Q&A: Actor Adam Darlington on social media trolls, on-set toilet dramas and gaming with Joe Jonas

A: When I was younger yes, but in comprehensive school, not at all. I actually started my acting career at 28 years old. It was a completely random career change which started my acting journey - I just woke up one day and decided to become an actor.

Q: Do you have any memories of your first audition or performances?

A: My first ever role was a background role playing a "British reporter" in Bollywood movie "Gold" starring Akshay Kumar.

I worked on that production for a total of 21 days. Small parts of the movie were actually filmed in Rotherham, Sheffield and Doncaster. 

Q: Do you get nervous before curtain-up or "Action" or do you relish performing?

A: First days are always nervous, but once you get used to the cast, crew and production it quickly becomes one big family.

Q: Can you tell us a bit about your career so far. You've appeared in plenty of TV shows but do you also have theatre and radio roles on your CV?

I'm not really that interested in radio or theatre but I have probably worked on around 35 different TV series and movies in background, featured and supporting cast roles.

There is so much more I have to learn about the industry so who knows as my career grows then maybe I will go into radio and theatre.

Q: Who have been your favourite people to work with over the years - have there been some memorable characters?

A: The list of people I have met and worked with is endless.

I worked with John Malkovich one one shoot - he was very kind and humble.

I remember reading the book "Of Mice and Men" in school in Rotherham and I saw him (John Malkovich) in the 1992 movie version.

That is the only time where I thought to myself "Wow!"

Q: You have been on the cast with some fairly big names. Who have been the best and worst to work with? Have you had some interesting "close encounters"?

A: I have friends in the industry at different levels - some I will go for drinks with, some we just follow each other on social media and some I will speak a few words to on-set.

Production wrap parties are always pretty wild.

Q: What are the best and worst parts of being an actor?

A: One of the best bits is the number of incredible period houses I get to visit. I worked on "The Great" as one of the "featured footmen". We filmed for six months so I was just brought in for certain scenes. In that time, we must have visited four or five different period houses - Castle Howard, Hatfield House, Harewood House - it was such an amazing experience.

Nicholas Hoult, Elle Fanning and the rest of the cast are such lovely people, very humble.

Every day is completely different, 

I guess if you had to pick something as the worst part it is filming in the snow and date changes to the shoots.

Q: How do you spend your time when you're not on set?

A: I spend a lot of time at the health club, trying to keep in the best shape of my life, I play (video games) a lot, like Infected, Fortnite and Valorant.

I played Fortnite a few times with Joe Jonas! Loads of us in the industry play video games!

Q: What have been your most memorable shows and shoots and why?

A: Without doubt "The Great". It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

I honestly have never learned as much in my life then I did while shooting that production. It's coming to Channel 4 very soon - the sets and locations were absolutely amazing.

Q: Have you had any particularly funny experiences on set?

A: We were filming on this beach a few years ago and once I really needed a poo.

We had some on-set portable toilets on the beach I walked in and took a large number two - but I just couldn't get it to flush.

In the end, I decided I was just going to have to just run away - the beach was big enough I could hide and act like it was not me. 

So I came out the toilet and closed the door and turned around and there was a sign on the door, reading: "This toilet is for children only".

Q: You're pretty active interacting with fans and other users on Ask.FM. Do you enjoy this connection with the public?

A: I have a love-hate relationship with social media. 

I did have hundreds of thousands of followers at one point but I came off social media for a while and deleted all my accounts.

I use Twitter mainly - I have about 120,000 followers on it now - but social media is sometimes like the world's biggest bullying platform so it's hard at times.

To get bullied for the rest of our lives for simply doing something we love seems harsh.

Q: Coronavirus has caused huge disruption to all sorts of entertainment and music groups. How are you coping with this and keeping morale up? When do you hope to get back to performing?

A: It's really helped people think about life more, and everyone seems to have slowed down and now realises how lucky they are to be alive.

I truly believe: "Your health is your true wealth"

Q: What would be your message to someone who thinks they might like to get into acting but isn't sure how to start?

A: I started at 28 years old and my career is just about starting.

Always remember life isn't a competition, it's about enjoying your life, because it's your life.

I probably audition for one role every eight weeks and I don't actively look for work.

You can either go and study a few years at drama school, or if you're like me and wanting to get into it at an older age then do some background acting and learn about the basics while been on set.

There are plenty of background agencies which are free to join.

Just remember to enjoy the experiences and don't rush them.