# Sam Palladio
**Sam Palladio** (born 1986) is an English actor and musician best known for playing the aspiring country songwriter Gunnar Scott on the ABC musical drama *[Nashville](https://www.edgepedia.org/nashville-2012-tv-series)* from 2012 to 2018. He grew up in Cornwall in southwest England, trained as an actor-musician at Rose Bruford College, and has combined acting and music throughout his career, most recently as a solo recording artist preparing his debut album.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4112253/) • [2](https://www.sampalladio.co.uk/about)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1986, Pembury, Kent, England, UK; grew up in Cornwall[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4112253/) • [2](https://www.sampalladio.co.uk/about) |
| Signature role | Gunnar Scott on *Nashville* (2012–2018), 124 episodes[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4112253/) |
| Training | Actor Musicianship degree, Rose Bruford College, graduated 2008[3](https://catalogue.bruford.ac.uk/alumni-n-p) |
| Chart entry | Duet with Clare Bowen, "If I Didn't Know Better", performed on the *Nashville* pilot and charted in 2012[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/sam-palladio-mn0003014151) |
| Band | Singer-songwriter for the British folk band Salt Water Thief[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4112253/) |
| Film roles | Prince Edward in Netflix's *The Princess Switch* trilogy; Joe Strummer in *Bob Marley: One Love* (2024)[5](https://snapshot.apple.com/us/person/6621230435) • [6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/sam_palladio) |
| Solo music | Debut album in progress with producers Søren Hansen and Dave Sardy; singles "Something On My Mind" and "Tennessee" with Chris Shiflett[2](https://www.sampalladio.co.uk/about) |
## Early life and training
Palladio was born in [Pembury, Kent](https://www.edgepedia.org/pembury), and grew up in Cornwall in southwest England.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4112253/) • [2](https://www.sampalladio.co.uk/about) He has described a musical household: his father played guitar, his cousins were musicians, and he was given a drum kit as a child, playing in bands through his teenage years without formal vocal training.[7](https://www.assignmentx.com/2013/exclusive-interview-sam-palladio-on-nashville-season-1-and-beyond/)
He studied at Rose Bruford College in Sidcup, London, on its Actor Musicianship degree, a program that merges acting and music rather than treating them as separate disciplines. He graduated in 2008.[3](https://catalogue.bruford.ac.uk/alumni-n-p) In interviews he has said that music was always the deeper calling, and that because he never chose between the two fields, nearly every acting job he took had a musical element.[8](https://www.songwritingmagazine.co.uk/interviews/sam-palladio)
## Theatre and early screen work
After graduating in 2008, Palladio went into musicals, including *Dreamboats and Petticoats*, a 1950s rock 'n' roll show in which the actors played their own instruments as a live band; he has called this his way into the profession.[7](https://www.assignmentx.com/2013/exclusive-interview-sam-palladio-on-nashville-season-1-and-beyond/) His stage credits also include *Monkee Business The Musical* and, later, the role of Curly in *Oklahoma!* for Sonia Friedman Productions.[9](https://www.unitedagents.co.uk/client/sam-palladio/cv/acting/?token=e72e00f0eb70) While doing West End shows he wrote his own songs and played midnight gigs with a group he called The Sam Palladio Trio.[8](https://www.songwritingmagazine.co.uk/interviews/sam-palladio)
His early television work included the BBC's *The Hour*, the Sky comedy *Little Crackers*, *Doctors*, and a recurring role as Stoke in seasons two to four of Showtime's *Episodes* alongside [Matt LeBlanc](https://www.edgepedia.org/matt-leblanc), which he credits with opening American doors.[9](https://www.unitedagents.co.uk/client/sam-palladio/cv/acting/?token=e72e00f0eb70) • [7](https://www.assignmentx.com/2013/exclusive-interview-sam-palladio-on-nashville-season-1-and-beyond/)
## Nashville
In 2011, while living in London, Palladio read the pilot script for the American series *Nashville* and sent demo recordings to the show's producers, winning the part of Gunnar Scott, a country-star hopeful.[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/sam-palladio-mn0003014151) The series, created by Academy Award-winning writer [Callie Khouri](https://www.edgepedia.org/callie-khouri), ran for six seasons with more than 5 million viewers each week at its height.[2](https://www.sampalladio.co.uk/about) Palladio appeared in 124 episodes between 2012 and 2018.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4112253/)
