The Magnus Archives

Premise

Cast and characters

Main cast

• Jonathan Sims as Jonathan "Jon" Sims, the Head Archivist of the Magnus Institute. At the beginning of the series, he is often rude, short-tempered, and skeptical of the supernatural subject material of the statements themselves; however, as the seasons progress, Jon accepts the stories relayed by statement-makers as real and becomes kinder and more sympathetic. As of "Dwelling", he is in a romantic relationship with Martin Blackwood. He is asexual.
• Alexander J. Newall as Martin Blackwood, an archival assistant at the Magnus Institute, who obtained his job by lying about holding a degree in parapsychology. He is soft-spoken and generally gravitates away from social gatherings. As of "Dwelling", he is in a romantic relationship with Jonathan Sims.
• * Newall also voices recurring character Jared Hopworth/The Boneturner, a formerly-human avatar that acquired the ability to manipulate and extract bones, and turned himself into a deformed creature the more he used this ability.
• Lottie Broomhall as Sasha James, an archival assistant at the Magnus Institute, mainly locating records that could set the standard of proof for statements. In "Infestation", she is replaced by an entity known as 'Not-Sasha', which wears her identity with a different body.
• Mike LeBeau as Timothy "Tim" Stoker, an archival assistant at the Magnus Institute, who assumed the role after Jon was promoted to head archivist, having worked with him previously in the research department. He has been in relationships with men and women, as revealed in "Across the Street" when he courts two file clerks. Tim begins the series as kind and cocksure, but comes to resent his position within the institute, which he is unable to leave, and becomes increasingly more cynical and angry in his interactions with his co-workers, mainly Jon.
• Ben Meredith as Elias Bouchard, the Head of the Magnus Institute. He is initially dismissive of the concerns surrounding active paranormal activity within the institute, but is quick to reveal some degree of knowledge, and as having intentionally withheld information when confronted.
• Evelyn Hewitt as Not-Sasha, a paranormal entity that wears Sasha James' identity. It lives in the tunnels under the Institute when not performing the administrative tasks previously assigned to the real Sasha James, and has a significant role in drawing Jon's attention to the paranormal happenings within and below the institute.
• Sue Sims as Gertrude Robinson, the previous Head Archivist of the Magnus Institute. She was replaced by Jonathan Sims after she went missing in March 2015. She appears in some episodes in past recordings of statements, as Jon and the other assistants work to understand her previous role at the institute. Her demeanor is brusque, and she is very serious about her work. The true nature of her work and motives is slowly revealed throughout the series, especially in seasons 3 and 4.
• Frank Voss as Basira Hussain, a police officer sectioned to work on 'weird' cases. After responding to a case tied to a supernatural event, she signs a 'Section 31' form and becomes more and more involved in cases that eventually tie back to The Magnus Institute. She becomes involved with the Institute in an investigation surrounding a death in the Institute, in the aptly named episode "Section 31".
• Fay Roberts as Alice "Daisy" Tonner, a detective also sectioned to work on 'weird' cases through Section 31. She is known to use force, as well as her own judgements, to resolve cases.
• Lydia Nicholas as Melanie King, the former host of the YouTube series Ghost Hunt UK. After some strange supernatural incidents, she comes to be employed by the Magnus Institute. As of "Rotten Core" and perhaps before, she is in a romantic relationship with Georgie Barker.
• Sasha Sienna as Georgie Barker, the fearless host of the What The Ghost? podcast. She lives with her cat, The Admiral, and dated Jonathan Sims back when they both attended university. As of "Rotten Core" and perhaps before, she is in a romantic relationship with Melanie King.
• Alasdair Stuart as Peter Lukas, Captain of The Tundra and member of the Lukas Family. He acts as the antagonist, and temporary Institute Head, in Season 4. He is an avatar for one of the Supernatural Entities called the Lonely.

  Recurring cast

• Jon Gracey as Gerard "Gerry" Keay, who worked alongside Gertrude Robinson after she freed him from his mother, Mary. He is described as having "poorly dyed" black hair and tattoos of eyes on all of his joints and over his heart. Upon his death in 2014, Gertrude Robinson bound him to the Catalogue of the Trapped Dead, where he remained in ghost form until Jonathan Sims burned his page.
• Paul Sims as Jurgen Leitner, a collector of books affected by the same paranormal forces the Institute researches. He went into hiding in 1994 after his library was burned down, and resided in the tunnels underneath of the Institute until his death in "The Librarian".
• Luke Booys as Michael, also known as The Distortion, a manifestation of one of the Supernatural Entities called the Spiral. Its appearance is flexible, but its base appearance is that of Gertrude Robinson's former assistant, Michael Shelley, a tall man with straw blonde hair and a round face. The Distortion was bound to Michael as part of a ritual disrupted by Gertrude, taking on the appearance of her former assistant, while distorting his features. It both resides in and is a realm accessible only by a door of its own conjuring. It preys on people by luring them into its door and trapping them within an inescapable labyrinth. It was killed by and subsequently became Helen in "Another Twist".
• Hannah Brankin as Jane Prentiss, a previously ordinary woman working as a New Age shop assistant who turned into a living hive for wasp larvae after finding a wasps nest in her attic. Prentiss infected others by having the worms bury into their flesh, either killing them or turning them into hives. She was killed in the archives and cremated soon after.
• * Brankin also voices Rosie Zampano, assistant to Elias Bouchard at the Magnus Institute.
• Imogen Harris as Helen Richardson, a manifestation of the Spiral who replaced Michael, who occasionally assists and disrupts the Archive's activities.
• Guy Kelly as Michael Crew, an avatar of a paranormal force who meets Jonathan Sims in "The Coming Storm". He has a large, branching scar in the shape of a Lichtenberg figure as the result of being struck by lightning as a child.
• Jessica Law as Nikola Orsinov, a plastic mannequin who was originally Joseph Grimaldi. Orsinov serves one of the Supernatural Entities called the Stranger, which she attempts and fails to summon in "Stranger and Stranger".
• Hannah Walker as Jude Perry, a member of The Cult of the Lightless Flame, a group dedicated to destruction and suffering, who encounters Jonathan Sims in "Twice as Bright".
• Russell Smith as Oliver Banks, an avatar of one of the Supernatural Entities called the End, and able to see people's life force in the form of black tendrils.

  Plot

Season 1