Lucian Wiina Msamati (born 5 March 1976) is an actor, writer and director. Born in the UK and raised in Zimbabwe by his Tanzanian parents, he is the eldest of four siblings. In 1994, while at school in Harare, Zimbabwe, he founded the Over the Edge Theatre Company with several school friends, which periodically regroups (in Zimbabwe and elsewhere) to put on new productions, some of them written by Msamati. After leaving the University of Zimbabwe in 1997 he became a freelance copy-editor and a radio broadcaster.
In 2003 Msamati permanently relocated to London, where he continues to live with his partner and their two children. As well as continuing to work on stage, he expanded his work into television, appearing in episodes of Ultimate Force, Spooks, Ashes to Ashes, Doctor Who, Death in Paradise and Luther (2013). He also appeared in the BBC's 2012 series The Hollow Crown (Richard II). In 2008 he took on a prominent role in HBO's The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency and the following year appeared in his first feature film, The International. In 2010 he was appointed Artistic Director of the acclaimed British-African theatre company Tiata Fahodzi.
In Game of Thrones Msamati is playing the role of Salladhor Saan. He was announced in the role on 25 August 2011.[1] He joined the cast as a guest star in the second season.
He is currently starring in the BBC/FX period drama series Taboo, along with his Game of Thrones co-stars Jonathan Pryce, Jefferson Hall, Nicholas Blane, Oona Chaplin, Roger Ashton-Griffiths, and Mark Gatiss.
