Over 10 years since the start of Fresh Meat, here’s what all the cast are up to now

No TV show will ever portray university life in every single painful, excruciating detail as well as Fresh Meat. Across four seasons we saw Josie, Oregon, Vod, JP, Kingsley and Howard go from the awkward hell of meeting your uni flatmates for the first time and navigating Freshers’ Week, to getting 2:2s and getting set free into the world. But the first series of Fresh Meat came out over 10 years ago now – it’s fair to say the actors’ lives have changed a LOT since then and all the cast are now in very different places to where they were during the show.

Here’s where all the cast of Fresh Meat are now, and what they’ve been up to since the show:

Vod – Zawe Ashton

Zawe Ashton in the first episode of Fresh Meat, via Channel 4

Vod, who spent more time drinking and smoking in the living room than doing any work, was played by Zawe Ashton. In what is perhaps the wildest crossover of all time, Zawe is now engaged to the actual Tom Hiddleston. At the 2022 BAFTAs, Zawe was hiding her hand on the red carpet – but was pictured with a HUGE diamond ring on her finger, in an Insta posted by AJ Odudu.

After months of speculation following this, Tom confirmed their engagement. And in even better news, in October 2022 Zawe gave birth to their first baby together!

via Instagram @ajodudu

Zawe and Tom met whilst playing a married couple (!!) in a play called Betrayal in London in 2019, and confirmed their relationship after attending the Tony Awards together in 2021. Tom and Zawe reportedly spent time living together in Atlanta, USA during lockdown.

Since Fresh Meat, Zawe has been in a whole LOAD of films and TV shows. She played Oona in The Handmaid’s Tale, as well as being in Mr Malcom’s List, Wanderlust, Greta and Velvet Buzzsaw. She’s also in a Marvel film, called The Marvels, which will be released in 2023.

Now 38 years old, one look at her Instagram tells you Zawe is, quite frankly, incredibly cool. Her outfits are sensational, and she’s often at fashion events as well as posting a lot about social justice and activism. She has 140k followers on Insta.

Oregon – Charlotte Ritchie

Charlotte Ritchie in the first episode of Fresh Meat, via Channel 4

Oregon – who pretended she wasn’t posh when she was actually minted, spent most of the series shagging her middle-aged English professor, and ended up becoming the SU president – was played by Charlotte Ritchie. Charlotte filmed the first series of Fresh Meat whilst finishing her degree in English and drama at Bristol, and she is now 33 years old.

Charlotte Ritchie in the most recent series of Ghosts, via BBC

Since Fresh Meat Charlotte has had some pretty huge acting jobs – she was on BBC Three sitcom Siblings, Call The Midwife as Nurse Barbara (the one who was married to Tom the priest), and stars as Alison in BBC sitcom Ghosts. She also plays George in Feel Good, the girlfriend of Mae Martin’s character.

And in the wildest and most random news ever, Charlotte stars opposite Penn Badgley as Joe’s love interest in Netflix’s You season four!

Charlotte Ritchie as Kate in YOU season four, via Netflix

This season of YOU is set in London and sees Charlotte playing Kate, who is the best friend of Lady Penelope and dating Malcom, another professor at Joe’s uni, when we first meet her.

JP – Jack Whitehall

Jack Whitehall in the first episode of Fresh Meat, via Channel 4

Let’s get this one out of the way, shall we? Jack Whitehall played JP in Fresh Meat who was, for want of a better word, a bit of a posh knob. Jack was already a well-known comedian before starring in Fresh Meat, but he’s only gotten more successful since. Jack is now 34 and has five seasons of his own Netflix series, Travels With My Father, which sees him, well, travelling with his father.

Jack wrote the first three series of TV show Bad Education, starring in it as Alfie Wickers as well as the movie spin-off they made of it. After a break of a few years, 2023 brought a new series of Bad Education, although Jack’s character is no longer in it.

As well as this, Jack hosted the Brit Awards from 2018-2021, gone on several stand-up tours, and been in a whole load more films and TV shows – including Disney’s Jungle Cruise with the actual Dwayne Johnson, no biggie x

Josie – Kimberly Nixon

Kimberly Nixon in the first episode of Fresh Meat, via Channel 4

Kimberly Nixon played everyone’s favourite Welsh house mum Josie, who accidentally shagged JP on their first night of Freshers’ Week despite having a boyfriend – and then proceeded to spend the rest of the series in a will-they-won’t-they with Kingsley. It’s safe to say Josie had a bit of a mare.

Before Fresh Meat you defo already recognised Kimberly from Wild Child and Angus, Thongs – and she’s remained an actress since the show, too. Kimberly’s 37 now and has a child. She’s acted in films and TV shows like The Salisbury Poisonings, Death in Paradise and Ordinary Lives.

Kingsley – Joe Thomas

Joe Thomas in the first episode of Fresh Meat, via Channel 4

Arguably the most annoying character and biggest wet wipe in Fresh Meat, Kingsley is played by Joe Thomas, also known as Simon from The Inbetweeners. He is now 39.

Joe on Richard Osman’s House of Games in 2021, via BBC

Since Fresh Meat, Joe has been in films and TV shows including The Festival and White Gold (alongside The Inbetweeners co-star James Buckley, who played Jay). He’s also been on TV gameshows such as Taskmaster and Richard Osman’s House of Games.

Joe and Hannah in The Inbetweeners, via Channel 4

Joe is also engaged to his Inbetweeners co-star Hannah Tointon, who played Simon’s girlfriend Tara. And in October 2022 they announced the birth of their first daughter!

Howard – Greg McHugh

Greg McHugh in the first episode of Fresh Meat, via Channel 4

And last but by no means least, we have odd-but-lovable Howard, played by Greg McHugh who is now 43 and no longer has Howard’s beard.

Greg was in the Christmas special of Fresh Meat co-star Jack Whitehall’s TV show, Bad Education, playing Bonehead. He plays Eddie in BBC drama The A Word, was in Sky programme A Discovery of Witches, and has acted in various other shows and plays since finishing his time in Fresh Meat. Greg is married and has two children.

Featured image via Instagram @jackwhitehall

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