RAVE-HEART Welsh star on filming global smash Ibiza drama
scenes], in terms of getting into it, the character Axel isn’t having as much as you’d think…”
But he admits: “I get to play a superstar DJ in the Nineties and get to shoot it on location during the summer in Spain… it makes a slight change from a studio in Neasden at the height of winter,” he said.
“We just had the best time – however much fun that looks is what it was.”
And did looking back to the Nineties give him any new skills?
“After a little while doing this you become by proxy quite good at pub quizzes because you get quite good at a random topic,” he says.
“I did a lot of looking into Manchester in the ’90s, there was loads of stuff for me to pull from.
“Ibiza, that wasn’t so much on my radar – I wanted him to be finding out what he [Axel] was when he was there, so rooted him in Manchester, then he can go and explore and find out about Ibiza on his own.”
Tom now lives in London, but he does miss his home city, where he grew up with his brother, sister and parents, who are both in teaching,
“My parents still live there,” he said. “I love it, I miss it. I didn’t need – and I still don’t have – a car licence. I had a pushbike to ride to school and around the city. Everything’s just so accessible.”
It was while in his first year of studying at RWCMD that he landed the job on Hunky Dory, which is set in Swansea and starred Minnie Driver.
“I had the best time on that film, it was the first thing I’ve ever done,” he adds.
“I was still in college at RWCMD and I went off in the summer after my first year to film that.
“I love Swansea – probably shouldn’t say that as a boy from Cardiff.”
Despite the 2011 film getting him attention and an agent, Tom was keen to see out his education at the college.
“I still really wanted to pursue my education,” he said. “The space that college provides to make mistakes and more of a grasp of what it was I wanted to do. It was an invaluable time. I am passionate about education and higher education – I’d love to go back to study.”
In the meantime, there are reports of a second series of White Lines with Netflix.
“I’m getting messages from people all over the world – a lot of it is positive, despite what he does and how he behaves is questionable – but there’s an appeal to a devil-may-care attitude. Not that I am condoning what he does!” adds the 28-year-old.
“In amongst that, if you are putting yourself out there you’re gonna get some criticism – someone messaged me the other day to say I looked like a frog.
“To be honest, I do look a bit froggy, but I could not care less!” he laughed.
And at the end of the day, why should he?
Catch Tom Rhys Harries in White Lines on Netflix, streaming now.