Ben Thompson (actor)

Last updated

Ben Thompson
Born (1992-06-01) 1 June 1992 (age 32)
Radcliffe, Greater Manchester, England
Occupation Character actor
Years active2002–2015
Television Coronation Street (2006–2010)

Ben Thompson (born 1 June 1992 [1] ) is an English actor best known for his role as Ryan Connor in the British soap opera Coronation Street . Brought up in Radcliffe, Greater Manchester, Thompson made his screen debut when he appeared in the 2002 film Re-Inventing Eddie. Shortly before turning 13, he appeared in the 2004 CBBC children's comedy programme Stupid! .

Contents

Thompson rose to further prominence when he was cast as teenager Ryan Connor in Coronation Street in 2006. As part of the longstanding series, he has been involved in storylines that have dealt with varying topics, including family life, death, and coming of age. In addition to his career as an actor, Thompson is also an amateur musician. He is a member of the Rusholme Ruffians, an indie group who are largely influenced by established Manchester bands.

Youth and early career

Ben Thompson was brought up in Radcliffe, a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, in Greater Manchester, England. He trained in acting from the age of eight at the Carol Godby Theatre Workshop in Bury. For five years, Thompson was educated at nearby Radcliffe Riverside High School. [2] [3] [4] [5] He later reflected that he enjoyed his time at school, interacted well with his teachers and "never went into one lesson where there wasn't [something] interesting to do". [5]

In 2002, Thompson starred alongside John Lynch, Geraldine Somerville, Lauren Cook and John Thomson in the Jim Doyle-directed film Re-Inventing Eddie. The movie is about a man named Eddie (Lynch), who is hounded by social services and branded a paedophile after an innocent bathtime game with his children is taken out of context. [6] [7] About two years later and shortly before turning 13, Thompson successfully auditioned to feature in the BBC children's comedy programme Stupid! . Out of around 400 hopeful youngsters, he was one of only a few to be selected to appear in the show. Prior to Stupid!'s launch on the CBBC channel in 2004, Thompson commented, "When I first started going to auditions I was quite nervous but now I just get on with it. I go to quite a few and it gets easier." [8]

Coronation Street

Thompson auditioned in 2006 for the role of Cameron McIntyre in the long-standing British soap opera Coronation Street . The part would have had him be on-screen friends with Chesney Brown, played by Sam Aston, who Thompson already knew from the Carol Godby Theatre Workshop. Producers for Coronation Street, however, were so impressed by Thompson that they asked him to audition for a different role. His try-out was successful and he was given a six-month contract, along with the option to extend it for up to a year. He was cast as Ryan Connor, a boy who moves to Weatherfield—the fictional Greater Manchester setting of Coronation Street—with his mother, Michelle (played by actress and former Hear'Say band member Kym Marsh), and her brothers, Liam (Rob James-Collier) and Paul (Sean Gallagher). [2] [9] The Bolton News reported that Thompson would spend between one and two days in front of the camera, and that he would be given an on-set tutor to help complete his school work. [2] Impressed with Thompson's acting ability, the producers of Coronation Street had his contract extended to 2009. In May 2012, it was confirmed that Ryan would be recast and played by Sol Heras because Thompson chose not to return. [10]

Private life and interests

Thompson has a keen interest in music and has played the guitar for several years. He often takes the instrument to work with him, as a means of occupying himself during takes. The actor is part of a group: the Rusholme Ruffians, formed by himself and two of his fellow schoolmates while they were still at Radcliffe Riverside High. [11] The Rusholme Ruffians have performed at venues throughout the UK and the band's set list includes their own material, as well as songs by home-town influences such as Morrissey, The Smiths, Oasis, James and The Stone Roses. [4] [12] Thompson has expressed an interest in getting into the music industry later in life. [4] He attended Holy Cross College in Bury, which he left after a year due to filming commitments.

Ben studied at SSR (School of Sound Recording) in Manchester and went on to work at Blueprint Studios in Salford.

Filmography

Film
YearFilmRoleNotes
2002Re-inventing EddieBilly Harris
Television
YearTitleRoleNotes
2004–07 Stupid! Various
200510:96: Training NightLee
2006The Girls Who Came to StayFootballer
Coronation Street Ryan Connor 2006–2010
2015Fungus the BogeymanBogey Sentry

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bury, Greater Manchester</span> Market town in Greater Manchester, England

Bury is a market town on the River Irwell in the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, Greater Manchester, England. which had a population of 81,101 in 2021 while the wider borough had a population of 193,846.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rusholme</span> Area of Manchester, England

Rusholme is an area of Manchester, England, two miles south of the city centre. The population of the ward at the 2011 census was 13,643. Rusholme is bounded by Chorlton-on-Medlock to the north, Victoria Park and Longsight to the east, Fallowfield to the south and Moss Side to the west. It has a large student population, with several student halls and many students renting terraced houses, and suburban houses towards Victoria Park.

Philip Collinson is a British television producer. He was initially an actor, before switching to working behind the cameras in the industry as a script editor and writer on programmes such as Springhill and Emmerdale, later becoming the producer of Peak Practice, Doctor Who and Coronation Street.

