In last year’s summer release of Robin and the Hoods, Eddison Burch played Henry with Darcey Ewart as Robin, with the film being directed by Phil Hawkins, and Eddison attended the London film premiere. Since making his TV debut as the lead child role of Jordan in Dreamland alongside Freema Agyeman and Kiell Smith-Bynoe as his on-screen parents and Lily Allen as his aunt, Eddison has had guest roles in Changing Ends as Tristan, Not Going Out as Nathan opposite Lee Mack and Hugh Dennis, and Significant Other as Malik. This week, Eddison will be seen in the new release of the live-action Snow White film, and he has been confirmed for an unannounced role in a future feature film. Eddison has a twin sister, Aviella, who also acts and is in the cast of Malory Towers as Ruth Batten, and he is a former Team GB artistic gymnast and has represented South East of England at national competitions. Answering our questions, Eddison talks about playing Henry in Robin and the Hoods, his TV debut as Jordan in Dreamland and being on set of Snow White.

Most recently on screen, you could be seen in the summer release of Sky Original family film Robin and the Hoods as Henry, what was the film like to be part of?

Filming for Robin and the Hoods was a phenomenal experience because it was such an exciting and action-packed film. I am so grateful to have been a part of a production like this. Every day when I went on set it was so cool because I got to play this great character and put on a full suit of armour, with a sword and be on a horse, which is like you’re living in a dream.

Can you tell us about Robin and the Hoods and your character, and how did you feel finding out you’d booked the role?

Robin and the Hoods is an action adventure film that has elements of The Lord of the Rings and The Goonies. It’s about kids fighting against deforestation and the evil clipboard woman taking away their kingdom. I play the character Henry, who is the King of the Knights and all he wants is to get the crown from Robin and take over the Kingdom. When I found out I got the role, I was so excited because I was so intent on getting this role and said to myself this will be a dream movie to be in, so when I got the news I ran into the garden and did multiple backflips!

How was it filming alongside Darcey Ewart as Robin and with the rest of the cast, and being directed by Phil Hawkins?

Darcey and I had such an amazing friendship throughout the film behind the scenes and we still meet up to this day. She is an amazing actress and is captivating in the movie. Working alongside some big names in the film such as Naomie Harris, Gwendoline Christie and Harry Potter’s Mark Williams, was a bit nerve-racking to start with, but they were so great to work with and learn from them as they are such brilliant and experienced actors.

Phil Hawkins is a phenomenal director with a great vision and he is amazing at making sure every shot is going to make the watcher feel in awe of the story and fall in love with the film.

What was Henry like to play and what are some of your favourite highlights from your time on set?

Henry was such a fun character to play because at the beginning of the film he starts off as the bad guy but as the film progresses he becomes good, when the Knights unite with the Hoods. 

My favourite time on Robin and the Hoods was working with the amazing cast, doing stunt and sword-fighting training and being on set wearing my armour, sat on my horse, as King Henry, giving a speech to my army of knights, that was so cool. It was cool too that my armour was worn in House of the Dragon by the character, Young Prince Jacaerys ‘Jace’. Filming in the Throne Room and chasing Robin on the rope bridges leading to the Throne Room was a dream too, as it was so much fun and they were so beautifully made. I loved the medieval feel and they looked incredible.

How did you find the experience attending the London premiere and what was it like watching Robin and the Hoods for the first time?

Attending the London premiere for Robin and the Hoods was so exciting because it was the first chance I had to see the movie all pieced together and be back with the cast, crew and brilliant script writers Stuart Benson and Paul Davidson. When I watched it, I was so proud of what the whole cast and crew had achieved to make such a meaningful film.

In the new series of Changing Ends on ITV, you have a guest role as Tristan, what was your episode like to film?

Filming for my Changing Ends episode in Series 2 as Tristan was so much fun because the script is so funny and I had the best time playing my newspaper boy character. Working on set with the very talented Oliver Savell, Taylor Fay, the fantastic director Dave Lambert and crew was such a great experience. I also loved being reunited with my funny on-screen aunty Gabby Best from Sky’s Dreamland on set, who plays Angela Hudson in Changing Ends.

How was it playing Nathan in an episode of Not Going Out – Series 13 last year and filming opposite Lee Mack and Hugh Dennis?

