Former Mr Gay UK Dino Fetscher stars in new Netflix thriller Fool Me Once

As Harlan Coben’s latest crime thriller Fool Me Once arrives on Netflix, Welsh actor and former Mr Gay UK Dino Fetscher is stepping into the role of a detective investigating a mystery.

Fool Me Once, an eight-part adaptation of Coben’s best-selling tale premiered on Monday (1 January) and follows ex-soldier Maya Stern (Coronation Street‘s Michelle Keegan) after she witnesses her recently murdered husband Joe (Obsession‘s Richard Armitage) on a nanny-cam in her home.

The cast also stars Absolutely Fabulous legend Joanna Lumley as Joe’s grieving mother, who definitely knows more than she is letting on, and Enola Holmes‘ Adeel Akhtar as lead homicide investigator Sami Kierce.

Fetscher is Sami’s more-junior partner, Marty McGregor, who he proves himself more of a hindrance than a help as the duo attempt to solve the questions surrounding Joe’s death.

Is Dino Fetscher gay?

Welsh actor Dino Festcher was born in Cardiff to a Welsh-Basque father and German mother.

He rose to prominence in 2008, aged 19, when he was crowned Mr Gay UK (an annual beauty contest for gay men). After moving into acting a decade ago, Fetscher was nominated as celebrity rising star at the British LGBT Awards in 2017.

In an interview with Attitude magazine in 2015, the actor, who has also appeared in BBC One’s lesbian favourite Gentleman Jack, revealed that he come out to his family in his teens, adding: “I was really lucky, my whole family were all totally fine.”

Fetscher, now 35, has never spoken about his love life, although it is believed he is currently single.

What has Dino Fetscher appeared in before?

Fetscher’s acting career was given a kick-start in 2015 when he starred as Aiden in Russell T Davies’ LGBTQ+ Channel 4 series Banana and Cucumber.

At the time, Davies said of the star: “He’s possibly the most beautiful man you’ll ever see on the screen in your life. He’s absolutely gorgeous, and a brilliant actor.”

Fetscher proved him right, going on to star in Now You See Me 2 and Humans, before working with Davies again in 2019 BBC drama Years and Years.

In 2023, he grew to even greater prominence after landing a role in Apple TV sci-fi drama Foundation. Talking to Attitude magazine, Fetscher said it was refreshing to play a queer character not defined by his sexuality.

He has also been praised a rising star within the theatre industry after securing an Olivier Award nomination for best supporting actor after appearing in Larry Kramer’s hit Aids drama, The Normal Heart, in 2022.

What has he said about working in the industry as a gay man?

Fetscher has been vocal about his experiences navigating the entertainment industry as a gay man. In an interview in 2015, he spoke about how he had been advised against revealing his sexuality in case it negatively affected his career.

“The general perception/fear among actors, even now, is that if you are openly gay then your career options are limited,” he said.

“I feel a great responsibility to be honest about myself, and have the courage to stand up and be who I am, to hopefully help change things even more,” he said at the time.

“If that means I might miss out on certain roles, then so be it. I believe choosing to conceal an element of your life like that sends out such a negative message, there are people killing themselves over this.”

In a more-recent interview, he also shared his views on whether only queer actors should play LGBTQ+ roles.

“It’s really important for young queer kids to see a queer character, then to find out that actor is queer in real life. It’s really empowering,” he said. “Or for a trans kid to see a trans actor playing a trans role, then they might be able to look up to them.”

Fool Me Once is available to stream on Netflix now.