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Charlie Cooper (actor)

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Charlie Cooper
Born (1989-06-16) 16 June 1989 (age 35)
Cirencester, Gloucestershire, England
Occupations
  • Actor
  • writer
  • model
Years active2014–present
RelativesDaisy May Cooper (sister)
Trevor Cooper (uncle)
Mathew Baynton (second cousin)

Charlie Cooper (born 16 June 1989)[1] is an English actor and writer, known for his role as Lee "Kurtan" Mucklowe in the BBC Three series This Country, which he co-created and co-wrote alongside his older sister, Daisy May Cooper.

Career

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Cooper began his career in his early 20s as a model while studying sports science at Exeter University for two years. He was signed to Elite Model Management in London.[2] He grew dissatisfied with modelling shortly afterward and returned home to Cirencester with his parents and worked a series of odd jobs, including positions at retailers Argos and Topshop and in a sausage factory.[3][4]

In 2014, he and his sister Daisy May, with the support of ITV and NBC, wrote and shot a pilot episode of what would later become This Country titled Kerry. However, the resulting episode was "horrible" and it was quickly dropped.[5][6] Later he became an actor and co-writer of the BBC comedy This Country with Daisy May, writing the characters Kerry and Kurtan based on their own life experiences living in the Cotswolds.[3][7][8]

In 2018, he was nominated for and won three Royal Television Awards for best Scripted Comedy, Comedy Performance and Comedy Writing.[9] He was also nominated for and won best Scripted Comedy at the 2018 BAFTA awards for his work in This Country,[10] as well as winning Breakthrough Talent at the BAFTA Craft Awards.[11] In 2020, he co-wrote and produced the teleplay for an episode of Avenue 5, an HBO series that features his sister in a recurring role.

He starred alongside Steve Coogan in a scene in the 2019 film Greed.

In 2019, The Guardian described his portrayal of Kevin, brother of Sian O'Callaghan, in A Confession, ITV's dramatisation of the investigation of her murder, as "a fine performance that channels the role in This Country ... without repeating it".[12]

In 2021, Cooper took on a role in the third series of Stath Lets Flats, playing Gregory - a rival letting agent.[13][14]

In September 2022, Cooper played his first "big film role" as Dennis Corrigan in See How They Run.[15]

In November 2023, it was announced by Paramount+ that Cooper would star in a new original drama series Stags, filming on location in Tenerife which has since released in 2024.[16]

In October 2024, Charlie Cooper's Myth Country was released by BBC3 on BBC iPlayer.[17] The programme was an exploration of traditional British myths, legends and folk rituals. He has said that it was inspired by his work on This Country.[18]

Personal life

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Brought up in Cirencester, he and his sister used to make films using their mother's camcorder.[5] They both returned to their childhood home, where they shared a room, and worked night shifts as office cleaners whilst creating scripts for This Country.[4] He is a fan of Fulham F.C., having attended their play-off final in 2018.[19][20] In August 2022, Cooper welcomed his first child.[21]

Cooper's second cousin Mathew Baynton is also in the acting profession.[22]

References

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  1. ^ "CHARLIE COOPER LIMITED".
  2. ^ "Charlie Cooper". Elite Model Management. 2014. Retrieved 30 November 2020.
  3. ^ a b Jones, Alice (8 March 2017). "This Country's Daisy May and Charlie Cooper: 'It's basically our experience of growing up in the Cotswolds'". i. Retrieved 30 November 2020.
  4. ^ a b "What happened next? The stars of This Country: 'Success? I wish that showed up on my bloody bank balance'". the Guardian. 18 December 2018. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
  5. ^ a b "Daisy May and Charlie Cooper: 'We had nothing before This Country. We couldn't even afford McDonald's'". The Independent. 16 February 2020. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
  6. ^ Yeates, Cydney (12 August 2020). "This Country's Kerry and Kurtan were 'like Glee characters' in binned pilot". Metro. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
  7. ^ "How are the cast of This Country related?". Radio Times. 10 April 2018. Retrieved 14 May 2018.
  8. ^ Heritage, Stuart (22 February 2017). "This Country: perfect, horrifying TV for anyone who grew up in a village". The Guardian.
  9. ^ Smith, Neil (21 March 2018). "This Country wins big at RTS awards". BBC News.
  10. ^ Lane, Ellis (14 May 2018). "How the siblings behind BBC hit This Country stole the BAFTA show". gloucestershirelive.co.uk. Retrieved 14 May 2018.
  11. ^ "Nominations Announced for the Virgin TV British Academy Television Awards in 2018". www.bafta.org. 4 April 2018.
  12. ^ Mangan, Lucy (2 September 2019). "A Confession review – a profoundly sad drama about suffering, strength and justice". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
  13. ^ Danaher, Caitlin (7 September 2021). "Julia Davis, Charlie Cooper and David Avery to guest star in Stath Lets Flats". Royal Television Society.
  14. ^ Carr, Flora (3 September 2021). "Stath Lets Flats season 3 casts Julia Davis and This Country's Charlie Cooper". Radio Times.
  15. ^ Levine, Nick (6 September 2022). "Charlie Cooper: "Daisy saw something in me that no one else would have"". NME. Retrieved 17 November 2022.
  16. ^ "Paramount+ Sets Bachelor Party Gone Wrong Series From 'Sex Education' Producer Eleven". Retrieved 15 November 2023.
  17. ^ Mangan, Lucy (4 October 2024). "Charlie Cooper's Myth Country review – proof that the co-creator of This Country is a genius". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  18. ^ Wilks, Jon (7 October 2024). "Myth Country - the Charlie Cooper Interview". Tradfolk. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  19. ^ "Charlie Cooper Exclusive". fulhamfc.com. 24 May 2018.
  20. ^ "Daisy & Charlie Cooper – Writer/Performers". www.bafta.org. 18 October 2017. Retrieved 14 May 2018.
  21. ^ Levine, Nick (6 September 2022). "Charlie Cooper: "Daisy saw something in me that no one else would have"". NME. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
  22. ^ Grant, Olly (20 February 2018). "This Country creators Charlie and Daisy May Cooper: 'The best storylines are usually things we've lived through'". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
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