Bashy

British rapper and actor (born 1985)

This article is about the British musician and actor. For the Pakistani writer, see Bashy Quraishy.

Bashy

Bashy at the MOBO Awards in 2025

Born|

Ashley Thomas

(1985-02-04) 4 February 1985 (age 40)

Hammersmith, London, England

Citizenship| United Kingdom
Education| BRIT School
Occupations|

* Actor
* rapper

Years active| 2002–present
Musical career
Also known as| Bashy
Genres|

* Hip hop
* British Hip Hop
* Alternative Rap
* Grime

Instrument| Vocals
Years active| 2002–present

Musical artist

Website| bashy.com

Ashley Thomas (born 4 February 1985), also known by the stage name Bashy,[1] is a British actor and rapper.[2]

## Early life

[edit]

Thomas was born in Hammersmith, West London. His mother is of Jamaican heritage and his father is of Dominican heritage.[1] He attended St. Mary's of the Angels RC Primary School. Aged 8, his family moved to Kensal Rise, in the London Borough of Brent. He attended Cardinal Hinsley High School,[1] where he excelled in drama studies. Thomas then went on to join the BRIT School for Performing Arts as a theatre student.[1]

Before finding acting and music success Thomas worked as a postman for the Royal Mail and later as a London bus driver during his early twenties.[3]

## Career

[edit]

### Music

[edit]

By his late teens, Thomas was a part of the UK’s emerging grime scene, rapping on pirate radio stations.

In 2007, Thomas released the song "Black Boys".[3] With frequent reports of shootings and stabbings on news bulletins, and with the media focusing on the lack of role models in black communities, Thomas felt that the British inner-city youth could be reminded they had a number of positive role models they could look to for inspiration.[3]

In 2008, Thomas started working on Adulthood.[3] Noel Clarke, the writer and director of Adulthood, first encountered Thomas when he was passed a copy of The Chupa Chups Mixtape, which contained samples from Clarke's previous film, Kidulthood.[4] Clarke was impressed with what he heard and disregarded concerns around the copyright infringement instead finding a way for Thomas to work on the official soundtrack for Adulthood.[4] Thomas delivered the film's theme song Kidulthood to Adulthood.[4]

Thomas released his debut album, Catch Me If You Can in 2009.[3] The album was nominated for the 2009 MOBO Award for Album of the Year.

In 2010, Thomas featured on the song "White Flag" by Gorillaz from their critically acclaimed album Plastic Beach.[3] The song saw Bashy feature alongside UK rapper Kano and the Syrian National Orchestra for Arabic Music.[3]

In 2013, Thomas stepped away from music to focus on his acting career full time.

Thomas released his first full-length album in 15 years, Being Poor is Expensive, on 12 July 2024.[5] The album received critical acclaim and won the 2025 MOBO Award for Album of Year. Bashy also won the MOBO Award for Best Hip Hop Act that same year.[6] His song How Black Men Lose Their Smile was nominated for an Ivor Novello Award for Best Contemporary Song.

### Acting

[edit]

Thomas landed his first role in 2010 as Rager in British flick, Shank,[3] an independent action film set in a decaying future London. He then went on to feature as Smoothy in the movie 4.3.2.1. that same year.[3] In April 2010, BBC Learning launched Off By Heart Shakespeare, a recital contest for secondary school pupils,[7] and Thomas was asked to play the role of Shylock from The Merchant of Venice.[7]

In 2011, Thomas played the part of Mental Mickey in Cockneys vs Zombies.[8] Later that year, he played Tyrone Jones in The Veteran.[8] His first television role came in the winter of 2011, in the Emmy award-winning series Black Mirror, by Charlie Brooker for Channel 4 as Judge Wraith in the episode "Fifteen Million Merits".[7]

In 2012, Thomas played the lead role in The Man Inside, opposite Peter Mullan, David Harewood and Michelle Ryan. His next film was My Brother the Devil,[8] which received critical acclaim, winning awards at both the Sundance Film Festival and Berlin Film Festival.

