Little Disasters Season 1 cast: Every character featured in the show and the actors behind them

Little Disasters season 1 is a six-episode Paramount+ thriller adapted from Sarah Vaughan’s 2020 novel. Created by Ruth Fowler and Amanda Duke, it premiered in the UK and Ireland on May 22, 2025, and globally on December 11, 2025.

The story follows four mothers whose friendship is shattered when Jess (Diane Kruger) brings her injured baby daughter to the A&E department, where her old friend, Dr. Liz Burgess (Jo Joyner), is on duty.

Liz’s decision to alert social services triggers an investigation that exposes hidden tensions among Jess, Liz, ambitious lawyer Charlotte (Shelley Conn) and struggling single mum Mel (Emily Taaffe), along with their husbands.

Directed by Eva Sigurðardóttir, the series examines postpartum pressure, judgment and the fragility of trust. 

Who plays who in Little Disasters season 1: Full cast breakdown

• Jess Carrisford – played by Diane Kruger: The seemingly perfect mother who faces suspicion after bringing her daughter Betsy to A&E with an unexplainable head injury. Kruger, an Oscar nominee for Inglourious Basterds, brings quiet intensity, drawing from her TV turns in The Bridge and films like Troy and The 355.

• Dr Liz Burgess – played by Jo Joyner: Jess's conflicted A&E doctor friend, torn between loyalty and duty when the injury raises red flags. Joyner, a UK TV staple from EastEnders as Tanya Branning, Shakespeare & Hathaway, Ackley Bridge, Riptide, For Her Sins and The Wives, grounds the moral dilemmas.

• Charlotte Hinman – played by Shelley Conn: The driven lawyer and upper-class working mother balancing career and family, whose judgments strain the group. Conn shines post-Bridgerton season 2, Gen V, Good Omens, Mistresses, Terra Nova, Liar and Alex Rider, adding a poised edge.

• Mel Quinn – played by Emily Taaffe: The group's free-spirited but overwhelmed youngest mom, facing financial woes while caring for others' kids amid her own troubles. Taaffe is seen in The Rising, The Beast Must Die, Informer, Little Bird, His House and The Dig.

• Ed Carrisford – played by JJ Feild: Jess's supportive but stressed, successful businessman husband, often absent due to work after Betsy's birth. Feild is known from Captain America: The First Avenger, Succession, Turn: Washington's Spies, Soulmates, New Amsterdam, The Peripheral, Northanger Abbey and Austenland.

• Nick Davis – played by Ben Bailey Smith: Liz's easygoing paramedic spouse, concerned about her stress as fallout spreads. Smith, aka rapper Doc Brown, brings levity from The Lazarus Project, Black Mirror ("Bête Noire"), Law & Order: UK, 4 O'Clock Club, Andor, Des, The Split, The Sixth Commandment and Cleaning Up.

• Andrew Hinman – played by Patrick Baladi: Charlotte's ambitious finance exec and lawyer husband, representing Jess while clashing over priorities and uncovering marital issues. Baladi, a Ted Lasso alum, delivers sharp tension from The Office, Mistresses, Stella, Marcella, Line of Duty, Breeders, Semi-Detached and No Offence.

• Rob Baird – played by Stephen Campbell Moore: Mel's volatile entrepreneur husband and record label owner partner, outspoken and often out at night, pushing boundaries. Moore is known from Masters of the Air, The One, War of the Worlds, The Confessions of Frannie Langton, Red Joan, the 2019 Downton Abbey film and The Union.

Supporting roles include:

• Frankie played by Jax James
• Kit played by Jago Bilderbeck
• Connor, played by Barney Wheeler
• Lucy Harding played by Chizzy Akudolu
• DC Steve Rustin, played by Robert Gilbert
• Mollie played by Lucy Freegard 
• Neil, played by Dominic Mafham
• Headmaster played by Jonathan Rhodes
• George played by Oscar Kerrigan

What's the plot of Little Disasters season 1? Quick overview

Four women who met in antenatal class a decade earlier face a crisis when Jess arrives at the hospital with her 10-month-old daughter, Betsey, who has a serious head injury. Paediatric registrar Liz, Jess’s friend, suspects the explanation doesn’t add up and reports it. 

The ensuing child-protection investigation drags secrets, resentment and past mistakes into the open, testing marriages and friendships to breaking point while exploring the intense pressures of modern motherhood.

Where to watch Little Disasters season 1

Little Disasters season 1 is streaming exclusively on Paramount+ (all six episodes available now). In Canada, it can also be accessed via the Paramount+ Amazon Channel or Apple TV channel.

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