A Peek Performance

SU CARROLL talks to a young Plymouth actor being rewarded for his endeavours
 

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THERE is something quite charming about Lewis Peek. It’s probably his overwhelming enthusiasm for his ambition to make a living as an actor and the total absence of cynicism.

Plymouth-born Lewis, 24, has always wanted to be an actor and early performances showed his versatility. “It’s something I’ve wanted to do since I was 11 or 12,” he beams. “I remember doing shows in primary school and playing roles like Jesus or Dracula and then going on to Eggbuckland Community College and doing drama there.

“But I have no idea where it comes from. There’s no-one in my family who is anything to do with show business. My mum was a waitress and my dad was a care worker and a bus driver and my brothers do labouring jobs. Maybe it was because I was the youngest of three brothers and I wanted the attention,” he laughs.

Whatever brought Lewis to acting, he was determined from the start, refusing to consider any other option to “fall back on”. Luckily he had support from his family, his mum telling a careers advisor that they backed Lewis’s acting ambition because it was what he wanted to do. He did performing arts at GCSE level and, outside school, was an enthusiastic member of the Plymouth Theatre Royal’s Young Company, performing in ten shows in the Drum auditorium. “It was so valuable to be able to do that because the people we were working with were professionals. I felt comfortable in the theatre, but I always wanted to find the ‘truth’ in my performances, maybe that’s why I’ve ended up doing more professional work in TV and film where the performance is more natural.”

This is the point at which most young people would tuck their A levels under their arms and apply for drama school and the training to set them on their career path.