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Tom was born at Epsom Hospital on 22 September 1987 the
youngest of four brothers and is a Surrey boy through and through. He was
educated until 13 at the Cranmore School in West Horsley and went on to Howard
of Effingham school. Tom, now 18, reflects: “It was great, not only were
there stacks of girls but they were all made to wear skirts. Having been at an
all boys school for ten years, it was just the best.” Making up for lost
time, he was quick to mix with them. “I love female company and have loads
of girl ‘friends’ but currently I am single and available.”
This will be welcome news for his army of female
admirers. He has a huge fan base and receives letters and photos as well as all
sorts of gifts. Some are good luck tokens – the strangest, he says, are
spoons from Japan. But he has also been sent Bibles from the US in reaction to
his role as Malfoy. In a Deep South accent Tom describes how one accompanying
letter said ‘Redeem Thyself Brother Tom, for the devil is within’.
“Don’t these people know that I’m acting a role? It’s
crazy.” He gets so much mail that his mum Sharon, who is his manager, has
to employ a team of helpers – Sally, Sarah and Miriam – to deal with
it.
Tom was persuaded to get an agent by a friend who ran
a drama summer school in Bookham. Within two weeks he was shooting the advert
in the US for Commercial Union. He went on to do other TV ads including a
series for Barclaycard. “Then my agent heard about an audition for the
1997 film The Borrowers and I got the part.” He played the Peagreen Clock
alongside Jim Broadbent, John Goodman and Celia Imrie in a role which demanded
he had his hair dyed red and permed!
His next role was as Louis Leonowens in Anna and The
King. He was 13 years old and played the son of Jodie Foster’s character.
It meant filming for four months in Malaysia, and Tom’s mum recalls going
behind the scenes to find him being taught how to use a Samurai sword by fellow
actor Yun-Fat Chow who played King Mongkut in the movie.
Then came his biggest role with the first of J K
Rowling’s Harry Potter series. Tom was auditioned by director Chris
Columbus and producer David Heyman for various roles, including Harry. But it
was Draco Malfoy, the bad guy, that Chris and David decided was right for Tom
and so with a slicked back, white-blond look he made the character his own.
Tom is currently filming the fifth movie, Harry Potter
and The Order of the Phoenix, due for release next year. He says filming is
always fun but it’s weird to watch the finished product: “Obviously
the scenes aren’t shot in sequence and filming lasts so long that when I
see it my first thought is ‘where’s the rest of it?’ And
sometimes I’m thinking ‘oh yes, the next bit is really good’ but
then it doesn’t happen or is somewhere else in the action.”
At 18 Tom may be an international film star, but he is
happiest at home. “I love spending time at home with my friends. On a
Friday night you’ll find nine or ten of us sitting having a game of cards.
I love cards: poker is favourite at the moment,” he admits. “But
I’m a country boy. Surrey is the real garden of England for me. I’m
well into fishing – have been since I was 11 – and regularly go to
Bury Hill in Dorking and sling a rod out.”
His first real (or should this be reel) job at the age
of 11 was at the fishery in Dorking. “For 20 quid a day I’d pick up
litter and tidy fishing gear. Actually, I only recently started to see my
future in acting. My dream job has always been to own my own
fishery.”
He is a committed fisherman. “On New Year’s
Eve I went out to celebrate with my friends until the bells struck midnight.
Then by quarter past I was off fishing. I was still in my best clothes and it
was minus 4!”
Tom is the youngest of four brothers and says he
benefitted from that. “By the time I did anything wrong, Mum had seen it
all before and was used to it. I’ve had no special treatment at home where
my acting was concerned, either. While filming The Borrowers I’d come home
full of it all, and my brothers would tell me to sit down on the floor and shut
up whilst EastEnders was on.”
He is very close to 24-year-old brother Chris, who also
acts as his PA. Eldest brother Jonathan, 26, is a chiropractor while Ashley,
22, is currently having a great time travelling in Australia. “Lately
he’s been picking bananas! I hope to go out and spend some quality time
with him soon.”
He’s bought his family cars to thank them for
their support – cars being another of his passions. “I bought my
first car before I even learned to drive. It was a great motivator: I wanted
something for the hours I put in at the studios and just seeing it on the drive
made me appreciate everything. I passed my test within a month of my 17th
birthday. It was my second attempt but everyone says second time drivers are
better drivers!’
Words and pictures by Andy Newbold
First published
in Surrey Life - www.surreylife.co.uk
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