Richard Madden celebrates his 36th birthday today (June 18, 2022) – but did you know that before he was a Hollywood film star, he had a childhood TV role alongside punk icon Toyah Wilcox?
After landing his debut role as Andy in the Iain Bank’s film Complicity, he played schoolboy Sebastian in the BBC children’s TV series Barmy Aunt Boomerang.
Richard looks completely unrecognisable in the role, with the 14-year-old actor smiling for the cameras alongside punk icon Toyah Wilcox – who played his aunty in the programme.
Airing from 1999-2000, Thunder In The Mountains singer Toyah Wilcox played an aunty with an unusual twist – she’s a ghost.
(Image: Getty Images)
The series initially revealed that Sebastian’s aunt was an actress who was killed on the set of a soap.
However her ghost returns to the UK to act as a ‘fairy godmother’ for her nephew – but instead ends up turning Sebastian’s life upside down.
Giving viewers a glimpse into his acting talents, little did audiences know that a young Richard Madden would go on to become one of Hollywood’s biggest stars.
(Image: imdb)
However, the actor revealed in an interview with GQ Magazine that as a teenager, he suffered bullying while at school and was “very shy,” saying: “It was a difficult place to be.
“My high school was really rough. Growing up was just constant humiliation really.
“I went to youth theatre to try and get a bit more confidence in myself.”
He added: “In hindsight maybe not the best move to try and fit into a rough, very masculine school to say: ‘Now I do song and dance! Yeah, exactly. I got bullied.”
(Image: Gavin Bond)
After a series of roles in theatre productions including Malorie Blackman’s Noughts and Crosses, and in BBC comedy drama Hope Springs, Richard was propelled to global fame as Rob Stark in the critically acclaimed fantasy series Game Of Thrones in 2011.
More than a decade later, he is now one of the UK’s biggest stars – landing leading roles in BBC series The Bodyguard, Elton biopic Rocketman alongside Taron Egerton and most recently, as Icarus in Marvel film Eternals.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
