Mark Heap (born 13 May 1957) is an English actor and comedian. He is known for his roles in television comedies, including, Brass Eye, Big Train, Spaced, Jam, Green Wing, Friday Night Dinner, Upstart Crow and Benidorm. Early life Heap was born in Kodaikanal, Tamil Nadu, India, to an English father and American mother, the youngest of four boys. He began his acting career in the 1980s as a member of the Medieval Players, a touring company performing medieval and early modern theatre, and featuring stilt-walking, juggling and puppetry. His brother, Carl Heap who is also an actor, was the artistic director of the company. After its demise, he became part of the street theatre duo The Two Marks (with Mark Saban) who appeared on television shows Ghost Train, Saturday Live and 3-2-1. Television Heap has appeared in a variety of television comedy roles, often playing eccentric and self-deluded characters and drama including struggling artist Brian Topp in Spaced, the pompous Dr. Alan Statham in Green Wing, and various roles in the sketch show Big Train, many scenes of which he improvised, most notably performing a barefoot gymnastics routine to Montagues and Capulets. He has worked in a number of ventures with Chris Morris, appearing in Jam, its radio predecessor Blue Jam, and the documentary parody series Brass Eye. He voiced the lead character of Eric Feeble in the animated comedy Stressed Eric. Other recurring roles included Terry Roche in Paul Whitehouse's comedy-drama Happiness and Derek Few in How Do You Want Me?. He played Harry in the short-lived Rob Grant TV series The Strangerers, aired in 2000. He also guested in the second series of the BBC comedy Look Around You as Leonard Hatred. He appeared in the 2007 BBC One drama Hotel Babylon as an unsuccessful businessman who became a bellboy. Between 2008 and 2010 he appeared in 32 episodes of the BBC period drama Lark Rise to Candleford as head postman Thomas Brown, as well as super villain Lightkiller in an episode of the sitcom No Heroics. He also appears as the father of Chris Miles in the Channel 4 programme Skins. Heap played the love interest of the main character in the second series of the BBC comedy Love Soup. He played the role of Charles Dickens in the 2009 BBC Two drama Desperate Romantics. He also played Jessica Hynes' husband in the one-off comedy Lizzie