Simon Merrells. Actor: Spartacus: War of the Damned. Essex boy Simon is the elder of the two acting Merrells brothers, born in 1965, three years before his sibling Jason. Though there was no acting background in the family both boys were keen to tread the boards at an early age, attending Saturday morning drama classes, then a Sylvia Young school, and, in Simon's case, drama college, though on graduation he...