Bernard Arthur Popley, better known by his stage name Bernard Youens, was an English character actor of stage and television, and briefly appeared in radio plays and had cameos in film. He was also a TV announcer and is perhaps best remembered for his portrayal of Stan Ogden in the serial soap opera Coronation Street from 1964 until his death in 1984.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Radcliffe, Greater Manchester</span> Town in Greater Manchester, England

Radcliffe is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, Greater Manchester, England. It lies in the Irwell Valley 7 miles (11 km) northwest of Manchester and 3 miles (5 km) southwest of Bury and is contiguous with Whitefield to the south. The disused Manchester Bolton & Bury Canal bisects the town.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pendlebury</span> Town in Greater Manchester, England

Pendlebury is a town in the City of Salford, Greater Manchester, England. The population at the 2011 Census was 13,069. It lies 4 miles (6 km) north-west of Manchester, 3 miles (5 km) north-west of Salford and 6 miles (10 km) south-east of Bolton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Little Lever</span> Village in Greater Manchester, England

Little Lever is a village in the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England. Within the Historic County of Lancashire, it is 2 miles (3.2 km) southeast of Bolton, 2 miles (3.2 km) west of Radcliffe and 4 miles (6.4 km) southwest of Bury. In the 19th century, the population was employed in cotton mills, paper mills, bleach works, terracotta works, a rope works and numerous collieries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Afshan Azad</span> British actress and model

Afshan Noor Azad-Kazi is a British actress, model, and media personality. She is best known for playing the role of Padma Patil in the Harry Potter film series, beginning in 2005 with Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.

Jane Danson is an English actress. She is known for her portrayal of Leanne Battersby in the ITV soap opera Coronation Street, between 1997 and 2000, and from 2004 onwards. Her other television credits include Children's Ward (1995–1997), The Grand (1997) and The Bill (2002–2003). For her role on Coronation Street, Danson won the 2011 British Soap Award for Best Dramatic Performance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rebecca Ryan</span> English actress (born 1991)

Rebecca Ryan is an English actress, best known for her roles as Carly Hope in Emmerdale and Debbie Gallagher in the Channel 4 comedy-drama series Shameless (2004–2009). Ryan also appeared as Vicki MacDonald in the BBC One school-based drama series Waterloo Road (2009–2011), Gemma Dean in the BBC One medical drama Casualty (2017–2019) and from 2021 to 2022, she appeared in the ITV soap opera Coronation Street as Lydia Chambers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ryan Connor</span> Fictional character from Coronation Street

Ryan Connor is a fictional character from the British ITV soap opera Coronation Street. He first appeared on-screen during the episode broadcast on 30 August 2006. The character was initially portrayed by actor Ben Thompson from his introduction until 8 October 2010, when the character was written out of the serial. Ryan was created by series producer Steve Frost as part of the Connor family. The character was reintroduced in 2012, with the role recast to actor Sol Heras. Heras quit the role in July 2013 and Ryan departed on 2 October 2013. Ryan's return was confirmed in February 2018 and he returned on 23 May 2018, with Ryan Prescott recast in the role. It was confirmed that Ryan would leave the soap in late 2023. Ryan’s departure aired on 20 December 2023. Ryan returned on 1 March 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert James-Collier</span> English actor (born 1976)

Robert James-Collier, sometimes billed as Rob James-Collier, is a British actor widely known for his roles as Liam Connor in Coronation Street and as Thomas Barrow in Downton Abbey.

Jennie Elizabeth McAlpine is an English television actress, comedian and businesswoman. She is known for her roles as Michelle Morley in Emmerdale and Fiz Brown in the ITV soap opera Coronation Street. She also took part in the seventeenth series of I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! in 2017, where she finished in fourth place.

Elle Jade Mulvaney is an English actress who has played the role of Amy Barlow in ITV soap opera Coronation Street.

<i>4 OClock Club</i> British childrens television series

4 O'Clock Club is a British comedy drama and musical children's television series set in a secondary school, which premiered on 13 January 2012 on CBBC.

Sol Heras is an English actor. He was the second actor to portray the character Ryan Connor in the ITV soap opera Coronation Street, from 2012 until 2013. He replaced Ben Thompson, and in turn was replaced by Ryan Prescott in 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bury Line</span> Manchester Metrolink line

The Bury Line is a light rail/tram line on the Manchester Metrolink in Greater Manchester. It runs from Manchester Victoria station to Bury Interchange in the north. The entire line runs along a converted heavy rail line, and was reopened with the Altrincham Line, another Metrolink line converted from heavy rail, as part of Phase 1 of the Metrolink's expansion.

Caitlin Rose Fitton is an English actress and singer, known for portraying the role of Lauren Bolton on the ITV soap opera Coronation Street since 2022.

References

  1. ↑ "Ryan Connor (Ben Thompson)". ITV. Archived from the original on 11 April 2010. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
  2. 1 2 3 "Meet Ben, the new kid on Coronation Street!". The Bolton News . 3 August 2006. Retrieved 12 April 2010.
  3. ↑ "Ben Thompson's Dark Knight dream". Western Daily Press . 22 April 2009. Retrieved 13 April 2010.[ permanent dead link ]
  4. 1 2 3 Clarke, Gaynor (3 August 2007). "Ben lives the dream". The Bury Times. Retrieved 12 April 2010.
  5. 1 2 "Pupils mourn Riverside!". radclifferiverside.com. Archived from the original on 15 July 2011. Retrieved 12 April 2010.
  6. ↑ "Re-Inventing Eddie". Film4 . Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  7. ↑ Russell, Jamie (4 May 2004). "Re-Inventing Eddie (2004)". BBC. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  8. ↑ "CBBC beckons for Ben". The Bolton News. 16 September 2004. Archived from the original on 21 April 2013. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  9. ↑ "Connor Nation Street". Daily Record . 28 July 2006. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  10. ↑ Kilkelly, Daniel (17 May 2012). "'Coronation Street' recasts Ryan Connor". Digitalspy.co.uk. Retrieved 1 September 2018.
  11. ↑ "The Ruffians on song for NSPCC". The Bury Times. 13 March 2009. Archived from the original on 20 July 2011. Retrieved 14 April 2010.
  12. ↑ "Coronation Street star to play in Southport pub". Formby Times. 16 September 2009. Retrieved 14 April 2010.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.