Catching up with… Jamie Kenna

A stalwart actor - and former semi-professional footballer - Jamie Kenna has appeared in dramas such as His Dark Materials, The Crown, Peaky Blinders and Coronation Street as well as the biographical sports film Gran Turismo while he played Ser Alfred Broome in HBO's House of the Dragon. Jamie will appear in crime drama, The Blame, alongside Michelle Keegan and Douglas Booth, which launched on ITV this week. He will also be starring as DS Ellis Daldry in Winter - a new police procedural drama series coming to ITV on 30 September.

A Spurs fan for 'as long as I can remember', Jamie attended his first match on 12 March, 1985 as we were beaten 2-1 by Manchester United at White Hart Lane. He has been a regular match-goer ever since and was in Bilbao on 21 May, 2025 to witness our UEFA Europa League Final victory against the Red Devils.

Hi Jamie. First of all, can we ask how you became a Spurs supporter?

My family are from south London and I should probably be a Millwall supporter given where I’m from. But I was always drawn to the lilywhite shirt and the style of football associated with Tottenham Hotspur. Glenn Hoddle was an early hero of mine and Steve Perryman too. I was getting interested in football at the time Spurs had Ossie Ardiles and Ricky Villa in the team. A time it wasn’t that common to have foreign players in your team and we had these two iconic, overseas stars.  was too young to appreciate the 1981 FA Cup Final. I was only six then. But I got to my first game just a few years later.  

What was the experience of your first Spurs match like?

It was incredible, even though we lost 2-1 against Manchester United. Ardiles and Hoddle were still playing for us at that point and we had players like Tony Galvin, John Chiedozie, Garth Crooks and Mark Falco in the team. Iconic players. I thought they were the coolest people on earth!

Who have been your favourite Spurs players over the years? 

The answer to that question evolves over time. Harry Kane is a modern favourite of mine. I’ve got two kids who have developed my obsession for Spurs so they got to appreciate him too. Paul Gascoigne might not have played for us for that many seasons but he’s right up there for me. One of the greatest, if not the greatest player I have seen in a Spurs shirt. I loved him. And Hoddle, as I mentioned, was my hero growing up. He was ahead of his time. I am also known amongst my friends for having had a poster of Steve Sedgley on my wall! I loved Sedge. I loved what he was about. He played pretty much in every position for us. He was a proper stalwart. He would always do a job for us. And I have to mention Gary Mabbutt. What a player, what a man.

What have been your best Spurs memories over the years?

I’ve been home and away with Spurs, I’ve been to European games with them. There are so many good memories. I was behind the goal when Gazza scored ‘that’ goal against Arsenal in the 1991 FA Cup semi-final. That’s one of my best Spurs memories. But in terms of the best memory, Bilbao will take some topping. I travelled to the final with three of my mates in a camper van. It took us 17 hours to get there. While some people say it was a dull game, it was the best game ever in my eyes! It was so emotional. And not just at full time. I was emotional on the day of the game, soaking up the atmosphere. It felt so special. Such a big moment. It felt like there was so much love on the day of that game. And it felt like our time. To win it was just magical.

How often do you get to Spurs matches?

I get to games a lot. I have friends who have season tickets who I can go with and I also take my kids. Tottenham Hotspur means so much to me… the Club is very close to my heart.

How optimistic are you about this season?

It is easy to wave the flag of doom after four Premier League games when you haven’t won and you haven’t scored. But I think most Spurs fans are realistic. With the number of new arrivals, it was always going to take a bit of time for everything to click. It’s far too early to panic. I think most Spurs fans are optimistic and we have faith in Roberto De Zerbi. Once we hit a rhythm, I really think it’s going to be a good season. We have some great players in there. I was always a big fan of Sandro Tonali before he signed for us, so I am excited to see what he can do. Tonali is a real throw-back midfielder for me. He has a bit of Bryan Robson about him… he’s got that bite and also that ability to make things tick in midfield.

Which other current Spurs players do you admire?

I really hope James Maddison can get back to where he was pre-injury. He’s such a good player. Micky van de Ven is a really exciting player – something you don’t usually say about a centre-back. But we’ve all seen how good he is on the ball, the driving runs he makes. Archie Gray deserves a mention. He was outstanding last season, playing in whatever position was asked of him and I’d really like to see him establish himself in the team and become the player I think he can become.

We welcome Aston Villa to N17 this afternoon. Do you have any specific memories from Spurs- Villa matches over the years?

I’ve been to Villa Park a few times. I can remember being there for a game in the away end (on 25 January, 1995) when Villa goalkeeper Mark Bosnich clattered into Jürgen Klinsmann. It was a shocking collision and something that really stayed with me. Much more positively, I can remember Harry Kane coming off the bench to score a winning free-kick at Villa Park (November, 2014), which really cemented his place in our starting XI after that!

You’re starring in Winter, which will be broadcast on ITV from the end of this month. Can you tell us a bit about the series?

It’s very exciting. It’s a forensic crime drama. Ethan Winter (played by Richard Armitage) is a forensic pathologist who has the gift of communicating with dead bodies. He’s part of a police department in Bristol headed by two detectives, one of which is me, DS Ellis Daldry. He is a lovely character, a really fun character to play. He’s a stalwart copper who is a bit of a technological dinosaur. He’s been in the business a long time and he’s desperately trying to catch up and keep up with things. Ethan Winter is an amazing pathologist who uses a lot of technology and my character is a bit in awe of him. It was very fun to film. We filmed in Belgium. I watched quite a bit of football when I was there funnily enough. I went to a game at Royal Antwerp, where Toby Alderweireld had been playing the year before. And I went to see both Gent and Genk. Belgium is a great country to watch football and I feel we have a close affiliation with Belgian football as Spurs supporters. We’ve been served by some great Belgian players over the years… Alderweireld, Jan Vertonghen, Mousa Dembélé. For me, Dembélé is one of the most underrated players ever.

Can you also tell us a bit about The Blame?

The Blame is a poignant, gritty drama about police corruption. I feature in three episodes of The Blame. It was a lovely group to work with. Michelle Keegan is one of the nicest people in the business and we had such a lot of fun, which sounds odd to say with the subject matter of the series being so dark! But we kept things light behind the scenes!

You’re a passionate advocate for mental health and you’ve partnered with PANDAS Foundation UK – a charity who offers hope, empathy and support for every parent, carer or network affected by Perinatal Mental Illness. How did you become involved with PANDAS?

I’ve had my mental health battles and I am always keen to partner with organisations who spread the word about speaking out, asking for help and checking in on people. PANDAS do a lot of great work for parents. I’m a dad of two and being a parent can be a hard, stressful thing at times. There can be underlying mental health struggles and things parents find difficult. PANDAS provide a great service for parents, they have a helpline, forums. They have a regular podcast which I have featured on. If my input with PANDAS can help just one person, then it is absolutely worthwhile. My involvement is something I feel very proud and passionate about.  I found through my struggles that when I’ve spoken to other people, I’ve often found the people I have spoken to are affected with the same kind of issues. So, I would urge anyone reading this who is struggling with their mental health to talk to someone.   

Finally, what work projects do you have in store?

I’m shooting two films at the moment. So, I’ve been in World War I on the day I’m speaking to you and I’m off to gangland, 1990s tomorrow! You have to remind yourself where you are sometimes… I am also about to film an episode of a long-standing drama series. Next year is looking busy but I can’t say too much as nothing has been confirmed. I could end up sitting on my sofa instead! That’s the nature of our industry. Hopefully I’ll be very busy. And hopefully I’ll also have the opportunity to get to plenty of Spurs matches!