How Ken Loach movie ‘Kes’ inspired Stephen Graham to become an actor
In an industry dominated by privately educated actors, from Benedict Cumberbatch and Eddie Redmayne to Florence Pugh and Rosamund Pike, it’s refreshing to watch stars such as Stephen Graham succeed. Hailing from a town in Lancashire, Graham grew up working-class, finding himself drawn to theatre as a teenager.
After studying acting at Rose Bruford College, Graham found his first screen roles in 1990, appearing in the show Children’s Ward and the anthology drama Dancin’ Thru the Dark. However, he received one of his first prominent film roles a decade later in Guy Ritchie’s Snatch alongside Jason Statham and Brad Pitt. Further success came with roles in Martin Scorsese’s Gangs of New York and Shane Meadow’s This Is England, for which he received particular acclaim.
These roles, which demonstrated Graham’s ability to master a wide variety of accents, cemented him as one of Britain’s most impressive stars. Since then, he has appeared in many films and shows, including Boiling Point, The Irishman, several Pirates of the Caribbean movies, and Rocketman.
Graham has claimed that a particular film inspired him to become an actor, giving him the courage to pursue a dream which seemed hard to attain. Ken Loach’s Kes, released in 1969, profoundly affected Graham as a child, and he still cites it as one of his favourite movies. Coming from a working-class background, Graham found himself identifying with protagonist Billy Casper, a young boy who finds a sense of accomplishment through falconry while struggling at school.
The actor has frequently discussed the inequalities in the film industry, highlighting the lack of opportunities for those from lower-income households and comprehensive schools. He told Hunger Magazine, “I suffered a lot with that imposter syndrome for a long time, that working-class mentality of ‘I don’t deserve to here’,” adding: “My fear is how many people lose out on those opportunities because they’re not given the opportunity to at least have a go at it, which is very sad.”
In Kes, Loach takes a potent look at class inequality and the failure of the educational system to promote fair, uniform learning for all children, regardless of their abilities and backgrounds. Discussing the film with Metro, he revealed: “I remember watching it as a young lad after we read the book at school, and I was amazed by it. I was so inspired by the boy; it made me think that I could become an actor. I enjoy it as much now, as an adult, as I did as a kid, and I try to watch it at least every five years or something.”
Graham has elucidated how the film influenced his desire to become an actor elsewhere. He told The Scotsman: “Writers, directors, and me as an actor, we have a moral ground where we should be portraying what’s happening in society today. That’s the reason why I wanted to become an actor. I watched Kes and it made me realise I could be an actor, and look what that film says, politically, socially, spiritually; that’s what I’d like to be a part of.”
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