In 2013, he played the recurring character Jermaine Newton in Top Boy , a role he reprised in 2019 after it was announced that Netflix was to revive the British drama series.[7]

Early in 2015, Thomas guest-starred in the BBC series The Interceptor. Thomas' next TV appearance would be as Gil in the short-lived fantasy drama Beowulf: Return to the Shieldlands for ITV in January 2016. Thomas signed up to the ensemble cast of A Hundred Streets released the same year.[7]

Early in 2016, it was confirmed Thomas was to appear as Calvin Hart in the HBO limited series The Night Of directed by James Marsh and Steve Zaillian.[9] In March 2016, Thomas was set as a lead role in the 20th Century Fox Television reboot of franchise series 24 as Isaac Carter.[10] Early in 2018, Thomas played the brother of Luca Quinn (Cush Jumbo) in the legal drama The Good Fight, airing on CBS All Access.[7] Later that year Thomas starred in Skin, the film won the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film at the 91st Academy Awards.

In 2019 it was announced Thomas would co-star in the NYPD Blue reboot.[11] That same year Thomas was set to headline the Amazon Prime horror series Them;[12] for his performance he received an Independent Spirit Award nomination.[13] In 2021, Thomas starred in the British limited series The Ipcress File on ITV. In February 2022, the cast for the Steven Knight's adaptation of Charles Dickens' Great Expectations for the BBC was announced,[14] with Olivia Colman cast as Miss Havisham, Fionn Whitehead cast as Pip and Thomas cast as Mr Jaggers, becoming the first black actor to play the role; for his performance he received a Royal Television Society Programme Award nomination.[15] Later that year, Thomas had been cast as the male lead in the Hulu drama series Black Cake opposite Adrienne Warren and Mia Isaac.[16] In 2023 Thomas joined the cast of The Serpent Queen as Alessandro de Medici.[17] In March 2024 Thomas was cast in the Netflix political television series Hostage as Dr Alex Anderson, alongside Suranne Jones, filming began that month with the working title The Choice.[18] In November 2024 it was announced Thomas had been cast in the Channel 4 crime thriller drama series In Flight.[19]

## Discography

[edit]

### Studio albums

[edit]

List of studio albums  Year  | Album details

|

Catch Me If You Can |

* Released: 1 June 2009
* Label: Ragz2Richez

Being Poor is Expensive |

* Released: 12 July 2024[5]
* Label: Bish Bash Bosh Music

### Mixtapes/EPs

[edit]

* Ur Mum Vol One (2005)
* The Chupa Chups Mixtape (2007)
* Bashy.com (2008)
* The Fantasy Mixtape (2010)
* The Crunchie Mixtape (2011)
* The Great Escape EP (2012)
* Mixtape Legend Compilation (2013)

### Singles and music videos

[edit]

List of singles and music videos  Title  | Year  | Chart positions  | Album

|
|
|

[20]
"Black Boys"  | 2008  | —  | Catch Me If You Can
"Kidulthood to Adulthood"  | 86
"Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" (featuring Toddla T) | 2009  | —
"Your Wish Is My Command" (featuring H-Boogie) | —
"Fantasy" (featuring Preeya Kalidas) | 88  | Non-album singles
"Make My Day" (vs. NAPT) | 2010  | —
"These Are the Songs"  | 2013  | 87
"Bring the Lights Down" (featuring Jareth) | 2014  | —

### Guest appearances

[edit]

* "Clones" – 2006 (by Akira the Don)
* "Time Is Right Remix" – 2009 (by Frisco, also featuring Jme and Black the Ripper)
* "She Likes To" (England Top 10) – 2009 (by Wiley)
* "White Flag" from Plastic Beach – 2010 (by Gorillaz, also featuring Kano)
* "Dead Butterflies" – Song Machine, Season One: Strange Timez (by Gorillaz, also featuring Kano and Roxani Arias)
* "4,3,2,1" – 4.3.2.1 OST (Bashy featuring Paloma Faith and Adam Deacon)
* "It's All Love" (Remix) – 2012 (by Scorcher, also featuring Talay Riley, Kano and Wretch 32)
* "Bad Boys Don't Cry" – 2013 (by Loick Essien)

## Filmography

[edit]

### Film

[edit]

Year  | Title  | Role  | Notes

|
|
|

2010  | Shank | Rager  |
2010  | 4.3.2.1. | Smooth  |
2011  | The Veteran | Tyrone Jones  |
2011  | Cockneys vs Zombies | Mental Mickey  |
2012  | The Man Inside | Clayton  |
2012  | My Brother the Devil | Lenny  |
2016  | 100 Streets | Jules  |
2016  | Brotherhood | Calvin  |
2018  | Skin | Jaydee  |
2018  | Been So Long | Wendell  |
2018  | Kill Ben Lyk | Charming Ben Lyk  |
2018  | Skin | Jaydee  |

