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Brummie actor and Aston Villa fan stars in new play about forgotten boxer

-Credit: (Image: Reach Publishing Services Limited)
-Credit: (Image: Reach Publishing Services Limited)


Brummie actor and Aston Villa fanatic Nigel Boyle is starring in a new play about the "most famous boxer you've never heard of".

Boyle, who shot to fame as DSU Buckells in BBC One crime drama Line of Duty, is performing in Going for Gold at the Park Theatre, in Finsbury Park, North London. The play runs until November 30.

It is the fascinating story of Frankie Lucas, who won a Commonwealth Games gold medal for St Vincent after racism and corruption denied him the chance to represent Great Britain.

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“He's probably the most famous boxer you've never heard of,” Boyle told Birmingham Live.

“It’s an amazing story. My character is George Francis who was his trainer. He went on to train Frank Bruno - you can see him on the footage of that Mike Tyson fight with Bruno.

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"When I read the script I was all over it as I was mad into boxing as a teenager and I used to box at Wednesbury ABA.When you're thinking about whether to do stuff, particularly with theatre, if it's not been done before and it's a new play that adds an extra element of excitement because you're the first one to do it and you're putting your own stamp on it.”

Boyle went to St Peter’s Catholic Primary School in Bartley Green, Holy Name in Great Barr and Stuart Bathurst High School in Wednesbury before reading Business at University College Northampton. After graduating with Honours he decided business wasn't for him and he combined night classes at Birmingham School of Speech and Drama (BSSD) with working at the Reiss menswear store in Corporation Street, going on to win a scholarship for the full time post grad course at BSSD - now Birmingham Conservatoire.

As well as appearing in lots of television commercials, Boyle has had parts in Peep Show, The Inbetweeners, Casualty, Coronation Street and Peaky Blinders among many more TV credits. Boyle makes no secret of his love for Villa and even has @villaboycey as his handle on the social media platform X

You can find out more details about Boyle's latest project, Going for Gold, here.