, Russell T. Davies |url=https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/royal-television-society-program-awards-2022-winners-1235217646/ |access-date=28 May 2024 |work=Variety |date=29 March 2022}}</ref>
In 2020, Kayo featured in Nick Frost and Simon Pegg's horror comedy series ''Truth Seekers''. A year later, he starred in David Jenkins and Taika Waititi's pirate-based romantic comedy series ''Our Flag Means Death,'' which was produced in the United States. He told ''The Irish Times'' that although many British actors of colour found more opportunity in the United States, he was committed to making more British series.<ref name=irish/>
Kayo's first voice performance was as Baby Bear in ''Puss in Boots: The Last Wish'' (2022), with Antonio Banderas in the title role.<ref name=puss>{{cite news |title=Actor Samson Kayo is the voice of 'Baby Bear' in family film 'Puss in Boots: The Last Wish' alongside Antonio Banderas |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0f2kc32 |access-date=28 May 2024 |publisher=BBC Radio Surrey |date=11 February 2023}}</ref>
== Filmography ==
=== Film === {| class="wikitable sortable" !Year !Title !Role !Notes |- |2018 |''Grandpa's Great Escape'' |Gravedigger Vince |Television film |- |2020 |''Dolittle'' |Pirate |<ref>{{cite web |title=Dolittle - Full Cast & Crew |url=https://www.tvguide.com/movies/dolittle/cast/2030179466/ |website=TV Guide |access-date=28 May 2024}}</ref> |- |2022 |''The Bubble'' |Bola |<ref>{{cite news |last1=Kit |first1=Borys |title=Rob Delaney, Samson Kayo, Vir Das Board 'The Bubble' as Judd Apatow Meta-Comedy Begins Shooting |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/rob-delaney-samson-kayo-vir-das-join-the-bubble-as-judd-apatow-meta-comedy-begins-shooting-4151243/ |access-date=28 May 2024 |work=The Hollywood Reporter |date=16 March 2021}}</ref> |- |2022 |''Puss in Boots: The Last Wish'' |Baby Bear (voice) |<ref name=puss/> |- |2025 |''F1'' |Cashman |<ref>{{Cite web |date=5 July 2024 |title=Title confirmed for Apple Original Films’ Formula 1 movie |url=https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article/title-confirmed-for-apple-original-films-formula-1-movie-as-teaser-date.1hXbmCOgMfC4MyfGQ0RkNI |access-date=26 June 2025 |website=www.formula1.com |language=en}}</ref> |- |2027 |''Voltron'' | |Post-production |}
=== Television === {| class="wikitable sortable" !Year !Title !Role !Notes |- |2013 |''Youngers'' |Boss Fury |<ref name=irish/> |- |2015 |''The Javone Prince Show'' |Various | |- |2016 |''We the Jury'' |Don | |- | rowspan="4" |2017 |''Murder in Successville'' |Will.i.am |<ref name=murder/> |- |''Comedy Playhouse'' |Dillon | |- |''Hailmakers'' |Sol | |- |''Timewasters'' |Horace / Aston |<ref name=timewasters/> |- |2018 |''Sky Comedy Shorts'' |Maleek |<ref name=nme/> |- |2017–2020 |''Famalam'' |Various |<ref name=famalam/> |- |2019 |''Urban Myths'' |Basil | |- |2019–2020 |''Sliced'' |Joshua |<ref name=irish/> |- |2020 |''Truth Seekers'' |Elton John |<ref name=irish/> |- |2020 |''Death to 2020'' |Pyrex Flask |Netflix special |- |2021–2022 |''Bloods'' |Maleek |<ref name=nme/> |- |2021 |''Death to 2021'' |Pyrex Flask |Netflix special |- |2022–2023 |''Our Flag Means Death'' |Oluwande |<ref name=irish/> |- |2024 |''House of the Dragon'' |Mujja |- |2026 |''Zog'' |Zog |52 Episodes | |}
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== *{{IMDb name | 4478685}}
{{RTS Programme Award for Best Comedy Performance by a Male Actor}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kayo, Samson}} Category:1990s births Category:Living people Category:21st-century English male actors Category:Actors from the London Borough of Southwark Category:Black British comedians Category:Black British male actors Category:Black British male comedians Category:British comedians Category:British male comedians Category:Comedians from the London Borough of Southwark Category:English comedy writers Category:English male comedians Category:English male film actors Category:English male television actors Category:English male voice actors Category:English people of Nigerian descent Category:Male actors from London Category:People from Peckham