### Television

[edit]

Year  | Title  | Role  | Notes

|
|
|

2011  | Black Mirror | Judge Wraith  | Episode: Fifteen Million Merits
2015  | The Interceptor | Dexter Blair  | Episode: 1.3
2016  | Beowulf: Return to the Shieldlands | Gil  | 4 episodes
2016  | The Night Of | Calvin Hart  | 2 Episodes
2017  | 24: Legacy | Isaac Carter  | 10 Episodes
2018  | The Good Fight | Dominic Quinn  | Episode: Day 429
2018  | Ice | Malcolm Rose  | 10 Episodes
2018  | Salvation | Alonzo Carter  | 10 Episodes
2013–2019  | Top Boy | Jermaine Newton  | 7 episodes
2019  | NYPD Blue | Detective Chris Gamble  | Pilot (Unaired)
2021  | Them: Covenant | Henry Emory  | 10 Episodes
2022  | The Ipcress File | Paul Maddox  | 6 Episodes
2023  | Great Expectations | Jaggers  | 6 Episodes
2023  | Black Cake | Byron Bennett  | 8 Episodes
2024  | The Serpent Queen | Alessandro De Medici  | 5 Episodes
2025  | Hostage | Dr Alex Anderson  | Announced
2025  | In Flight | Dom  | Announced

## Awards and nominations

[edit]

MUSIC  Year  | Award  | Category  | Work  | Result  | Ref.

|
|
|
|
|

2008  | MOBO Awards  | Best Video  | Kidulthood to Adulthood  | Nominated  | [21]
Urban Music Awards  | Best Video  | Black Boys  | Nominated  | [22]
Urban Music Awards  | Most Inspirational Artist  | Won  | [23]
Screen Nation Awards  | Best Music Performance in Film/TV  | Won  | [24]
2009  | MOBO Awards  | Best Album  | Catch Me If You Can  | Nominated  | [25]
Best UK Act  | Nominated  | [26]
Urban Music Awards  | Best Hip Hop  | Nominated  | [21]
2024  | UK Music Video Awards  | Best Hip Hop, Rap and Grime  | Being Poor is Expensive | Nominated  | [27]
BET Hip Hop Awards  | Best International  | Nominated  | [28]
DJ Mag: Best Of British Awards  | Best Rap Album  | Nominated  | [29]
2025  | MOBO Awards  | Album of the Year  | Won  | [30]
Best Hip Hop Act  | Won  | [31]
Best Male Act  | Nominated  | [32]
Ivor Novello Awards  | Best Contemporary Song (How Black Men Lose Their Smile) | Nominated  | [33]
BET Awards  | Best International Act  | Nominated  | [34]
FILM / TV  Year  | Award  | Category  | Work  | Result  | Ref.

