Born in Guildford, Surrey, he was educated at Felsted School in Essex and was a member of the National Youth Theatre of Great Britain.

Doherty is best known for his appearances in TV comedy including roles in The Thick Of It, Veep, Rev, Miranda, The Windsors, and the BAFTA winning [2] Him & Her - The Wedding.

[3] His work in feature films includes roles in Backbeat, Verity's Summer,[4] Inbred, Deviation, London Road[5] and the Oscar nominated In the Loop.

He has also appeared in West End musicals including roles in, Les Misérables,[6] The Buddy Holly Story, A Slice of Saturday Night and Marguerite.

Doherty played the role of Amos Hart in the West End production of Chicago [7] at the Cambridge Theatre[8] in 2011 opposite Christie Brinkley.