THOMAS CONNOR
“Being able to try different things, and to learn the craft, that’s what I’d like to do.”
Gill Sherry
There can’t be many people who aren’t familiar with William Golding’s debut novel, Lord of the Flies. Published in 1954 the story follows a group of British schoolboys who find themselves stranded on an uninhabited island. The book is still widely assigned in schools and remains popular with readers of all ages.
Imagine, then, being a young actor and having the opportunity to play the secondary antagonist, Roger, in the screen adaption of this classic novel. Well, that’s exactly what happened to Kilmarnock’s Thomas Connor.
Born to a Scottish father and Lithuanian mother, Thomas began acting at the tender age of four and later joined East Ayrshire Youth Theatre where he took part in productions such as The Wizard of Oz and Oliver.
But it was when he began to receive requests for pre-recorded audition tapes that he started to take things a little more seriously.
“When I was getting self-tape requests, I thought to myself, this is something that I really enjoy and that I could do well. That’s when it came to me that this is something I’d like to do when I’m older.”
Thomas is still only 14 but was offered the role of Roger when he was 12. As if that wasn’t exciting enough, he travelled to Malaysia for five months to film the first ever TV adaption of the novel.
“While it was amazing and an unforgettable experience, there was quite a lot of hardships with it. Obviously, being away from my family for so long… and the weather was something else! It was so hot and humid. But I adapted to it and started to enjoy it. It was amazing because it was always us pre-teen boys just having a laugh.”
Thomas’s mum, Dovile, accompanied him on the trip as a facilitator but he admits it was difficult not seeing his dad and his sister for such a long time. Luckily, he got on well with his fellow actors.
“On the first day on the island we all went surfing for about five hours. We were all horribly burnt! But it was like one big family… a network of people. We were all living in such close quarters for so long and it just felt like they were my brothers for five months.”
And how did he enjoy playing the part of Roger?
“Roger is very dark, he’s not like me at all, so to play him was a real challenge. I had a switch and stimulus which I’d think about to get me into that character. He’s very complex because while he does all these evil things, he is still a child. It was trying to convey that he isn’t an adult and that everything he does, he hasn’t had the life experience to tell him that it’s wrong. But he’s still doing all these horrible acts on other boys.”
The book and subsequent TV adaption highlight how people can act when they don’t have roles in society to constrain them, and although Thomas was playing a brutal character, he was able to leave Roger behind when he left the set.
“I was really grateful that my mum was there. It was quite intense and being only 12 at the time… the scenes in the book are quite grim, but mum would be there and we’d go out to dinner and have a chat or watch a movie. It was just lovely to have all that.”
The boys fell into two age categories, ‘biguns’ (those around Thomas’s age) and ‘littluns’ (aged five or six).
“The littluns were so cute,” says Thomas. “They were really sweet and one of them called his character Thomas because me and him were good friends. That was quite moving.”
Talking of friends, what do his classmates think about his portrayal of Roger?
“There’s been the usual banter and stuff… but they’ve been nice about it. There’s not been anyone that’s been horrible or really mean. A lot of people have said that it’s good, and the teachers talk about it as well. It’s nice… not to feel different, but to remember that it’s not just a wee flyaway thing that I’ve done but it’s something quite important to me.”
It’s evident from our chat that Thomas has plenty of confidence which I suppose is essential if you want to follow a career in acting. And previous experience has no doubt contributed to his self-assurance. A role in Shetland, for example, playing a young Alan Calder.
“I was in Shetland, season eight. It was just a little cameo, but it really introduced me to how a set works, and how costume and makeup and all of that works. I had to get my hair permed for the role so there was a lot of time in the makeup seat for that! But it was a really good experience to see what a film set is all about.”
And not only was it Thomas’s first ‘proper’ role, he was also able to meet one of his idols.
“I grew up watching Nativity. I knew Ashley Jensen from the movie… so it was surreal. It was quite something.”
So, what’s next for Thomas Connor?
“I go to iNTER Performing Arts in Glasgow on a Saturday, but when I finish school, theatre school is definitely an option. The Royal Conservatoire in Glasgow is a great place to go to learn the craft.”
And after that, would he prefer stage or screen acting?
“I prefer screen. I enjoy the feeling of working on a set. On screen, I feel like I can delve a bit deeper into my character and there’s more opportunities to get it right. I like everyone working together and working harmoniously to get one single shot.”
Is there one role in particular that he’d like to play?
“I would love to be in Harry Potter. Cedric Diggory is one of my favourite characters. But I’m just looking forward to anything that I can do to gain more experience, because this is what I want to do when I’m older. Being able to try different things, and to learn the craft, that’s what I’d like to do.”
It’s been an absolute pleasure to chat with Thomas. Not only is he confident, eloquent and obviously very talented, he’s also extremely humble.
“I was really grateful for the experience in Malaysia,” he concludes. “It was hard work and I’m glad to see that a lot of people have enjoyed it. It was such an amazing thing to have done.”
Lord of the Flies is currently streaming on Netflix in the US and on BBC iPlayer in the UK.
