# David O'Hara
**David O'Hara** (full name David Patrick O'Hara) is a Scottish stage and character actor, born in 1965 in Glasgow, best known for playing Stephen, the irreverent Irish warrior who joins [William Wallace](https://www.edgepedia.org/william-wallace) in *Braveheart* (1995), and a long series of supporting roles in high-profile British and American films and television, including Fitzy in *The Departed* (2006) and Albert Runcorn in *Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1* (2010).[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0641244) • [2](https://cinegraph.org/people/david-ohara)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1965, Glasgow, Scotland; full name David Patrick O'Hara[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0641244) |
| Signature role | Stephen, the "rampaging Irishman" who joins William Wallace (Mel Gibson) in *Braveheart* (1995)[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0641244) |
| Training | Youth Opportunities Programme at Glasgow Arts Centre; Central School of Speech and Drama, London, from age 17[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0641244) |
| Film highlights | *Braveheart* (1995), *Hotel Rwanda* (2004), *The Departed* (2006), *Wanted* (2008), *Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1* (2010)[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0641244) |
| Television highlights | *Prime Suspect 5* (1996), *The Tudors*, *Luther*, *Gotham*, *Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.*[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0641244) • [3](https://www.allocine.fr/personne/fichepersonne-4155/filmographie/) |
| Stage career | New Shakespeare Company, then two seasons at the Royal Shakespeare Company; later the Royal Court and the Almeida Theatre[4](https://www.geffenplayhouse.org/people/david-ohara/) |
| Nomination | Golden Nymph, Best Performance by an Actor (Television Films), 2007[5](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/david-ohara/bio/3030325676/) |
## Early life and training
O'Hara was born in Glasgow to Martha (née Scott) and Patrick O'Hara, a construction worker, and grew up in the Pollok district of the city in a large Catholic family of Irish descent; his paternal great-grandfather was Irish.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0641244) After leaving school he was accepted into a Youth Opportunities Programme at a community theater based at the Glasgow Arts Centre, which toured local schools under the direction of Robin Peoples.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0641244)
**Drama school.** At 17 he went to London to train at the Central School of Speech and Drama, but a lack of money led him to drop out after only two terms.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0641244) He went back to Scotland and landed a role in Bill Forsyth's *Comfort and Joy* (1984), a small part generally counted as his feature debut, then returned to the Central School to finish his final term.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0641244) • [6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/davidohara) In later years he recalled that his entry into the school was unexpected: he had been working as a stage manager for the Scottish education department, applied to one of London's leading drama schools, and was offered a place.[7](https://cerebrin.wordpress.com/2026/08/14/entrevista-a-david-ohara/)
## Stage career
O'Hara's stage work began with the New Shakespeare Company, where he played Tybalt in an open-air *Romeo and Juliet* at [Regent's Park](https://www.edgepedia.org/regents-park) in 1986 and took the role of Mercutio three years later.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0641244) • [6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/davidohara) He was understudy to [Ralph Fiennes](https://www.edgepedia.org/ralph-fiennes) in *A Midsummer Night's Dream*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0641244)
He then spent two seasons at the [Royal Shakespeare Company](https://www.edgepedia.org/royal-shakespeare-company) at [Stratford-upon-Avon](https://www.edgepedia.org/stratford-upon-avon), playing leading roles in *The Taming of the Shrew* (directed by [Jonathan Miller](https://www.edgepedia.org/jonathan-miller)), *Cymbeline* (Bill Alexander), and *Romeo and Juliet* (Terry Hands).[4](https://www.geffenplayhouse.org/people/david-ohara/) His modern-theater credits include the award-winning *Fashion* and Howard Barker's *Bite of the Night*, directed by Danny Boyle; the title role of Colquhoun in John Byrne's *Colquhoun and MacBride* at the Royal Court; and Repetilov in *Chatsky*, directed by Jonathan Kent at the Almeida Theatre in London.[4](https://www.geffenplayhouse.org/people/david-ohara/)
## Screen breakthrough
The part that changed his career was Stephen in *Braveheart* (1995), the Irishman who joins forces with William Wallace ([Mel Gibson](https://www.edgepedia.org/mel-gibson)) in the fight against [Edward I of England](https://www.edgepedia.org/edward-i-of-england).[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0641244) In a later interview he described the film as the turning point that opened the doors of Hollywood, until then having worked as a theater and television actor in the United Kingdom.[7](https://cerebrin.wordpress.com/2026/08/14/entrevista-a-david-ohara/) The Irish accent he used for Stephen, he said, was picked up largely at the Irish pub he frequented while at drama school in London, alongside his own Irish ancestry.[7](https://cerebrin.wordpress.com/2026/08/14/entrevista-a-david-ohara/)
