Biography
British actor Josh O'Connor first impressed appeared in period dramas "Peaky Blinders" (BBC Two, 2013-), "Ripper Street" (BBC One, 2012-16) and "The Durrells" (ITV, 2016-) but achieved his major breakthrough playing a troubled gay farmer in "God's Own Country" (2017). Born in Cheltenham in 1990 to an English teacher father and midwife mother, O'Connor studied at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School and a year after graduating made his screen debut in an episode of detective spin-off "Lewis" (ITV1, 2006-2015). After playing a zombie in low-budget horror "The Eschatrilogy: Book of the Dead" (2013), he guested as ill-fated Soviet soldier Piotr in "Doctor Who" (BBC One, 1963-), made one-off appearances in "Law and Order: UK" (ITV One, 2009-2014) and ex-pat sitcom "London Irish" (Channel 4, 2013), and portrayed Private Dodd in "The Wipers Times" (BBC Two, 2013), the true-life tale of a satirical trench magazine formed during WWI. O'Connor then ventured into the film world with roles as an amateur league soccer player in "The Magnificent Eleven" (2013), Irvine Welsh's loose adaptation of the similar-named classic western, one of four twentysomethings who escape London to start their own polyamorous utopia in indie "Hide and Seek" (2014), and a privileged fine-dining toff in ruling elite satire "The Riot Club" (2014). He returned to television with numerous period crime drama roles including Ada's writer housemate James in "Peaky Blinders" (BBC Two, 2013-), PC Bobby Grace in "Ripper Street" (BBC One, 2012-16) and prime suspect Leo Beresford in "Father Brown" (BBC One, 2013-). O'Connor then impressed as shy vicar's son Jamie in "Bridgend" (2015), the exploration of the eponymous Welsh town's suicide epidemic, played a ballroom palace guard in Kenneth Branagh's live-action remake of "Cinderella" (2015) and enjoyed a minor role in Lance Armstrong biopic "The Program" (2015). After briefly showing up as Donaghy in the crowd-pleasing comedy drama "Florence Foster Jenkins" (2016), O'Connor then bagged the recurring role of eldest son Lawrence in the adaptation of Gerald Durrell's autobiographical The Corfu Trilogy, "The Durrells" (ITV1, 2016-). A year later he earned glowing reviews for his measured performance as Johnny Saxby, a promiscuous sheep farmer who embarks on a relationship with a Romanian migrant worker, in LGBT drama "God's Own Country" (2017).
