John Marquez

John Charles Marquez was born in Coventry on June 5, 1970. His father was Spanish and owned a chip shop, while his mother was English. He describes his early life as ‘very English.’ His older brother, Martin Marquez, who is also an actor, encouraged him to pursue acting. Together, they formed a comedy duo called the Brothers Marquez. Marquez has two daughters from his marriage to the late actress Clare Cathcart.

Marquez gained significant recognition for his role as PC Joseph Penhale in the television series ‘Doc Martin’, which aired from 2007 to 2022 across 64 episodes. This role established him as a recognizable face in British television. Beyond ‘Doc Martin’, he has an extensive stage career, including appearances with the Royal Shakespeare Company in ‘The Taming of the Shrew’, the Royal Court in ‘Ding Dong the Wicked’, and the National Theatre in ‘The Emperor Jones’ and ‘Market Boy’. He also performed in ‘House of Games’ and ‘The Hypochondriac’ at the Almeida, ‘Privates on Parade’ at the Noel Coward Theatre, and the musical ‘Dirty Rotten Scoundrels’ in 2014.

In addition to his long-standing role in ‘Doc Martin’, Marquez featured as Ray in the BBC One comedy-drama ‘In the Club’ from 2014 to 2016, appearing in 7 episodes. Other notable television credits include ‘Death in Paradise’ (2017), ‘Porridge’ (2017), and ‘Britannia’ (2019), where he played Felix for 4 episodes. His early television career included smaller roles in ‘Black Books’ (2002), ‘Holby City’ (2005), ‘The Trial of Tony Blair’ (2007), ‘Suburban Shootout’ (2007), and ‘Hotel Babylon’ (2008). Marquez has also worked as a cinematographer and camera operator for the film ‘Tocar y luchar’ (2006).