Biography, Facts, and Life Story of Robert James Collier

Robert James-Collier (Rob James Collier) (born September 23, 1976) is a British actor and model. The most notable roles he has played include Thomas Barrow in Downton Abbey as Oliver Carr and Liam Connor on Coronation Street. He has appeared in more than 20 productions, some of which have earned him accolades.

Despite his lack of acting experience, what perplexes his fans is how he achieved such a high rating without any prior training.

Early Life of Robert James Collier

On September 23, 1976, Robert James-Collier was born in Salford, Greater Manchester, as Robert Collier, but he changed his name to avoid confusion with another actor called Robert Collier. James Collier Mother name is Anne Collier

He is the youngest in the family. Collier has two older sisters named Kate and Louise, both quite famous in their rights, with Louise appearing on Coronation Street.

He attended St Patrick’s Roman Catholic High School in Eccles, Greater Manchester, as a youngster. James-Collier got his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in business from the University of Huddersfield.

He started as a model and presenter before venturing into acting. Some of his clients include Diesel, Joseph Tricot Menswear, and Jack Wills. James also walked for top designers like Giorgio Armani, Louis Vuitton, and Ben Sherman.

Career Life of Robert James Collier’s

In addition, He applied for the show Down to Earth after having no previous acting experience. His talent persuaded stars Ricky Tomlinson and Denise Welch, and he was cast as a womanizing pub landlord. In 2006, he played a minor role as ‘Stud‘ in Shameless series 3, episode 5, while using the name Rob Collier.

He also made his debut in 2005 as Paul Connor’s assistant. In 2006, he joined Coronation Street as Liam Connor, buying a stake in the Underworld factory with his brother Paul. Furthermore, James departed the soap in October 2008.

James-Collier announced in early-2008 that he was leaving Coronation Street and intended to return at some point. For his portrayal of Liam, he was nominated for Sexiest Male at 2007 Inside Soap Awards. In 2009, he appeared as a chauffeur in an episode of Hotel Babylon and Death in Paradise 2019 as Oliver Carr.

In 2011, along with several other actors from Downton Abbey and Coronation Street, James-Collier appeared in a special celebrity episode of The Chase and Colonel Archie Christie in “Urban Myths” Agatha Christie (TV Episode 2018).

James-Collier was cast as Thomas Barrow in Downton Abbey in January 2012 and made his first appearance on the episode broadcast on September 20, 2012. His character was initially a footman before being promoted to under-butler after William Mason departed from the show.

Later Career

In June 2015, he also started filming for Journey’s End, the final episode of ‘Downton Abbey. He played Captain Stanhope, a friend and fellow soldier to the show’s protagonist, Captain Andrew Crawley.

In 2016 he will appear in an interactive drama called The Enfield Haunting, based on real-life events surrounding the Enfield Poltergeist of the 1970s.

However, it was subsequently reported that Liam would be “brutally” murdered off in the soap as part of a murder-mystery storyline in which three well-known residents would be suspects for the crime. One of these would be Gray O’Brien’s Tony Gordon, who was in a relationship with Carla Connor (Alison King) in the series.

After leaving Coronation Street, James-Collier played Thomas Barrow, the under butler (formerly first footman) in Downton Abbey from 2010 to 2015. He has also appeared in the West End stage version of Calendar Girls.

James-Collier was featured in ITV’s 2016 crime drama, The Level, as Kevin O’Dowd. He starred in the British horror film The Ritual in 2017; the Guardian wrote that his performance was “a fierce screen presence. He was a significant character in the Vera episode “Cold River” in 2018.

In 2019, it was announced that James-Collier had been cast in the third series of Channel 4’s school drama Ackley Bridge as Martin Evershed.

Modeling and Awards

In 2007, James-Collier modeled for Argos, appearing in the Autumn/Winter and Spring/Summer catalogs. He took home both the Sexiest Male and Best Newcomer trophies at the Inside Soap Awards ceremony in 2007. James was also named the Sexiest Male at the British Soap Awards in 2008, 2009, and 2010.

In 2018, James-Collier also won Best Exit at the Inside Soap Awards for his performance as Liam Connor on Coronation Street. He has been nominated for several awards, including four nominations for Best Actor, three for Inside Soap Awards (2008, 2016, and 2018), and one for TRIC Awards (2009).

Inside Soap Awards winner – Sexiest Male (2007), Inside Soap Awards nominee – Best Newcomer (2007), Sexiest Male (2008), Best Exit (2009, 2010), TRIC Award nominee – TV Soap Personality of the Year (2010), Soap Personality of the Year (2012), TV Soap Personality of the Year (2013, 2014) British Soap Award nominee – Sexiest Male (2008, 2009, 2010) and screen actors guild award.

Robert Collier’s Personal Life

Lauren Chandiram has been in a long-term relationship with Robert for seven years. In 2010, the couple welcomed a son into their family Milo James-Collier.

Robert is very supportive of the LGBT community and is an active member of Manchester Pride. He has more than 500,000 followers on Twitter and 150k+ followers on Instagram. He used to go to a restaurant called ‘Shake Shack‘ with his partner Lauren Chandiram before becoming famous.

Robert is a passionate supporter of Manchester United and is seen frequently in the crowd supporting his favorite football club. Robert is also a fan of Manchester City and appeared on SoccerAM in 2012.

Other than acting, Robert has also appeared on several TV shows such as The Bill, Coronation Street: Revealed, This Morning, and Celebrity Ghost Hunt.