Reeson Wayne "Reece" Shearsmith (born 27 August 1969) is an English actor, writer and comedian. He is best known for being a member of The League of Gentlemen, alongside Steve Pemberton, Mark Gatiss, and Jeremy Dyson. With Pemberton, he later created, wrote and starred in the sitcom Psychoville, as well as the dark comedy anthology series, Inside No. 9. He has also had notable roles in Spaced and The World's End. Early life Shearsmith was born in Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, as Reeson Wayne Shearsmith. He attended Andrew Marvell High School and then Bretton Hall College of Education where he met Mark Gatiss and Steve Pemberton. Career 1995–2005: Career beginnings and The League of Gentlemen The League of Gentlemen began as a stage act in 1995, transferred to Radio 4 as On the Town with The League of Gentlemen in 1997 and then arrived on television on BBC Two in 1999. The latter saw Shearsmith and his colleagues awarded a British Academy Television Award, a Royal Television Society Award and the prestigious Golden Rose of Montreux. Following The League of Gentlemen, Shearsmith appeared in comedy programmes including Max and Paddy's Road to Nowhere as well as playing villain Tony in the Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer comedy Catterick. He appeared in two episodes of the award-winning pop-culture comedy Spaced as Robot Wars obsessed TA soldier Dexter and played neurotic Doctor Flynn in hospital sitcom TLC alongside Alexander Armstrong. 2005–2013: Theatre, Psychoville and continued success From March 2006 to January 2007, he appeared in the West End as Leo Bloom in The Producers. In the 2008 English language DVD release of the cult 2006 Norwegian animated film Free Jimmy, Shearsmith voiced the character of "Ante", a heavy-set, bizarrely-dressed biker member of the "Lappish Mafia". In this, his voice is used along with Steve Pemberton and Mark Gatiss. Psychoville began June 2009 and marked his return to BBC2. The dark comedy series was written by Shearsmith and his League of Gentlemen writing partner Steve Pemberton. Both Shearsmith and Pemberton played numerous characters in the programme, which ran for two series and a Halloween special. In 2010 Shearsmith appeared in the John Landis black comedy Burke & Hare. In 2011, Cameron Mackintosh's new musical Betty Blue Eyes opened in the West End, in which Shearsmith played downtrodden husband Gilbert Chilvers (a chiropodist) alongside Sarah Lancashire. Also in 2011, he played Harry Wiseman