The role put him in Music City working with producer [T Bone Burnett](https://www.edgepedia.org/t-bone-burnett), with the singer, songwriter, and producer Buddy Miller as his country music coach, and alongside his duet partner, the Australian actress [Clare Bowen](https://www.edgepedia.org/clare-bowen). Their pilot duet, the Civil Wars' song "If I Didn't Know Better", performed well on the digital charts in 2012.[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/sam-palladio-mn0003014151) He has said that before flying to Tennessee to film the pilot he had never been to the United States.[10](https://www.interviewmagazine.com/film/sam-palladio) The show's music gave him a chart presence as part of the Nashville Cast, including soundtrack releases through *The Music of Nashville: Season 4* in 2024.[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/sam-palladio-mn0003014151)
## Film and later television
Palladio played Prince Edward opposite [Vanessa Hudgens](https://www.edgepedia.org/vanessa-hudgens) in all three films of Netflix's *The Princess Switch* trilogy: *The Princess Switch* (2018), *The Princess Switch: Switched Again* (2020), and *The Princess Switch 3: Romancing the Star* (2021).[5](https://snapshot.apple.com/us/person/6621230435) His other screen work includes the voice of Roland in the animated film *Strange Magic* (2015), Ed in seasons two and three of the science fiction series *Humans*, Alexander Vasilchikov opposite [Helen Mirren](https://www.edgepedia.org/helen-mirren) in HBO's miniseries *Catherine the Great* (2019), Luke Chapman in ABC's *Rebel* (2021), and Jacob in [Channel 4](https://www.edgepedia.org/channel-4)'s *The Couple Next Door*.[6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/sam_palladio) • [9](https://www.unitedagents.co.uk/client/sam-palladio/cv/acting/?token=e72e00f0eb70) In 2024 he played Joe Strummer in the Bob Marley biopic *One Love*, released that February.[2](https://www.sampalladio.co.uk/about) • [6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/sam_palladio)
## Solo music
Having lived and made music in Nashville for nearly a decade, Palladio set out to make his debut album, saying it needed to reflect his British roots, his Cornish upbringing, and his time on both sides of the Atlantic.[2](https://www.sampalladio.co.uk/about) In 2022 he teamed up with the Danish producer Søren Hansen of New Politics and the multi-Grammy-winning producer Dave Sardy, whose credits include Oasis, Snow Patrol, LCD Soundsystem, and [The Who](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-who).[2](https://www.sampalladio.co.uk/about) His first single, "Something On My Mind", was released to critical acclaim, followed by "Tennessee", featuring [Chris Shiflett](https://www.edgepedia.org/chris-shiflett) of the [Foo Fighters](https://www.edgepedia.org/foo-fighters); Apple Music also lists "Meanwhile in London" and "Under the Tree" among his known songs.[2](https://www.sampalladio.co.uk/about) • [5](https://snapshot.apple.com/us/person/6621230435) He has also remained connected to the show that made his name, touring with *Nashville in Concert*, including the UK leg of the Encore Tour from Brighton to Newcastle.[11](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/rose-bruford-college_actormusician-nashvilleinconcert-nashvilleencoretour-activity-7429477578689814528-_5Xr)
## References
1. [Sam Palladio, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4112253/)
2. [About, Sam Palladio official site](https://www.sampalladio.co.uk/about)
3. [Alumni N-P, Rose Bruford College catalogue](https://catalogue.bruford.ac.uk/alumni-n-p)
4. [Sam Palladio Biography by David Jeffries, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/sam-palladio-mn0003014151)
5. [Sam Palladio, Apple Snapshot](https://snapshot.apple.com/us/person/6621230435)
6. [Sam Palladio, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/sam_palladio)
7. [Exclusive Interview: Sam Palladio on Nashville Season 1 and beyond, Assignment X](https://www.assignmentx.com/2013/exclusive-interview-sam-palladio-on-nashville-season-1-and-beyond/)
8. [Interview: Sam Palladio, Songwriting Magazine](https://www.songwritingmagazine.co.uk/interviews/sam-palladio)
9. [Sam Palladio Acting CV, United Agents](https://www.unitedagents.co.uk/client/sam-palladio/cv/acting/?token=e72e00f0eb70)
10. [Sam Palladio's 9 to 5, Interview Magazine](https://www.interviewmagazine.com/film/sam-palladio)
11. [Rose Bruford College post on the Nashville in Concert Encore Tour, LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/rose-bruford-college_actormusician-nashvilleinconcert-nashvilleencoretour-activity-7429477578689814528-_5Xr)
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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 › English actors: 2000s onward › Surnames N to P*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 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