Earlier this year, Gene Gurie played Lucien Daniels in an episode of The Good Ship Murder working alongside other guest actors Ellie Leach and Nicola Stephenson, and he has filmed for an upcoming independent war feature film Goodtime Charlie as lead character Sgt. Barton Hepworth. In the mini-series Joan, Gene played Larry the Young Fence opposite Sophie Turner and Frank Dillane, and in 2023, he had guest roles in Brassic as Robbo and Casualty as Travis Collins. Gene booked his first on-screen regular role playing Ethan/Thane Hughes in CBBC’s Secret Life of Boys, developing the character over five years, and whilst appearing in the series, Secret Life of Boys won Best Interactive – Original at the 2016 BAFTA Children’s Awards. During his acting career so far, Gene has also worked on short films Bacon, Dirty Little Rascals and Offside, and in 2013, he made his professional stage debut playing George Seacoal in Much Ado About Nothing at The Old Vic, which starred James Earl Jones and Vanessa Redgrave, with the William Shakespeare play being directed by Mark Rylance, and Gene trained at Young Actors Theatre Islington. We chatted to Gene about his guest role of Lucien Daniels in The Good Ship Murder earlier this year, the upcoming feature film Goodtime Charlie, working on the mini-series Joan, his time in the CBBC series Secret Life of Boys and making his professional stage debut in 2013 in Much Ado About Nothing.
What was it like on set of The Good Ship Murder and how was it filming your episode, which was released on 5 earlier this year?
Honestly, it was such a fun experience – everyone involved was incredibly lovely and welcoming. Filming in Malta was amazing, especially getting to explore such a beautiful place while working. I was also trying not to get burnt in the heat, which definitely became part of the experience! Since the episode was set in Cannes, there was a real sense of glitz and glamour on set, which made the whole experience even more memorable and fun to be part of.
How would you describe your character Lucien Daniels and how was it taking on the role?
Lucien is someone who desperately wants to be loved and, more than anything, to be seen. He’s a bit of a lovelorn weakling – someone who’s never quite found where he fits, whether at school or later being pulled into a world of red carpets and celebrity through his mother. When he meets Mimi, played by Ellie Leach, he finally feels like he’s found someone who truly sees him, which makes it all the more devastating when he realises he’s being used to get to his mother – something he simply can’t cope with.
He’s arrogant in flashes, but underneath that, there’s really just a lost boy trying to hold himself together, usually with a little too much Jack Daniel’s. That balance was what made him so interesting to play – finding the humour, the vulnerability, and the sadness all living in the same person.
You have filmed for the upcoming independent war feature film Goodtime Charlie as lead character Sgt. Barton Hepworth; how did you find the experience working on the project?
I think a film like this was a once-in-a-lifetime experience, both because of the scale of it and the story we were telling. Filming inside a life-sized Avro Lancaster – which Jamie Sneddon had built by hand in a barn – was extraordinary in itself. It immediately gave you a real sense of the world these young men were living in.
Because it was an independent film, there was a genuine sense that everyone got stuck in and pulled together. That naturally created a real brotherly bond among the cast and crew, which felt very fitting for the story we were telling.
A big part of the process was trying to understand what those boys went through: the fear before missions, the grief of losing friends, and the psychological toll that today we’d recognise as PTSD. What struck me most was how little space there was for fear at the time – men could be labelled with “lack of moral fibre” simply for struggling, and publicly shamed for something that was, in truth, deeply human. That gave the experience a real emotional weight.
Is there anything you can tell us about Goodtime Charlie and what are you looking forward to for the release?
I can say that it’s a beautiful, ambitious story, and I’m really looking forward to people seeing it come to life. It’s amazing to think that Luke Campion and Jamie have been part of the project for over six years, and to finally see all their hard work and dedication shared with audiences.
How was your time playing Larry the Young Fence in the TV mini-series Joan opposite Sophie Turner, who starred as the titled character?
Larry was a proper ducker-and-diver type, which made him really fun to play. He was very streetwise, very London, with that proper Cockney confidence where he probably knows more than he lets on.
In a way, he reminded me a little of how I imagine my grandad would’ve been like when he was younger, so there was something quite familiar and enjoyable about finding him.
