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Alrick Riley
Alrick Riley
Alrick Riley
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Alrick Riley (born 1964) is a BAFTA TV award-winning English television director and writer, and former child actor.

Key Information

He is known for his work on the British series Spooks (known as MI-5 in some countries) and Hustle; along with his more recent work on the American fairytale drama Once Upon a Time.

Life and career

[edit]

Riley was born in London, England. As a shy young child, his Jamaican parents "made" him go to an acting club to force him "out of himself". He began his acting career at eleven years old as a featured extra on the BBC TV comedy Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em, followed by appearances in series, such as: Johnny Jarvis and Me and My Girl, and the 1979 film Scum.[1]

After leaving high school, Riley knew he no longer wanted to act, but "definitely wanted to stay in the business". He and a friend bought an 8 mm camera, and Riley discovered a passion for direction. His mother was initially against his pursuit of directing: she favoured the theatre arts and was concerned he would not be a success pioneering to be a black television director. He attended West Midlands University [citation needed], before attending the National Film & Television School. Two short films he directed while at the school, Money Talk and Concrete Garden, went on to be screened at multiple international film festivals[citation needed]. Riley credits Martin Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola as notable inspirations, but accredits his love of film to Charles Burnett.[2]

Riley has directed episodes of Playing the Field, Stanton Blues, The Inspector Lynley Mysteries, Hotel Babylon, Silent Witness, Boy Meets Girl, Ashes to Ashes, Bedlam, Spooks, Hustle, Hunted, Death in Paradise, Perception, Castle, NCIS, Legends, NCIS: New Orleans, The Walking Dead, Person of Interest, Tyrant and Once Upon a Time.[3]

Riley was one of the writers on the British sitcom Desmond's.[4]

Along with Eric Coulter and Harry Bradbeer, in 1999 Riley won a BAFTA TV Award for their work on the UK series The Cops. His winning of the prestigious honour marked the first time in the history of the assembly that a black man was recognised [citation needed].

Select filmography

[edit]

Direction

[edit]
Year Show Season Episode title Episode Credit
1998–2001 Stanton Blues 1 N/A 4 Director
5
6
2 4
5
9
10
3 3
4
2009 Boy Meets Girl 1 1
2
3
4
2011 Bedlam 1 "Inmates" 3
"Committed" 5
"Burning Man" 6
2004–2011 Spooks 3 N/A 9
10
4 3
4
6 9
10
8 1
2
5
8
10 1
2
2005–2012 Hustle 2 "The Lesson" 3
"Missions" 4
4 "Big Daddy Calling" 6
8 "Gold Finger" 1
"Ding Dong That's My Song" 5
"The Con is Off" 6
2014 Perception 3 "Bolero" 7
"Prologue" 8
Intelligence 1 "The Rescue" 5
"Size Matters" 7
Graceland 2 "The Ends" 8
Castle 7 "Montreal" 2
"Once Upon a Time in the West" 7
2014–2016 Once Upon a Time 4 "Breaking Glass" 5
5 "The Broken Kingdom" 4
"Devil's Due" 14
6 "Strange Case" 4
2015 CSI: Crime Scene Investigation 15 "Under My Skin" 17
Revenge 4 "Retaliation" 16
Legends 2 "The Legends of Curtis Ballard" 3
"The Legend of Ilyana Zakayeva" 4
2015–2020 NCIS 12 "Check" 11
13 "Loose Cannons" 16
14 "Home of the Brave" 7
"Pandora's Box, Part 1" 14
15 "Double Down" 15
"Handle with Care" 16
16 "A Thousand Words" 7
"Mona Lisa" 18
17 "Schooled" 18
2015–2016 NCIS: New Orleans 1 "You'll Do" 21
2 "Means to an End" 19
Person of Interest 4 "Terra Incognita" 20
5 "A More Perfect Union" 6
2016 Wayward Pines 2 "Sound the Alarm"
Dead of Summer 1 "Home Sweet Home" 9
Tyrant 3 "Ask for the Earth" 8
2016–2017 The Walking Dead 6 "Twice as Far" 14
7 "The Cell" 3
"Bury Me Here" 13
2017–2018 Lucifer 2 "A Good Day to Die" 13
"Let Pinhead Sing!" 17
2018 Bull 2 "A Redemption" 19
The Crossing 1 "Some Dreamers of the Golden Dream" 7
2019 How to Get Away with Murder 5 "Be the Martyr" 11
6 "I Want to Be Free" 8
The Good Doctor 2 "Believe" 16
3 "SFAD" 7
2019–2022 S.W.A.T. 2 "Day of Dread" 21
3 "Funny Money" 48
5 "Family" 102
2019 Blood & Treasure 1 "The Curse of Cleopatra, Parts I & II" 1-2
"Code of the Hawaladar" 3
2020 Unsaid Stories 1 "Generational" 10
Bridgerton 1 "Oceans Apart" 7
"After The Rain" 8
2021 Stephen 1 "Episode 1" 1
"Episode 2" 2
"Episode 3" 3

References

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[edit]
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Alrick Riley

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Alrick Riley is a British television director and writer known for his acclaimed work on drama series across British and American television, including BAFTA-winning contributions to the genre. Born in London, he is a former child actor who graduated from the National Film and Television School, where his student short films Money Talks and Concrete Garden earned early recognition, including the Grand Prix at the Brest European Short Film Festival in 1992. Riley has built a career directing episodes of prominent series, with credits spanning international productions and collaborations on shows such as Fear the Walking Dead and NCIS. His directing has been honored with a BAFTA Television Award and additional wins and nominations, reflecting his impact on character-driven storytelling in television. He remains active in the industry, contributing to high-profile drama projects.

Early life

Childhood and family background

Alrick Riley was born in 1964 in London, England. His father is Jamaican and regularly took him as a small boy to the National Gallery and the Tate Gallery, where he recalls the paintings as "massive, a bit like big TV screens full of colours." His interest in life's drama was further aroused at Anna Scher’s after-school drama club, where classes cost 10p each. This early involvement in structured drama activities marked the beginning of his engagement with performing arts before his first credited roles.

Early acting experience

Alrick Riley began his acting career as a child actor in the 1970s, appearing in British television series and films throughout the decade and into the 1980s. His first credited role came in 1975, when he played a rude boy in one episode of the BBC sitcom Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em. Riley's early credits included supporting parts in various productions, such as Lolo in an episode of Accident (1978) and the character Angel in the feature film Scum (1979). He also appeared as a boy in the television movie The Rear Column (1980), Whitey in an episode of The Gentle Touch (1980), Henry in an episode of Going Out (1981), and Richard Powell in an episode of Crown Court (1982). In the mid-1980s, Riley took on more prominent roles, including Paul Turner in six episodes of the mini-series Johnny Jarvis (1983), David in an episode of Scene (1984), Wendell in two episodes of the sitcom Me and My Girl (1985), and an expectant father in the mini-series To Have and to Hold (1986). These appearances represented the entirety of his credited acting work, which concluded in 1986.

Education and early filmmaking

National Film and Television School

Alrick Riley is a graduate of the National Film and Television School (NFTS). Having previously appeared as a child actor in various British television productions during the 1970s and 1980s, Riley pursued formal training in filmmaking at the NFTS, marking his transition toward a career behind the camera. During this period, he gained early professional experience in television production by serving as part of the script team in the script and continuity department on the Channel 4 sitcom Desmond's, contributing to 26 episodes from 1992 to 1993.

Short films and festival success

Alrick Riley gained early recognition as a director through a series of acclaimed short films produced during and immediately following his time at the National Film and Television School. His first notable short, Money Talks (1992), achieved international success with several festival awards. It won the Prix de la Ville de Brest (Grand Prix) at the Brest European Short Film Festival, the Best Young Talent award at the Munich Film Festival, and the Premio Award at the Festival Cinema Africano in Milan. Riley followed this with Concrete Garden (1994), which earned the Best Live Action Short Film award and the Rights of the Child Award at the Chicago International Children’s Film Festival. The film also received special mentions at the Munich and Milan festivals. These shorts were broadcast on UK television and screened at various international festivals, marking his emergence in the industry. His 1995 short No Bullying Here, a television drama produced for Channel 4, continued this momentum by winning the Royal Television Society Junior Drama Award and the Japan Prize Grand Prix. These early works and their festival honors established Riley's reputation for impactful storytelling in the short form.

Directing career

Transition and early UK directing work

Alrick Riley transitioned from script supervision and continuity roles to professional television directing in the late 1990s, building upon his National Film and Television School training and short film experience to enter scripted drama. His early directing work focused on British television series, beginning with Stanton Blues, where he helmed nine episodes between 1998 and 2001. The series won the BAFTA Television Award for Best Drama Series in 1999. Riley continued his early UK television contributions with an episode of the sports-themed series Playing the Field in 2002 and an episode of the mystery drama The Inspector Lynley Mysteries in 2003. These initial credits established his reputation in British broadcast drama before his later work on more high-profile series.

