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Daniels was born in 1964 and currently resides in South London. He trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art and has had considerable acting experience in theater, including roles in Euripedes' Iphigenia at Aulis, Chekov's The Three Sisters and Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet — all at the Royal National Theatre.

In London's West End , he has performed in Naked, 900 Oneonta, Tales From Hollywood and As You Like It. In 2001, Daniels won an Olivier Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in All My Sons at the National Theatre.

"I love doing theatre," Daniels said in an interview with BBC. "It's tough and keeps you on your toes as an actor. I think it's really hard to do a show every night and keep it alive but it's a real challenge."

One of his first film roles was Robin, the gay love interest in the TV movie The Lost Language of Cranes (1991), a film that made a considerable splash. His acting ability helped him slip unnoticed past gaydar everywhere in his role as Tony, Sandra's easygoing, straight, working-class boyfriend, in the gay-themed film A Beautiful Thing (1996).

In 1997, Daniels starred (and appears nude) as Augustin Robert in the critically acclaimed art film Passion in the Desert. This period psychological drama, based on a novella by Honore de Balzac, is a tale about survival in the wilderness, the hidden beast within us all, and one man's inner, spiritual love relationship with an animal.

For Daniels, making the film included the physical challenges of working on location in Egypt, Morocco, Namibia and Tunisia, as well as the danger of having a great deal of close contact with a leopard named Mowgli. "The second time we met," Daniels recalled after the film was shot, "Mowgli nipped me. He wasn't being aggressive, but there were teeth marks on my arm after he was pulled off."

Daniels achieved his greatest fame to date for his role as the womanizing scoundrel Finn Bevan on the BBC TV series Cutting It (he appeared in episodes during 2002–2004), which made him a hit with female fans. "I even had women giving me their phone numbers," Daniels said in an interview with RainbowNetwork.com. "One even chased me 'round a supermarket!"

More straight, masculine roles followed. Daniels appeared as a marine named Goat, acting alongside Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and a whole spaceship full of tough guys in the testosterone-charged sci-fi film Doom (2005), based on the video game of the same name. To prepare for his role as a soldier, Daniels had to get up 6 a.m. every morning to undergo boot camp training with other cast members.

Speaking of macho roles, in 2005 Daniels played James Bond novelist Ian Fleming in the film Ian Fleming: Bondmaker. Current James Bond star Daniel Craig recently indicated he is open to adding a gay element to future Bond movies. With his experience in spy films such as Bondmaker and now The State Within, the suave, manly and British-mannered Daniels is well-suited to take on that role.

As a film actor, Daniels appears to be his own man who chooses his roles carefully. Despite the potential lure of Hollywood, he maintains a preference for the stage and for working in his homeland. His ambivalence toward Tinseltown is evident in a recent interview with RainbowNetwork.com. "I landed two Hollywood movie roles," Daniels said, "one alongside Mel Gibson in The Patriot and the other with Chris O'Donnell in Vertical Limit. The money was good, but it wasn't for me."

Hollywood's misfortune is the U.K.'s gain, as Daniels will no doubt continue to grace British television, film and theater for many years to come. Thanks to BBC America, however, audiences in the States won't be totally deprived of his talents.

The State Within premieres on BBC America on Feb. 17, with the second part airing on Feb. 18 and the third on Feb. 24.

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