‘I didn’t have an ambition to get to Hollywood or be a huge film star. I’ve always taken a practical view of acting’
Maesydderwen schoolmates going on to have success – Eve Myles, director and actor Craig Russell and In My Skin star Richard Corgan.
But it was in his fifth year at the school a teacher called Hazel Williams took over the Welsh department and Steve and Craig found themselves shipped off to the National Youth Theatre of Wales following their teacher’s encouragement to audition.
“We did it for a laugh, two rugby boys from the upper Swansea Valley, and it just turned our heads so much. We had such a great time and I made friends with people, a lot of whom are still my closest friends now.
“Coming from a family of tradesmen and a working class background, I wasn’t really discouraged but I wasn’t pushed into doing the drama either. I was luckily quite good at school and wanted to be a solicitor. But one day my father walked into the room and just told me to follow my heart and do what I wanted to do in life.”
Sadly, Steve’s dad passed away in 2002 and only saw a few things his son went on to star in. One of those was Belonging, a Valleys-set drama which ran for 10 years and also starred Eve Myles, Charles Dale, Di Botcher and many other Welsh acting talents we still love today. Steve’s proud of his work on the show that broached tough topics like self-harm and underage sex.
Another early, but legendary, role Steve’s dad got to see was as the inimitable Hoffman in the utterly Welsh comedy High Hopes opposite Robert Blythe and Margaret John. Steve starred in all of the episodes made between 2002 and 2015 and has fond memories of the show, as do fans of the Boyd Clack sitcom.
“We had such a laugh,” said the father-of-two who says that there’s just something about Welsh society that “breeds funny”.
“We really formed a family bond in it. We worked together I think for the best part of 10 years. I remember Bob Blythe saying it felt like his time in the sun and that’s a good way of putting it because we got paid to make each other laugh and mess around.”
High Hopes filmed in Rhondda and Merthyr Tydfil and Steve has fond memories of both making the show in those communities as well as representing them and their particular brand of humour.
“Obviously it was an exaggerated representation of those areas and that’s where the humour comes from. But I think we did feel proud that we were making a comedy about those sorts of areas, which you don’t see a lot of on TV. And if you do, it’s about drug abuse or a depressing take. But the thing I loved most about filming in those locations is we’d be in the same place a lot of the time.
“And we’d have the young kids who would come around and see us on the first and second series, they were 10 or 11, and have a chat and a laugh. But, by the time we finished there, they’re all grown up, they were driving past us beeping their horns.”
Seeing Welsh characters on screen has definitely become more nuanced since Steve’s career has developed. He explained: “I think being a regional-accented actor you tend to get the same script sent to you again and again, you know, you will have the southern English lead character and then you will have the regional best friend who misinterprets what the lead character says, says something stupid, gets corrected... laughter track.
“I got a bit bored of being sent the same script over and over again. I consciously chose more dramatic roles.”
Seeing better characters nowadays means actors like Steve get into the more meaty roles, like his turn as detective Lynne Harries in The Pembrokeshire Murders opposite Luke Evans.
Steve added: “I think we’ve moved away from being so London-centric now. And people realise that there are very important stories to be told that are elsewhere and that people are more transient.
“Now you can have a character who comes from anywhere, really, if something’s set in Birmingham, doesn’t mean everybody’s going to be a Brummie, just as if it’s set in Cardiff doesn’t mean everybody’s going to be Welsh and that’s all right. That’s a good thing, I think.”
So let’s get into it then, I say to Steve, the serious business. Who’s the comedy character you get recognised for most? Hoffman or Owain Hughes? One is a Valleys legend, loved by thousands with fond memories of the Boyd Clack characters, the other told a ‘joke’ people have been trying to figure out for a decade in a show beloved by millions with a passion.
Steve said: “Just because I live in the south east of England now [with wife Eleanor Howell and sons Sonny and Rowan] and High Hopes wasn’t shown on network and just Gavin & Stacey is on ALL the time, you can always catch it somewhere. So probably Owain in general, but in Wales it’s Hoffman.”
As for his fans, Steve added: “I hope I will never get annoyed by people coming up and asking about the work. The majority of time people walk up to you and tell you how much they like stuff and that’s never going to be the problem. My wife actually bought me a card with Owain Hughes on, I didn’t know it existed.”
■ You can see Steve in Coronation Street on ITV this spring