Mark grew up in the Grange Town area of Middlesborough and was educated at the Sarah Metcalf School and Stockton/Billingham Technical College. The son of a long distance lorry driver he performed in Middlesborough Youth Theatre productions before attending RADA in 1986. His break came in Career Girls and he made his television debut in Boon (1991/2) and his film debut in There's No Business. He lives in Hastings with his wife and 3 children and rarely works in the North East.