Thomas Turgoose And Charley Palmer Rothwell Talk Jacked, This Is England and Patsy Palmer

Starring two of Britain’s brightest up and coming lead actors, Thomas Turgoose and Charley Palmer Rothwell star in the new short film, Jacked, which is premièring at the 2015 London Film Festival. As demand for their time increases by the second, we managed to grab five minutes with them to talk about their latest project, This Is England and Patsy Palmer.

What more can you ask for?

Thomas Turgoose’s stock is on the rise once again. Following the sensational climax of This is England ’90, the 23 year old from Grimsby is demanding your attention once again.

Courtesy of: Silk Screen Pictures

What is the story of Jacked?

Jacked is a great little story about two young friends who have grown up together, and are in a pretty dodgy line of work. It entails car theft – but this particular car causes a mix of arguments and emotions for the two lads.

What acting opportunities did this East End London story give you compared to your iconic role in This Is England?

This job gave me opportunity to become the stronger character of the two, whereas in This Is England I’ve always been the young kid who never really had much power within the group – so it was lovely to have that. Also the freedom we were given with the script was awesome, we got to try the scenes in a lot of different ways with our own dialogue which is always awesome to do.

Did you know Charley (Palmer Rothwell, co-star) before you started filming Jacked? What was it like working together?

I had never met Charley before we started to film. I’d seen some of his work, and was buzzing about working with him, and now it’s safe to say we are really good friends. I see a lot of him whilst in London and whatnot.

What attracted you to the project and working with (director) Rene Pannevis? 

As soon as I read the script, I’d called my agent within the hour to say “I want this part!” and luckily we worked stuff out. I had the pleasure of working on this really well written script, and made some amazing friends.

Charley Palmer Rothwell is a name to watch. The son of Patsy Palmer and boxer Alfie Rothwell, the actor has been making waves in recent films such as Plastic, The Guvnors, and Legend. 

Courtesy of: Silk Screen Pictures

Where is Jacked set? What is your personal connection to this area?

Technically it never mentions exactly where it is – but you can see it’s London. We filmed most of the film in East London which is where I grew up, and where my family grew up, and still live there today.

What was it like working with Thomas on Jacked?

We had never worked together, but I had been a long time fan of his acting and his films. It was like we had been friends for years. We had a pre-filming drink, then another pre-filming drink, then a third pre-filming drink – and that was that. Working with someone you get along with is a dream. We didn’t need much rehearsal as we could play off of each other – on top of that Thomas is a fantastic actor, so you have full faith in all his decisions and can just get on with your own choices. I think it shows in the film.

What attracted you to the project and working with Rene Pannevis? 

I didn’t know too much about Rene if I’m honest. I first read the script and the story was touching and a beautiful snapshot of life. For me that has to be a given early, especially in a short. Then I went and met Rene and he discussed his personal connection with parts of the story, and what he wanted from the project. On top of that it felt like the universe played a big part, as me and Rene again, Like Thomas and I, felt like friends almost instantly.

Your mother, Patsy Palmer, has a cameo in Jacked. Who does she play and how did that come about?

Her voice has a cameo. Ha! She plays Russell’s nervous mother who is in debt, and doesn’t see how she is being financially exploited by a friend. It’s a touching subject. It came about through nepotism mainly, but of course she is also an actress!

Jacked is a short film that received Official Selection for the BFI London Film Festival 2015.