Playing Nathan in BBC’s Not Going Out was hilarious because Lee Mack is such a clever and funny comedian and so is Hugh Dennis. It was great to be on set and film with two such amazing comedy actors and they made me laugh so much. It was great to be part of that episode and that Lee Mack had written the episode.

Can you tell us about being involved with Significant Other for ITV, in which you had a guest role as Malik?

Significant Other was a fun job to be on, working with the amazing Quay Street Productions team. The hardest part of my role on set was trying not to laugh at how hilarious the scene was and the amazing comedy acting by my on-screen dad, Youssef Kerkour (his comic timing is the best) and my brilliant on-screen mum, Kelle Bryan.

You made your TV debut in Dreamland as Jordan, do you remember how you felt finding out you’d booked the role for your first regular character?

Finding out that I booked the lead child role of Jordan in Sky’s Dreamland, I was ecstatic. I had never filmed for a TV series before, so it was the best news. It was really special to be confirmed in my first TV role, in a surprise Zoom call with my amazing agents, Mark Jermin, Andrew Phillips and Emelye Woodward. I am really grateful for how hard they work to support and develop my acting career.

On my first day on set, I was so excited to find out that my on-screen mum was Doctor Who and New Amsterdam actress, Freema Agyeman (who was fun and very kind), my fun on-screen aunty, actress and singer, Lily Allen and my great on-screen dad, Kiell Smith-Bynoe, who I had always loved watching in Ghosts.

How would you describe Jordan and what was he like to play?

In Dreamland, Jordan is very intelligent, quick-witted and confident and he also wants to try and fit in with the children at school. Jordan was amazing to play, because he is a very lively and sarcastic character who pointed out the obvious to his family, which created a lot of comedy moments.

What did you enjoy most about working on Dreamland and how was it having Freema Agyeman and Kiell Smith-Bynoe as your on-screen parents, and Lily Allen as your aunt?

It was very inspiring working with all the adult actors on Dreamland, as they had all worked on such incredible TV and film projects and I learnt a lot from working with them. They were all such amazing actors and they and the brilliant director, Ellie Heydon, producer Jane Bell and all the crew, were all so great to work with.

What was it like filming for the upcoming release of Snow White?

Working on Disney’s Snow White live-action movie at Pinewood Studios was awesome, both in the rehearsals and especially when filming. The set was incredible and blew me away; it was by far the biggest set I had ever seen. It was lots of fun being a child dancer in scenes with Snow White actress, Rachel Zegler – she was so kind on set. I am grateful to have so many happy memories of being on set for this amazing Disney movie.

Where does your love of acting come from and how did you get into it?

My love of acting comes from the ability to be able to portray different characters, creating the characters and for the audience to connect with characters. I love working on my characters and doing the hard work behind the scenes.

Your twin sister Aviella is also an actor, how is it having her in the industry with you?

It is great to have my twin sister Aviella in the industry as well, she is currently in a children’s TV series called Malory Towers. Aviella helps read in with me for my self-tapes and vice versa. It’s always great fun when we receive opportunities to tape together and even more exciting when we get to film on projects together.

Do you have any favourite films and TV shows to watch and how do you like to spend your free time?

Some of my favourite films are Pirates of the Caribbean and Indiana Jones. I like spending my free time going to the theatre. I love watching theatre shows, playing video games with my friends, doing gymnastics and playing rugby and football.

We understand you are a former Team GB artistic gymnast, and represented the South East of England at national competitions, can you tell us about this?

I started gymnastics at age seven and immediately fell in love with the sport. I love being able to do somersaults, flips and learn new skills on pieces of apparatus. I did men’s artistic gymnastics which means I trained on the floor, parallel bars, high bar, rings, pommel horse and vault. After a lot of hard work, I was so proud to be selected into one of Team GB’s squads. It was one of the most amazing experiences of my life, and training at Lilleshall, the National Sports Centre, with Team GB Olympic coaches was so inspiring and helped me to improve and strengthen my gymnastics skills. Competing in national and regional competitions was intense at times, but so much fun because it meant that I could display the skills I had put a lot of work into, training 25 hours a week and, when a competition went well, it was great winning medals too.

What are you hoping the next year brings for you and do you have any projects coming up that you can share?

I would love to book another fantasy or action-adventure film like Robin and the Hoods or films like Indiana Jones, Pirates of the Caribbean or a Marvel movie and play more exciting characters. I am thrilled and grateful to have been confirmed for a role in an exciting movie by my agency. I can’t wait to start filming later this year.

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