What I really enjoyed was how open Richard Laxton was as a director. He was incredibly welcoming to ideas and encouraged you to play with the scene and really own the character, even in a smaller role, which makes such a difference as an actor.
Being on set with Sophie Turner and Frank Dillane was brilliant. Just watching how they work, the detail they bring, and how kind and lovely they both are was really inspiring.
In 2023, you had guest roles in Brassic – Series 5 as Robbo and Casualty as Travis Collins, what did you enjoy about filming for both, and how were your characters involved with the storylines?
They were two completely different jobs, which is part of what made them so enjoyable. On Brassic, I played Robbo – this northern lad who secretly lived inside the pier the gang was planning to rob in Blackpool. He was a bit of a lost soul, living in a giant claw machine after being kicked out by his nan, and really just trying to figure out where he fits in the world. Underneath all the madness, there was something quite sweet about him – he’s someone who doesn’t quite understand himself yet, but is trying to.
He ends up meeting Cardi, played by Tom Hanson, and through that connection starts to understand a bit more about belonging and accepting who he is, which was a really nice thread to play. And ultimately, he ends up saving the gang.
Filming that was such a nutty experience – proper Blackpool weather, which was absolutely horrendous. I remember playing arcade games with the cast and even watching Kitchen Nightmares with Michelle Keegan. The clown makeup definitely helped me disappear too – I don’t think anyone recognised me without it.
On Casualty, I played Travis Collins, who ends up in hospital after jumping into a freezing lake to retrieve a bag for a boy he likes, hoping to impress him. He badly injures himself in the process and, while he initially hides how he really feels, his storyline becomes about a young lad finding the courage to be honest about how he feels – getting past that fear of rejection and realising he had nothing to lose by telling the truth, which gives it a really lovely payoff.
Filming that lake sequence in the middle of December felt like my own little Tom Cruise moment – although pretending to drown is much harder than it looks.
Do you remember how you felt booking your first on-screen regular role in Secret Life of Boys and what was Ethan/Thane Hughes like to play?
Honestly, I was completely shocked. I got forgotten at the chemistry reads, so I walked away thinking I’d completely blown it – only to later find out it was because they’d already cast me. It was a bit surreal, and I don’t think I fully understood what I was stepping into at the time – and neither did my parents.
Playing Ethan/Thane Hughes was such a fun and unique experience. I essentially grew up with the character, and in a lot of ways we were both figuring ourselves out at the same time. We had our differences, of course, but there were definitely similarities too, which made him feel quite personal to me.
He was a bit of a wind-up merchant, which was always great fun to play, but there was also a real honesty to him. I think that’s what I connected with most – underneath everything, he just wanted to be understood, which is something a lot of people can relate to, especially at that age.
What was it like being part of a CBBC series for five years and what do you feel you learnt from developing the character throughout the show?
Being a part of Secret Life of Boys was a huge part of my life – it really felt like growing up on screen. What I learnt most is that you’re not just one fixed identity, especially at that age. You’re constantly evolving, discovering different sides of yourself, and trying to make sense of who you are.
That really came through in Ethan becoming Thane – it was literally just a one-letter swap in the name, but for him it felt like an attempt to redefine himself and be seen in a way he hadn’t been before. I found that really interesting to play, because it’s something a lot of people experience in different ways.
Spending that long with a character makes you quite attached to them. I sometimes wonder what he’d be like now – whether he’s settled into himself or still reinventing who he is… maybe he goes by Hanet now (a bad joke on the name change).
What are some of your favourite memories from filming for Secret Life of Boys, and how was it having it win Best Interactive – Original at the 2016 BAFTA Children’s Awards and be nominated in the Kids: Digital category at the 2018 International Emmy Kids Awards?
There are so many great memories from filming Secret Life of Boys – from all the secret life stories, the pranks we got to pull, and the stunts we performed, to moments like when Ethan had just turned vegan and I caught Uncle Bob and Matt, played by Grant Burgin and Neil Reynolds, secretly eating meat. They both turned around mid-bite with their mouths full, and we all just couldn’t stop laughing and breaking – it was impossible – to the point that the crew were getting fed up and we nearly didn’t complete the day. Maybe it doesn’t sound that funny, but you had to be there. It’s still one of the funniest memories.
Everyone really became like a second family to me, and every day was different – we never quite knew what to expect, which made it all the more fun.
