Jonny Labey
British actor
Jonny Labey (born 15 January 1993) is a Jersey actor, writer and filmmaker. On television, he is known for his roles as Paul Coker in the BBC soap opera EastEnders (2015-2016) and Rex Gallagher in the Channel 4 soap opera Hollyoaks (2024-2026). He is also known for his theatre work. He starred in the West End production of Strictly Ballroom.
01Early life
Labey is from Grouville, Jersey. He attended Grouville School and Victoria College. He began dancing aged 5 and appeared in his first stage show aged 8 as part of the Jersey Amateur Dramatic Club. In 2011, he left Jersey to take a BA course at the Doreen Bird College of Performance in Sidcup, London, graduating in 2014. His cousin is fellow actor Philip Labey, known for starring as "Acorn" in various television advertisements for Oak Furnitureland alongside Stephen Critchlow in the mid-2010s.
02Career
After graduating, Labey appeared in stage shows including In the Heights and White Christmas. He appeared in Leon Lopez's film Soft Lad. Labey joined the cast of EastEnders in 2015, in the role of Paul Coker, the grandson of Les Coker (Roger Sloman) and Pam Coker (Lin Blakley). The character falls in love with Ben Mitchell (Harry Reid), but was later killed off in a homophobic attack. Labey appeared in EastEnders between 1 June 2015 and 8 September 2016, appearing in 106 episodes. His first role after leaving EastEnders was as the lead character, Rupert Brooke, in the play Verge of Strife, staged in Edinburgh in August 2016. In 2017, he was a contestant on ITV's Dance Dance Dance.
Labey returned to the stage in 2018 when he starred as lead character Scott Hastings in the original West End production of the musical Strictly Ballroom.
In October 2019, he began competing in The X Factor: Celebrity. He was given a safe seat along with Jenny Ryan and Try Star in week 1, but was eliminated in week 2 after landing in the bottom 2 with Martin Bashir as the result went to deadlock. He finished in tenth place. In 2022, he played Jamie Renton in an episode of the BBC soap opera Doctors.
Labey joined the cast of Hollyoaks in June 2024 as Rex, a gangster and Hannah Ashworth's pimp.
Labey co-founded the production company Doing Brave Productions with Margherita Barbieri, through which he made his directorial debut with the short film Swirl State. He wrote the book for the musical Full Swing, which he premiered at Jersey Opera House in 2026.
03Personal life
Labey is in a relationship with actress and dancer Margherita Barbieri. Labey is neurodivergent.
04Discography
05Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Soft Lad | David | Film |
| 2015-2016 | EastEnders | Paul Coker | Regular: 106 Episodes |
| 2015 | Children in Need | Himself | Performed in "EastEnders Does Top Hat" medley |
| 2017 | Dance Dance Dance | Himself | Winner (First of the series) |
| 2017 | Taking The Next Step | Judge | CBBC talent show |
| 2019 | The X Factor: Celebrity | Himself | Contestant |
| 2022 | Doctors | Jamie Renton | Episode: "Ancient History" |
| 2022 | Dare To Dream | Theo | Short film |
| 2022 | Shakespeare & Hathaway: Private Investigators | Toby Philkes | Episode: "If Music Be the Food of Love" |
| 2024-2026 | Hollyoaks | Rex Gallagher | Regular: 51 Episodes |
06Stage
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | In the Heights | Graffiti Pete | Southwark Playhouse, London |
| 2014 | White Christmas | Ensemble | Dominion Theatre, London |
| 2018 | Strictly Ballroom | Scott Hastings | Piccadilly Theatre, London |
| 2022 | Barefoot in the Park | Paul Bratter | The Mill at Sonning |
| 2022 | Rehab | Kid Rock | Playground Theatre, London |
| 2022 | Top Hat | Jerry Travers | The Mill at Sonning |
| 2026 | Full Swing | Jersey Opera House |
07Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Inside Soap Awards | Best Affair (shared with Harry Reid) | Nominated | |
| 2015 | Digital Spy Reader Awards | Best Newcomer | Second | |
| 2016 | Inside Soap Awards | Best Partnership (shared with Reid) | Nominated |
Sources and credits
This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Jonny Labey”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.
Images, from Wikimedia Commons:
- Jonny Labey 2016.jpg by AnemoneProjectors, CC BY-SA 4.0
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