Background
He was born in London to Jamaican parents.
He was born in London to Jamaican parents.
McFarlane attended the Perse School, Cambridge, in his youth and later graduated from Loughborough University with a degree in Drama.
He has appeared in several television series, including The Fast Show, Judge John Deed, Jonathan Creek, Randall and Hopkirk, Jeeves and Wooster, Black Books and The Thin Blue Lincolnshire. He is also known for portraying Police Commissioner Gillian B. Loeb in Batman Begins and The Dark Knight. In 2006 he appeared in the fourth episode of the sixth series of the British Broadcasting Corporation Three comedy series Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps.
He voiced God and Goliath on Testament: The Bible in Animation.
He was also the voice of JJ in Bob the Builder. McFarlane appeared in the third series of Torchwood, Children of Earth as the American military representative and as the narrator on the Independent Television gameshow The Cube.
He is also the voice of Greg in the Buzz! series of videogames. In 2008, he appeared in Military Intelligence High (Series 2, episode 4) as Maximus Fiticus.
He starred as the evil Doctor Muhahahaha on the CBBC show Hounded.
On 6 September 2010 McFarlane appeared in an episode of Coronation Street as a consultant neurosurgeon, Mr Jordan. McFarlane voiced the character "Avalon Centrifuge" in the 2011 video game LittleBigPlanet 2. His voice acting résumé was expanded with the release of the second Castlevania: Lords of Shadow downloadable content, Resurrection.
He voices the "Forgotten One", central enemy of the two DLCs.
McFarlane starred in children"s animation Oscar"s Orchestra, a cartoon about a brave piano"s fight against an evil dictator"s war against music He played the part of Thadius Vent, the dictator.
McFarlane starred in Holby City as the father of a patient in late August 2011. He appeared in the first episode of Dirk Gently playing the character Terence Brown.
In 2013, McFarlane appeared with Lenny Henry in a critically acclaimed revival of August Wilson’s Fences at the Duchess Theatre in London"s West End.
On 24 April 2014, McFarlane starred as DCI Irving in EastEnders as part of the "Who Killed Lucy Beale?" storyline. In July 2014, McFarlane lent his vocal talents to the original audio drama Osiris by Everybodyelse Productions. He plays United States General Trent Stone.
In 2015 he guest-starred in Casualty playing Clifton Duheney.
In 2015, McFarlane appeared as Anton Burrage in the British Broadcasting Corporation television series Death in Paradise episode 4.6. McFarlane played a character known as Moran during the episodes "Under The Lake" and "Before The Flood", in the ninth series of Doctor Who from 2015.
He voices characters in the video game Batman: Arkham Knight. In 2016 McFarlane appeared in the British Broadcasting Corporation series Father Brown, as Cardinal Papillon in the episode 4.5, "The Daughter of Autolycus".
He will play Colonel Pierce in upcoming movie Patient Zero, which also stars Doctor Who actor Matt Smith, scheduled for release in 2016.