(Photograph) - BAFTA-award winning actorJamie Bell has vowed not to let hissuccess in the Billy Elliott title role distract him from his studies.
The 14-year-old who beat Hollywood heavyweights Russell Crowe and Tom Hanks for the best actor award now plans to focus on his GCSE work at Northfields comprehensive, a specialist sports college in Billingham, near Stockton-on-Tees.
He says that he wants to catch up on his schoolwork after the months that he has taken off school first during the shooting of the film, then to promot it.
His headteacher, David Youldon, says that having a star in the school is no problem: “While his head might be up in the clouds, his feet are on the ground. He’s a very likeable lad.”
Jamie Bell’s feet have been dancing since he was six years old. He beat 2,000 other hopefuls to play the role of the talented teenager caught up in the 1984 miners’ strike. He had previously toured Britain with the National Youth Music Theatre in productions including Bugsy Malone. Photograph by SEAN DEMPSEY.
Heather Neill.
