Narrow Road

What Narrow Road does

Narrow Road, legally The Narrow Road Company, is a UK-based talent management agency founded in 1986 that represents actors, voice talent, and creative professionals across film, television, theatre, and commercial work. The agency operates from its headquarters in London's West End (The Dutch House, High Holborn) with a secondary office in Manchester, and is a long-standing active member of the Personal Managers Association (PMA) and Equity union. Its roster is regularly placed in major productions including HBO's House of the Dragon, Netflix's Bridgerton, Apple TV's Hijack, the Moulin Rouge World Tour, and West End musicals such as Hadestown, Paddington, and Operation Mincemeat.

The business runs on a commission-based professional services model, earning a percentage of contract fees secured for represented talent; pricing is not publicly disclosed and follows standard UK talent agency economics. Narrow Road has no proprietary technology platform, no AI/ML capabilities, and operates as a relationship-driven boutique firm with approximately 17 named team members led by Director/Agent Richard Ireson, alongside other Ireson-family agents, a dedicated voiceover and commercial agent, and an associate agent. Sub-brand Narrow Road Voices extends the offering into dedicated voiceover and commercial representation. The company is privately held, appears to be family-operated, and has no external private equity, venture capital, or parent company ownership.

Name

Narrow Road

Legal name

The Narrow Road Company

Website

https://narrowroad.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Narrow Road is a UK talent management agency founded in 1986 that represents actors, voice talent, and creative professionals across film, television, theatre, and commercial work, earning commission on contracts secured for its rostered clients.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Covent Garden

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Talent Representation and Commission: Revenue generated through commission on talent earnings from acting, voice, and creative work placements. Agency provides career management services and receives percentage of contracts secured for represented talent.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Narrow Road (The Narrow Road Company) is a London-based talent management agency founded in 1986 that represents actors, voiceover artists, and creative professionals. The company operates three divisions — Actors, Voices (under the sub-brand Narrow Road Voices), and Creatives — securing bookings, negotiating contracts, and managing careers on behalf of represented talent. An additional office is maintained in Manchester.

Product overview

Narrow Road is a talent management agency founded in 1986, operating as a single unified service rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. The company specializes in representing actors and creatives across all areas of the entertainment industry, including film, television, stage productions, and voice work. The core offering is career representation and management, promoting talent in the UK and internationally through a network of agents based in London. The agency operates through distinct divisions: Actors (narrowroad.co.uk/actors), Voices (narrowroadvoices.co.uk), and Creatives (narrowroad.co.uk/creatives), though no separate product pages for Voices or Creatives were found in the provided data.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Narrow Road Voices: Voice talent representation division operating at narrowroadvoices.co.uk

Products and services

• Actor Representation Career management and booking representation for professional actors, handling auditions, contract negotiation, and placement with casting directors and production companies.
• Voiceover Representation (Narrow Road Voices) Dedicated sub-brand Narrow Road Voices representing voiceover talent for commercials, animation, narration, gaming, and other voice-led productions.
• Creative Talent Representation Representation services for creative professionals beyond acting and voice work, supporting booking and career development across the wider creative industries.

Named customers22 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Personal Managers Association (PMA)coreOthersActive members of the Personal Managers Association, the professional body representing talent management agencies in the UK entertainment industry.
• EquitycoreOthersActive members of Equity union since 1986, the trade union for actors, directors, and other professionals working in the performing arts in the UK.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Julian Belfrage Associates: London-based boutique talent agency representing actors across screen and stage. Directly comparable in size, single-country focus, and actor-representation specialism.
• United Agents: Large UK talent and literary agency representing actors, writers, and directors across all entertainment verticals. Comparable in offering full-service talent management from a London base, though at significantly larger scale.
• Hamilton Hodell: London-based talent agency representing actors across film, television, and theatre. Directly comparable in commission-based talent representation model and West End client base.
• Curtis Brown Group: One of the UK's longest-established literary and talent agencies representing actors, writers, and directors. Directly comparable to Narrow Road as a UK-headquartered talent management firm operating in film, TV, and theatre representation.
• Markham, Froggatt & Irwin: Long-established UK talent management agency representing actors across all entertainment media. Comparable as a heritage UK talent agency with London presence and broad-based actor representation.
• Independent Talent Group: Major UK talent agency representing actors across screen and stage. Directly comparable in service offering, customer base (professional performers), and London-headquartered operating model.
• Conway van Gelder Grant: Boutique London talent agency representing actors across film, television, and theatre. Closely comparable to Narrow Road in size, positioning, and West End operating model.
• Gordon & French: London talent agency representing actors across the entertainment industry. Comparable boutique UK talent representation firm operating with a similar personal-management approach.
• Waring & McKenna: London-based talent management agency representing actors across film, TV, and theatre. Directly comparable as a boutique UK talent agency in similar production verticals.
• ARG Talent: London-based talent management agency representing actors for film, television, and theatre. Comparable boutique-tier competitor operating in the same UK casting ecosystem.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/thenarrowroadco
• Instagraminstagram.com/narrowroadagency/?hl=en

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Narrow Road