1996 and 1997 brought a rapid run of roles: co-starring opposite [Helen Mirren](https://www.edgepedia.org/helen-mirren) as a slightly independent policeman in Granada Television's *Prime Suspect 5: Errors of Judgement* (aired on PBS' *Masterpiece Theatre* in 1997), [Alan J. Pakula](https://www.edgepedia.org/alan-j-pakula)'s *The Devil's Own*, the romantic foil to [Janeane Garofalo](https://www.edgepedia.org/janeane-garofalo) in *The MatchMaker*, a biker in the Scottish film *The Slab Boys*, and Bill Sikes in *Oliver Twist*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0641244) His screen work through the 2000s included David in the Oscar-nominated *Hotel Rwanda* (2004), the bank robber Allan Heyl in *Stander* (2003), and Fitzy in the Oscar-winning Boston crime film *The Departed* (2006); per IMDb trivia, he has appeared in two films that won Best Picture, *Braveheart* and *The Departed*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0641244) In *Wanted* (2008) he played the hitman Mr. X, and in *Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1* (2010) he played Ministry of Magic official Albert Runcorn, whose appearance under Polyjuice Potion disguise has been singled out by viewers for the emotion O'Hara brings to the scene.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0641244) • [2](https://cinegraph.org/people/david-ohara) Later film credits include *The Professor and the Madman* and *Cold Pursuit* (both 2019) and Kevin Costner's Western saga *Horizon: An American Saga, Chapters 1 and 2* (2024), in which he plays the Bowler Hat Surveyor.[8](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/david-ohara/)
## Television
O'Hara's television work spans both sides of the Atlantic. Beyond *Prime Suspect 5*, it includes [Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey](https://www.edgepedia.org/henry-howard-earl-of-surrey), in the fourth season of *The Tudors*, DSU George Stark in four episodes of *Luther* (2013), Reggie Payne in *Gotham* (2014–2015), Alistair Fitz in *Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.* (2016), and guest spots in *Covert Affairs*, *Criminal Minds*, and *S.W.A.T.*[3](https://www.allocine.fr/personne/fichepersonne-4155/filmographie/) • [8](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/david-ohara/) [TV Guide](https://www.edgepedia.org/tv-guide) records that he earned wide recognition with American audiences on CBS's *The District*, but chose to leave the series for his home country of Scotland after one season.[5](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/david-ohara/bio/3030325676/)
## Screen persona
A 2016 [University of Pittsburgh](https://www.edgepedia.org/university-of-pittsburgh) dissertation on action cinema describes O'Hara as typecast as "the quintessential endearing action hero," with a raspy voice, stoic expression, and hardened features, recognizable from *Braveheart*, *Stander*, and *The Departed*, and notes that he is an actor who does not usually take the leading role.[9](https://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/28353/1/Gray_ETD_2016_1.pdf) IMDb similarly lists "usually plays a supporting role" among his trademarks.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0641244)
## Other people named David O'Hara
The name is shared by several unrelated figures, including an American actor-writer born in [Johnson City, Tennessee](https://www.edgepedia.org/johnson-city-tennessee), a former track and field coach credited on IMDb under the same name, a casting-department professional whose credits include *Logan* (2017) and *Shiva Baby* (2020), and a Scottish singer-songwriter releasing singles on Apple Music from 2025.[10](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0641245/) • [11](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8395753/) • [12](https://music.apple.com/us/artist/david-ohara/1846702569) The actor is also distinct from the Canadian comic actor Catherine O'Hara.[13](https://apnews.com/article/9fdc89411b4961c1d599f836503a6203)
## References
1. [David O'Hara (I), IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0641244)
2. [David O'Hara, Cinegraph](https://cinegraph.org/people/david-ohara)
3. [David O'Hara : Filmographie, AlloCiné](https://www.allocine.fr/personne/fichepersonne-4155/filmographie/)
4. [David O'Hara, Geffen Playhouse](https://www.geffenplayhouse.org/people/david-ohara/)
5. [David O'Hara Biography, TV Guide](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/david-ohara/bio/3030325676/)
6. [David O'Hara Movies & TV Shows, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/davidohara)
7. [Entrevista a David O'Hara, La abadía de Berzano (2026)](https://cerebrin.wordpress.com/2026/08/14/entrevista-a-david-ohara/)
8. [David O'Hara, TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/david-ohara/)
9. [Gray, University of Pittsburgh ETD (2016)](https://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/28353/1/Gray_ETD_2016_1.pdf)
10. [David O'Hara (II), IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0641245/)
11. [David O'Hara (VI), IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8395753/)
12. [David O'Hara, Apple Music](https://music.apple.com/us/artist/david-ohara/1846702569)
13. [Catherine O'Hara obituary, Associated Press](https://apnews.com/article/9fdc89411b4961c1d599f836503a6203)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › Scottish actors › Surnames M to W*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license