Since Series 3 of TV drama The Bay, David Carpenter has played Conor Townsend for his first regular screen role, working opposite Marsha Thomason as his on-screen mother DS Jenn Townsend. In September 2024, David was in an episode of long-running ITV soap Emmerdale as Lewis, and his other screen projects include a number of commercials. As a stage actor, most recently, David played Zia in the UK Tour of Camp Phoenix, and previously played Michael Darling / Tom Darling in Wendy and Peter Pan at Leeds Playhouse. We caught up with David about playing regular character Conor Townsend in The Bay, filming an episode of ITV soap Emmerdale and being part of the UK Tour of Camp Phoenix as Zia.
How would you describe your character Conor Townsend in The Bay and what drew you to the role?
Conor Townsend is a kind soul, who is ready to develop and flourish in his teenhood. However, in the beginning of Season 3 of The Bay, Conor is vulnerable due to his sudden move to Morecombe. This leaves Conor feeling exposed in every aspect of life: having to combine with another family, starting a new school where he is bullied, and living in a new place where there’s a huge lack of black and queer representation. Conor transitions to become stronger minded, resilient and journeys to find himself. Conor becomes a lot wiser, empathetic and family-orientated, while striving to make a mark on the world.
I was instantly attached to Conor Towsend when I read for the role. I understood his complexities straight away. There was a barrier between him and his mother, because he felt unheard and misunderstood. On top of this, Conor was trying to discover who he is as a person, while also trying to find his place within his new surroundings. I could relate to this a lot, especially in my teenhood, going through similar experiences. Conor has this eternal fire about him – which we share – to come out greater on the other side, which I love about him. I also was in awe to see a young, black, gay character’s story given light too in TV as a whole.
How was it finding out you’d booked Conor for your first regular character on screen and joining the cast in Series 3?
I couldn’t believe it when I got the call to say I got the offer to play Conor. It was a huge reality hit that dreams can come true and anything is possible. I was so excited! I just couldn’t wait to start!
Joining the cast was magical. I’d been inspired by the whole cast before joining The Bay, I’d watched every season prior and other projects the cast had been in, so I was in total awe! Everyone was so welcoming, and on set was a great training ground for me to learn off of the experienced pros.
Can you tell us what Conor is like to play and how has it been developing the character over the three series already released?
Conor is really fun to play, he’s stylish, he’s brave, and he’s open-minded. Me and Conor have a lot in common. However, we definitely have differences. Conor comes from more of a middle-class background, whereas I’m more working class. So, stepping into Conor’s shoes was like living in an alternate reality. He allowed me to experience situations that I’ve never had before. Such as living in a big home with a big family, which was really fun to encounter.
On top of this, being similar ages – me and Conor – meant we were both developing at the same time. Conor goes through a lot of lessons and challenges throughout the series, and everything Conor learnt I was taking from him for sure! It became like we were friends educating each other. I could spot lots of development in every single series, and it was great to see Conor grow and flourish. Conor brought me lots of joy throughout the whole filming process, it was a dream.
What is it like filming opposite Marsha Thomason as your on-screen mother D.S. Jenn Townsend and with the rest of the cast?
Marsha Thomason deserves all the flowers for the incredible job she has done before, during and after The Bay. I nearly had a heart attack when I found out she was playing my mom. Me and my family are big fans, we grew up addicted to The Haunted Mansion where she plays Eddie Murphy’s wife, so imagining her playing my mom was insane. She’s so talented, humble and there for you! Seeing her work so hard every day was so inspiring, Marsha was my first insight to how much work a lead puts into their job, and I’m forever inspired and take my hat off to her. There’s lots of love between us.
The whole cast are a big family. From my first day on set, everyone was so motivated and welcoming, cast and crew. The Bay is famous for being a great show to work on because of the amazing atmosphere which definitely corresponds to the results on screen.
Is there anything you enjoy most about being part of The Bay and filming on set?
I just love filming the scenes as a whole in The Bay! There’s always a great satisfaction after we’ve wrapped, because we all work so hard to achieve a shared consensus of what we want the scenes to be like. Everyone makes filming so joyful, there’s not one day I’d come away from filming unhappy.
I always love to see what Conor’s been up to and what he’s doing next. It’s fun to play the next challenges and connect with Conor again. The writer, Daragh Carville, makes the scripts so immersive that I can’t wait to get onto set and film.
Finally, there’s always so much special memories on and off set, we are always going out together and having the best time. Especially me and my on-set sisters, Georgia Scholes and Emme Haynes.
In September, you appeared in an episode of Emmerdale as Lewis, how did you find the experience working on a hugely-popular soap and how was your character involved with the storyline?
It was amazing to work on Emmerdale! One thing about this business is you never know what’s coming around the corner, so when I got the call to say I booked Lewis, I was over the moon!
On my short time working on Emmerdale, I had a great time. It was iconic seeing the village in person and the magical sets in ITV Studios, and working with Alfie Clarke was amazing. My character Lewis went on a date with Arthur, their chemistry booms over two dates until it fades away.
