Kadiff Kirwan (born 3 February 1989) is a British-Montserratian actor.
[ He is known for his roles in several British television series, particularly '']Timewasters
''Timewasters'' is a British science-fiction comedy television programme, first broadcast on ITV2 in 2017 with a second series broadcast in 2019. It was created by Daniel Lawrence Taylor and written by Taylor and Barunka O'Shaughnessy. It was p ...
'', ''Chewing Gum
Chewing gum is a soft, cohesive substance designed to be chewed without being swallowed. Modern chewing gum is composed of gum base, sweeteners, softeners/plasticizers, flavors, colors, and, typically, a hard or powdered polyol coating. Its te ...
'', ''Fleabag
''Fleabag'' is a British comedy-drama television series created and written by Phoebe Waller-Bridge, based on her one-woman show first performed in 2013 at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. It was originally produced by Two Brothers Pictures for d ...
'', and '' The Stranger''.
Early life and education
Born and raised in Plymouth, Montserrat
Plymouth is a ghost town and the ''de jure'' capital of the island of Montserrat, an British Overseas Territories, overseas territory of the United Kingdom located in the Leeward Island chain of the Lesser Antilles, West Indies.
Constructed on ...
,[ Kirwan moved with his family to ]Antigua
Antigua ( ), also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the native population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the main island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua and Bar ...
after the 1995 Soufrière Hills volcanic eruption destroyed the family home, and thereafter to Preston, England. There he developed a love of drama; he first acted in school, in a production of Bugsy Malone
''Bugsy Malone'' is a 1976 gangster musical comedy film written and directed by Alan Parker (in his feature film directorial debut). A co-production of United States and United Kingdom, it features an ensemble cast, featuring only child actor ...
, when he was 14.["BBC Queers stars reveal the moments that changed their lives: Kadiff Kirwan"]
''Radio Times''. BBC, undated. On his desire to act, Kirwan said "I was bad at school ..really bad. And I had a drama teacher who from Year 9 onwards hounded me and told me that my behaviour issues would calm down if I went to drama classes after school. She kept pestering and eventually I went. Suddenly, everything started making sense: I was acting out because I was dealing with being gay and not telling my peers or my family because they’re quite religious ..I was going through a lot at the time, and acting was the thing that saved me. It gave me my voice."
He graduated from the Central School of Speech and Drama
The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama was founded by Elsie Fogerty in 1906, as The Central School of Speech Training and Dramatic Art, to offer a new form of training in speech and drama for young actors and other students. It became a ...
in 2011.["No stranger to fate"]
''Essence'', 2019.
Personal life
Kirwan is openly gay.
Filmography
Film
Television
Theatre
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kirwan, Kadiff
1989 births
English gay actors
21st-century British male actors
Black British male actors
LGBT Black British people
Montserratian emigrants to the United Kingdom
Actors from Preston, Lancashire
Living people
Montserratian people
Alumni of the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama