Jack O'Connell Biography

Fast Facts

• Is a fan of Derby County soccer club, with whom he had trials as a schoolboy
• His grandfather, Ken Gutteridge, was a professional soccer player and manager
• Had hopes of joining the army, much against his mother's wishes
• As a child, his father's job on the railways meant he had free train travel to get to auditions
• Made his film debut at age 16 in Shane Meadows' gritty drama This Is England
• Starred in a 2008 educational film highlighting the dangers of teenage peer pressure, for the Derbyshire police
• Became an overnight heartthrob in 2009, as Cook in the British version of teen drama Skins
• Was named an ambassador for the Derby County soccer club's charity partnership with Macmillian Cancer Support