As a stage actor, you most recently performed as Zia on the UK Tour of Camp Phoenix with Zest Theatre, can you tell us about the show and how was it getting into character as Zia?
Camp Phoenix is a wholesome show about growth, development and teamwork. Zia enters Camp Phoenix, a residential camp filled with fun educational activities, and if you successfully complete the challenges, you gain special ribbons that allow you to thrive in higher levels of education and employment. The show centres around the campmates who have distinct personalities, and we see a beautiful journey of everyone coming together and thriving in teamwork.
Getting into character as Zia meant that I really had to delve deep into my teenhood. Zia was quite conflicted by not really knowing himself and was scared to get out of his comfort zone, which I definitely experienced at Zia’s age. Throughout the show, there was lots of nostalgia unlocked for me by Zia’s awesome story. The cast and crew were a dream to work with. Zest, as a company, are great!
How did you find the experience touring and working on a musical?
Working on a musical was very scary and challenging to me, although I know how to move and act, singing isn’t one of my strongest points but, just like Zia, I fully committed to the tasks and gave it my all. The amazing creatives on board really pushed me and supported my every move! All was fine in the end, and everyone loved the shows!
Touring was epic, it was my very first time doing this and was a huge tick on my bucket list of things to achieve in my acting career. I have to shout out all the team at Zest, for giving us great accommodation, making us feel seen and heard and safe.
What was it like performing as Michael Darling / Tom Darling in Wendy and Peter Pan at Leeds Playhouse in 2021?
Performing as Michael and Tom Darling was absolutely epic! Working at the Leeds Playhouse was another massive training ground for acting on stage, and I soaked up every second for it.
Performing as Tom and Michael gave me opportunities to literally fly! I can’t complain with that! Seeing amazingly built sets, and every element of the theatre world come together was breathtaking, and I couldn’t believe I was a part of it all!
It was great playing Tom Darling, and reconnecting with my five-year-old self, and it was great to also do a few shows as Michael and delve into his storyline.
Everything was magical, and I’m so happy I got to do a project that was so fantastical and iconic.
How did you get into acting and was it something you always wanted to do professionally?
Acting and myself were always going to find each other, it was just a matter of time. Growing up, I was always so inspired by music videos, live performances, and movies. I was really attached to lots of musicians like Nicki Minaj, Aaliyah and so many more amazing entertainers. These two stars are and were triple threats, so I connected with all of their abilities – dance, music and acting – which really amplified my want to be in the entertainment industry. Unfortunately for me, I’m not a great singer, haha, but I can act and dance. But acting was what really stuck with me. I knew it’s what I wanted to do for the rest of my life once I started taking acting seriously.
I did lots of school plays and extra-curricular drama activities at school. Unfortunately, we could never afford acting classes when I was younger, so I made sure to grab every opportunity I could with open arms. I started learning more about the industry, which lead me to start doing supporting artist work and getting on set experience. However, Act On This TV was a huge turning point for me, Ross Grant’s podcasts were so informative and gave practical advice for me to go away and train and uplift my career. I made lots of connections from the platform, and have worked and made connections with amazing people.
What are some of your favourite films, TV and theatre shows to watch?
I’m a huge horror fan! I love the A Nightmare on Elm Street movies! I was always inspired by seeing strong female leads that were fully developed and three-dimensional like Nancy from the saga. I also love animated films like Finding Nemo – a classic! – Coraline, a great mix between gothic horror and a family movie, and Pixar’s Cars. I also really enjoy movies that mix teamwork to achieve a goal to conquer something, like Scooby-Doo. Sarah Michelle Gellar as Daphne was everything for me growing up. The IT movies are the same and movies like The Goonies and Spiderwick.
Right now, I’m constantly laughing my way through how hilarious Abbott Elementary is, I don’t want it to end!
One of my favourite theatre shows I’ve ever watched has to be Standing at the Sky’s Edge. Big up the hometown Sheffield, haha!
How do you like to spend your time away from acting?
Away from acting, I love to draw! I specialise in coloured pencil portraits, and I’m wanting to excel in lots of different art mediums. I love hiking in nature; that’s the only thing that can make me really feel connected back to nature. I also love a great day out with loved ones.
We understand you have also worked on commercials, can you tell us about some of them?
Yes, I have done a few corporate commercials that have been a joy to work on. I did a corporate commercial for NSPC that called out online bullying and gave information on how to stop it and help. This job was one of my first ever times on camera, so I always cherish how kind everyone was, and how excited I was to do my first acting job, which also had a great cause, and hopefully helped lots of people if they needed it.
Recently I did a corporate commercial for Apple, which demonstrated how Apple products are great with student life and also work life.
What are you hoping this year brings for you, and do you have any projects coming up that you can share?
This year, I really want to build connections and work amazing jobs. Absolutely shooting for stars! I hope I get an amazing job similar to A Nightmare on Elm Street, where I work in a group in a horror scenario and come out alive. That would be a dream and is the dream.
I’ve done a few exciting projects this year, such as the Apple corporate job, and I’ve just wrapped filming an amazing Sky Comedy drama.
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