Oscar-nominated Barry ‘is a great act to follow’

Rising star hailed as a role model

THE manager of a Dublin youth club where the Baftawinning actor Barry Keoghan starred in one of his first drama roles has hailed the Irishman as a ‘fantastic role model’.

The 30-year-old Dubliner – who has also been nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor alongside Brendan Gleeson – was praised after dedicating his Bafta win to Ireland and ‘the kids that are dreaming to be something from the area I come from’.

Keoghan, whose mother struggled with drug addiction and died when he was a child, was placed with a dozen foster homes along with his brother before going to live with his grandmother.

In the wake of the dizzying success of his acting career, pupils at Keoghan’s former school said he was inspiring – something that Gillian Collins, operations manager of Belvedere Youth Club, agrees with.

‘It’s amazing, it’s so positive. It’s great that the north inner-city is out there in the media for positive news for a change,’ she said.

Keoghan was a member at the club for several years as a young teenager, and starred as Link Larkin in their 2010 production of Hairspray – The Musical, one of the first acting roles he ever had.

‘He was a charmer,’ Ms Collins says. ‘He had the little gift of the gab, the little glint in his eye and was full of energy.

‘He was just a normal lad from the inner city who had a dream, and put his head down and worked hard, and he’s a fantastic role model. I’m very proud of him.’ As they prepare to put on the next production, he’s already inspiring young boys to try their hand at acting, she said.

‘The girls are always interested in dancing and singing, and it’s only the last couple of weeks that the boys have shown some sort of an interest,’ Ms Collins said.

‘I have a little chap that I just happened to pass by in a corridor and said “Oh yeah, you got the main part, that’s brilliant. You know, (Barry Keoghan) was the main part when we did Hairspray back in 2010 and now he’s nominated for an Oscar?” and it was like “He is?” It’s like a snowball has started now and is gathering momentum.’