Major British television credits

Alrick Riley established himself as a key figure in British television directing through his work on several prominent BBC and independent series during the 2000s and early 2010s. He directed multiple episodes of the long-running spy drama Spooks (known internationally as MI-5) from 2004 to 2011, contributing to various seasons and helping shape the show's signature blend of high-stakes intelligence operations and character-driven tension. The series received an International Emmy nomination in the Drama Series category for Series 4. Riley also helmed multiple blocks of episodes for the popular con-artist drama Hustle, demonstrating his adeptness at managing ensemble casts and intricate, fast-paced plots centered on clever schemes and moral ambiguity. His other notable British television credits include directing episodes of the luxury hotel drama Hotel Babylon, the forensic crime series Silent Witness, and the time-shifted police procedural Ashes to Ashes, where he brought visual style and narrative momentum to character-focused stories. These projects solidified his reputation for reliable, high-quality direction within the UK's established television landscape.

American and international directing projects

Alrick Riley expanded his directing career to American television in the mid-2010s, building on his reputation established through British series. His international credits began with episodes of U.S. network and cable shows, including CSI in 2014 and Criminal Minds in 2014. He also directed episodes of Castle in 2014, Legends in 2015, Perception in 2014, and Tyrant in 2016. Riley took on recurring roles on several prominent series, directing two episodes of Person of Interest in 2015 and 2016. He directed nine episodes of NCIS between 2015 and 2020. His other American directing work includes episodes of Once Upon a Time, The Walking Dead, Fear the Walking Dead, and Lucifer. In 2019, Riley directed two episodes each of How to Get Away with Murder, The Good Doctor, and Blood & Treasure. He directed three episodes of S.W.A.T. from 2019 to 2022.

Recent work and ongoing projects

In recent years, Alrick Riley has directed episodes across several high-profile streaming and prestige television series, building on his earlier American directing work. His credits reflect a focus on drama and thriller genres for major platforms including Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV+, and ITV. In 2020, Riley directed episodes 7 and 8 of Bridgerton's first season, the acclaimed Netflix period drama series. That same year, he helmed the episode "Generational" for the anthology series Unsaid Stories on ITV. In 2021, he directed one episode of the Apple TV+ thriller Tell Me Your Secrets and all three episodes of the ITV mini-series Stephen, a follow-up to the earlier drama The Murder of Stephen Lawrence. Stephen earned a BAFTA nomination for Best Mini-Series in 2022. Riley's 2022 work included directing four episodes of Amazon Prime Video's science fiction series The Peripheral (episodes 1.3, 1.4, 1.7, and 1.8), where he also served as co-producer under showrunner Greg Plageman. He subsequently directed two episodes of the Apple TV+ series Truth Be Told in 2023 and two episodes of the Hulu mystery series Death and Other Details in 2024. Looking ahead, Riley is set to direct an episode of Surface season 2 for Apple TV+ in 2025, an episode of Gen V season 2 for Amazon, and an episode of Silo season 3 for Apple TV+.

Awards and recognition

BAFTA and other honours

Alrick Riley has received recognition from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) and other British television industry bodies for his directing contributions. He shared the BAFTA Television Award for Best Drama Series for The Cops at the 1999 British Academy Television Awards. His direction on the 2021 mini-series Stephen earned a nomination for the BAFTA Television Award for Best Mini-Series at the 2022 ceremony. Stephen also appeared on the shortlist for Best Drama Series at the 2022 Broadcast Awards. The anthology series Unsaid Stories, which Riley directed, received nominations at the Broadcast Awards. In addition to these honours, Riley's early work was recognised with awards from the Royal Television Society, including the Royal Television Society Junior Drama Award for No Bullying Here (1995) and Best Drama Series for The Cops.

Industry impact

Alrick Riley has established himself as a television director known for his contributions to high-profile drama series in both the British and American industries. His work spans acclaimed UK productions in the late 1990s and 2000s, as well as an extensive career directing episodes for major American network and streaming shows from the mid-2010s onward. Riley's career reflects a transition from child acting to directing, highlighted by his shared BAFTA TV Award win for Best Drama Series on The Cops in 1999. This early recognition marked a milestone in his shift to behind-the-camera roles after training at the National Film and Television School. As a black British director, Riley has credits on influential series that have reached international audiences. His career spans these regions.
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