Acting Fleeshman began his professional career in the film called
An Angel for May. Starting at age 12, and continuing from 2002 to 2006, he played the role of
Craig Harris in
Coronation Street. He was the only member of his on-screen family to escape the axe in 2005, leaving the programme at the age of 16. His final episode was broadcast on 16 October 2006. Fleeshman later filmed an episode of
Blue Murder in 2007 in which he played the character Ben Holroyd, starring alongside
Jill Halfpenny. The episode, called "Crisis Management", was broadcast in December 2007 on
ITV. He played the role of Gillen in the ITV comedy drama
Monday Monday, which aired on 10 August 2009. On 16 June 2010, Fleeshman joined the company of
Legally Blonde in London, taking over from
Duncan James in the role of Warner. In 2009, he played the role of a musically talented but troubled boy named Kyle Caddick in a six-part
BBC drama series
All the Small Things allowing him to act as well as sing. Within the series he performed many songs, both solo and as part of a choir, and also sang the song that runs over the end credits. He co-wrote the song with
Sir Elton John and the show's creator
Debbie Horsfield. His father, actor David Fleeshman, played the role of Gilbert in the same series.
All the Small Things was screened in Australia under the title of
Heart and Soul. Fleeshman starred in the West End production of
Ghost: The Musical, based on the film
Ghost, written by
Bruce Joel Rubin, with music and lyrics by
Dave Stewart and
Glen Ballard). He played the lead role of Sam Wheat (played by
Patrick Swayze in the film) alongside
Caissie Levy as Molly and
Sharon D. Clarke as Oda Mae Brown. The show premiered at the
Opera House, Manchester on 28 March 2011 and moved to the
Piccadilly Theatre on 22 June 2011. When Fleeshman was offered the role in its Broadway transfer, he left the show in the West End with co star
Caissie Levy on 12 January 2012 to star in the Broadway production. It began previews on 15 March 2012 at the
Lunt Fontanne Theater and officially opened on 23 April 2012. Richard was invited to perform at the 2012 Tony Awards. Fleeshman and Levy remained in the Broadway Production until its final performance on 18 August 2012. In 2013, Fleeshman starred as Bobby Strong in the UK premiere of the hit satirical musical,
Urinetown, directed by Jamie Lloyd, at the
St James Theatre. He then went on to film
Call the Midwife for the BBC which was broadcast early February 2015. His next musical project was playing the role of George Bevan, in
A Damsel in Distress, a musical adaption of the novel
A Damsel in Distress, at the
Chichester Festival Theatre beginning on 30 May 2015. In 2017, Fleeshman played
Francis Drake in two episodes of the CW series
Reign. In 2018, Fleeshman took on the role of Gideon Fletcher in
Sting's musical
The Last Ship. He received rave reviews for his performance. In 2018, Fleeshman took on the role of Air-Steward 'Andy' in the West-End gender swapped revival of Stephen Sondheim's
Company, directed by Marianne Elliot. For this role, he was nominated for the
Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical. In 2022, Richard guest starred in CHIVALRY for Channel 4 and played the role of KEN in The Sandman. ( Netflix) In 2023, he had a leading role in the TV series
The Ark on
Syfy. Richard is playing Walter in the Uk premiere Marjorie Prime at The Menier Theatre in London. In August 2024, he played
William Shakespeare in a West End concert of
Something Rotten! at
Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. In the spring of 2025, he played the Soldier in the London premiere of
Stephen Sondheim’s
Here We Are. In 2025, Fleeshman appeared in the BBC Drama
Riot Women, written by
Sally Wainwright.. His character, Jojo, was a love-interest for Holly, played by
Tamsin Greig.
Music at the
Keepmoat Stadium in Doncaster, July 2008. Fleeshman is a singer and songwriter. He plays the piano and guitar. At age 13 in 2003, he became the youngest celebrity contestant to win
Stars in Their Eyes. He was also the winner of
Soapstar Superstar in 2006, earning £200,000 for his chosen charity,
The Kirsty Appeal. Fleeshman signed a major record deal with
Universal in 2007. His
debut album was released that same year. Richard supported
Elton John on his Summer stadium tour in 2008. Later that year, he supported him again during his
Red Piano concert residency in
Las Vegas. ==Personal life==