|
|
|
|
|

2021  | MOBO Awards  | Best Performance in a TV Show/Film  | Them | Nominated  | [35]
2022  | Independent Spirit Awards | Best Male Performance in a Scripted Series  | Them | Nominated  | [36]
2024  | Royal Television Society Awards | Breakthrough Talent  | Great Expectations | Nominated  | [37]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c d Fevre, Juliette (21 October 2021). "Top Boy actor Bashy returns to Harlesden school to surprise pupils". -www.kilburntimes.co.uk//.
2. ^ Barzey, Whelan (18 April 2021). "The rapper who's gone from driving London buses to starring in an Amazon Prime TV show". -www.mylondon.news/.
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Bashy - The bus driver who found a ticket to hip-hop fame". The Independent. 12 November 2010. Retrieved 8 October 2022.
4. ^ a b c "BrOTHERHOOD clip: Noel Clarke nearly SUED Bashy before he signed him up for the soundtrack". uk.sports.yahoo.com. Retrieved 8 October 2022.
5. ^ a b Keith, James (12 July 2024). "Bashy's New Album, Being Poor is Expensive, Is an Essential Listen". Complex. Retrieved 13 July 2024.
6. ^ Keith, James (18 February 2025). "Bashy Mobo Awards, Bashy, Darkoo and Odeal top winners at 2025 Mobo awards". the Guardian. Retrieved 18 February 2025.
7. ^ a b c d e f "Ashley 'Bashy' Thomas — underrated, legendary and inspiring". medium.com. 24 February 2019.
8. ^ a b c "Ashley "Bashy" Thomas Credits". tvguide.com. Retrieved 11 November 2023.
9. ^ Petski, Denise (11 March 2016). "James Gandolfini's Passion Project 'Criminal Justice' Gets Summer Premiere On HBO As 'The Night Of'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 27 October 2016.
10. ^ Petski, Denise (10 March 2016). "'24: Legacy': Ashley Thomas Set As Lead In Fox Reboot". -Deadline.com.
11. ^ Petski, Denise (18 January 2019). "'NYPD Blue': Ashley Thomas To Co-Star In ABC Sequel Pilot". -Deadline.com.
12. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (27 July 2019). "'Them': Deborah Ayorinde & Ashley Thomas To Star In Amazon Anthology Series From Lena Waithe". -Deadline.com.
13. ^ Lang, Brent (14 December 2021). "Indie Spirit Awards 2022: Full List of Nominations". -variety.com/.
14. ^ "Casting announced for Steven Knight's adaptation of Great Expectations for the BBC". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
15. ^ Shafer, Ellise (7 March 2024). "Gary Oldman, Hannah Waddingham, Bella Ramsey Among Royal Television Society Programme Awards Nominees". Variety. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
16. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (5 July 2022). "'Black Cake': Ashley Thomas To Star In Hulu Drama Series, Zetna Fuentes To Direct Pilot Episode". Deadline. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
17. ^ Otterson, Joe (6 March 2024). "Minnie Driver Among 10 Cast in 'Serpent Queen' Season 2 at Starz". Variety. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
18. ^ "The Choice: we couldn't be more ready for this new Netflix political thriller starring Suranne Jones". www.stylist.co.uk. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
19. ^ "Channel 4 announces thrilling new drama In Flight starring Katherine Kelly | Channel 4". www.channel4.com. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
20. ^ "Bashy songs and albums | full Official Chart history". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
21. ^ a b "Dizzee Rascal, Jay-Z and Estelle lead MOBO nominations | News". Nme.com. 11 September 2008. Retrieved 8 July 2011.
22. ^ "Interviews With Bashy, Sway, Tinchy Stryder, Skeelo & Richard Blackwood". Pr-inside.com. Archived from the original on 28 March 2012. Retrieved 8 July 2011.
23. ^ "Urban Music Awards 08 Nominations". 10 October 2008.
24. ^ "~* 7th Screen Nation Awards 2010 *~". Screennation.co.uk. Archived from the original on 27 July 2010. Retrieved 8 July 2011.
25. ^ "Full List of Nominations and Winners". 10 September 2009.
26. ^ "Full List of Nominations and Winners". 10 September 2009.
27. ^ "awards.ukmva.com". awards.ukmva.com. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
28. ^ Grein, Paul (18 September 2024). "Megan Thee Stallion Leads 2024 BET Hip Hop Awards Nominations: Full List". Billboard. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
29. ^ "DJ Mag announces nominations for 18th annual Best of British Awards". 18 November 2024.
30. ^ "Bashy wins best album at Mobo Awards after 15-year hiatus as Central Cee makes history". 18 February 2025.
31. ^ "Bashy wins best album at Mobo Awards after 15-year hiatus as Central Cee makes history". 18 February 2025.
32. ^ "Spice, Krept and Konan and Bashy announced as first MOBO 2025 performers". 20 January 2025.
33. ^ "Charli XCX, Lola Young, Raye and JADE among artists nominated for Ivor Novello Awards". Sky News. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
34. ^ Victorian, Brande (8 May 2025). "Kendrick Lamar Leads 2025 BET Awards Nominations With 10 Nods". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 8 May 2025.
35. ^ Beaumont-Thomas, Ben (11 November 2021). "Dave tops nominations at 2021 Mobo awards". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2 May 2025.
36. ^ "These are the 2022 Film Independent Spirit Awards Nominees". www.filmindependent.org/. 14 December 2021. Retrieved 14 December 2021.
37. ^ "Nominations announced for the RTS Programme Awards 2024". rts.org.uk. 7 March 2024. Retrieved 7 March 2024.

## External links

[edit]

* Official website
* Bashy at IMDb

* v
* t
* e

Bashy

Studio albums|

* Catch Me If You Can

Singles|

* "Keep Moving"
* "Fantasy"

Featured singles|

* "I Got Soul"

Authority control databases

International|

* ISNI
* VIAF

National|

* France
* BnF data

Artists|

* MusicBrainz

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