When we won at the BAFTA Children’s Awards, I just remember running outside Camden Roundhouse and having a really lovely moment with my mum – dancing together in the rain and not caring who was watching.
The show and everyone involved will forever be a huge part of my life.
Over your screen career so far, you have also been part of short films including Bacon, Dirty Little Rascals and Offside, can you tell us about some of them?
Offside follows 11-year-old Kirsty, who is struggling with growing up and losing her spot on the local boys’ football team – a really sweet coming-of-age story centred around football. Being able to play football while acting felt like my two worlds colliding.
Dirty Little Rascals is set in 1980s suburban England. I played Reg, a 13-year-old misfit who drags Dom along to pull off the heist of a lifetime: retrieving a bin full of pornographic newspaper clippings – the infamous “bin of the boob” hidden in his gran’s house – an experience I’ll never forget. Ben Bovington-Key is a genius.
Bacon follows an entitled teenager desperate to escape her dead-end town, whose summer of self-discovery forces her to confront her roots and rethink her future.
They were all just great stories I was lucky to be part of.
What was it like making your professional stage debut in 2013 at The Old Vic as George Seacoal in Much Ado About Nothing, which starred James Earl Jones and Vanessa Redgrave and was directed by Mark Rylance?
I don’t think I fully took it in at the time in the way I would now – looking back, it was quite an extraordinary experience to be part of. Being at The Old Vic in Much Ado About Nothing, directed by Mark Rylance, and working alongside people like Vanessa Redgrave and James Earl Jones – it’s the kind of thing you only really appreciate in hindsight.
One of my favourite memories is my dad telling Mark Rylance to “hang on a minute” while he sorted out the parking, not realising who he was and that he was about to tell him I’d got the role.
What was really fun about that production was its setting – 1944, rural England – so we were essentially playing these Boy Scout–type characters, running around and getting caught up in the world of the play. I remember scenes where we were capturing American soldiers, crawling across the stage with a rope in my mouth – proper chaos.
At the time, it was just a lot of fun. I remember breaking a sword on stage and it actually falling into the front row, which felt very dramatic – thankfully, no one was harmed. I also remember we used to play volleyball before every show, and it got surprisingly competitive, which was a great way to build that sense of company. I was just lucky to be surrounded by such a brilliant group of people.
And I’ll never forget James Earl Jones taking us into his dressing room and saying, “I’m going to say this one time and one time only…” before doing, “Luke, I am your father”. That was a pretty surreal moment.
How did you originally get into acting, and what was it like training at Young Actors Theatre Islington?
I actually got into acting with my best mate – we both wanted to be like Harry Potter. So I started going to classes after school, and it all sort of grew from there.
To be honest, I still don’t really know how I’ve ended up where I am now. I was a proper football kid, playing every week at Market Road, and acting just slowly became a bigger and bigger part of my life without me fully realising it.
Training at Young Actors Theatre Islington was a huge part of that. It gave me a real foundation and, more importantly, a group of people who felt like family. You’re all learning together, supporting each other, and those friendships really stay with you – it’s one of those places where you make friends for life.
Do you have any favourite films, TV and theatre shows to watch?
Quadrophenia is just cool. Snatch is another favourite – I just think Guy Ritchie is the man. And then Little Miss Sunshine is one I always go back to.
What do you find most rewarding about working as an actor, and do you have a process for learning scripts?
What I find most rewarding is being able to step into other people’s shoes – trying to understand what makes someone tick, and exploring different sides of yourself through that. It’s one of the few jobs where you get to properly live in someone else’s world for a while, and I think that’s a real privilege.
In terms of learning scripts, I don’t think I have a fixed process. Every time I feel like I’ve figured one out and get a bit smug about it, it completely changes on the next job. I think it depends on the character, the writing, and the situation – you just have to stay flexible and figure out what works each time, and what works for you.
Have you received any advice over your career so far that has stuck with you?
BE READY.
It’s something Kingsley Ben-Adir told me – he’s also a North London lad and an absolute gent – and it’s just always stuck with me. You never know when an opportunity is going to come, so you have to be prepared for it.
What are you hoping this year brings for you, and are you working on any projects, or have any coming up, that you can tell us about?
This year, I just want to keep growing as an actor and exploring new roles. I’d love to take on characters that challenge me, while continuing to develop and find my place in the industry.
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