22 Facts About Josh O'Connor

Josh O'Connor grew up in Newbury until he was five, when his family moved to Cheltenham, Gloucestershire where he was brought up.

Josh O'Connor's grandfather was British sculptor John Bunting, his grandmother is a ceramicist, and his maternal aunt is British writer and commentator Madeleine Bunting.

Josh O'Connor's ancestry is Irish, English, Scottish and, through his matrilineal great-grandmother, Ashkenazi and Sephardi Jewish.

Josh O'Connor wanted to be a professional artist when he was younger, but he did not think he was good enough, so he switched to rugby and then discovered acting.

Josh O'Connor went to a private co-ed school, St Edward's School, Cheltenham, during the week and spent a lot of time on weekends at the Axiom, a local arts centre.

Josh O'Connor grew up in a Labour-supporting household, but traces his political awakening to the arts centre's closure when he was 11, feeling the deep sense of loss in the community.

Josh O'Connor is proud to have grown up outside of London, in a town with a strong tradition of regional theatre.

Josh O'Connor has cited his school's drama program as having helped him live with his dyslexia for many years, especially when preparing for his General Certificate of Secondary Education exams.

Josh O'Connor then trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, from which he graduated in 2011 then moved to London.

In 2012, Josh O'Connor first appeared on television as Charlie Stephenson in Lewis and on film as a zombie in The Eschatrilogy: Book of the Dead.

Josh O'Connor played Rich in the biographical drama film The Program about the cyclist Lance Armstrong, directed by Stephen Frears.

Josh O'Connor played in the Royal Shakespeare Company's production of Thomas Dekker's The Shoemaker's Holiday as Rowland Lacy and Tom Morton-Smith's Oppenheimer as Luis Alvarez at the Swan Theatre in Stratford-Upon-Avon.

In 2018, Josh O'Connor starred as Peter in the segment The Colour of His Hair in Boys on film 18: Heroes, and starred alongside Laia Costa in Harry Wootliff's critically acclaimed directorial debut Only You, which premiered in competition at the London Film Festival.

Josh O'Connor starred as Jamie in Hope Gap, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival, earning the Best Actor award at the Barcelona-Sant Jordi International Film Festival.

Josh O'Connor revealed that the role did not initially interest him and that he had to be persuaded to audition.

Josh O'Connor reprised the role for Season 4 of The Crown, and admitted that his character is "horrible" in that season.

Josh O'Connor won accolades in 2021 including the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, the Golden Globe Award, the Critics' Choice Award, and the Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards for Best Television Actor in a Drama Series and received a nomination for the British Academy Television Award for Best Actor for his performance.

Josh O'Connor played Mr Elton in the period comedy-drama film Emma based on Jane Austen's 1815 novel of the same name.

Josh O'Connor played Paul Sheringham in Mothering Sunday, which explores class divides and postwar survivor's guilt in 1924, starring alongside Olivia Colman and Colin Firth.

Josh O'Connor experimented with method acting for his role in God's Own Country.

Josh O'Connor created the Waterlogged initiative to raise funds for Mind, a mental health charity working across England and Wales.

Josh O'Connor is a supporter of the Labour Party, campaigned for Jeremy Corbyn in the 2019 general election, and has described himself as a "liberal left-winger".