Boys from the Blackstuff star wants play to unleash Liverpool's talent

Barry Sloane hopes 'Boys from the Blackstuff' inspires a new generation of Scouse actors.

Garston-born Barry is currently starring as Yosser Hughes in James Graham's adaptation of Alan Bleasdale's seminal 1982 TV drama. Barry appears alongside a tremendous cast of Merseyside actors, including Andrew Schofield (George), Mark Womack (Dixie), Aron Julius (Loggo) and Nathan McMullen (Chrissie).

The play opened at the Royal Court this week to rave reviews, including five stars from the ECHO. Hilarious and heartbreaking, the powerful adaptation is faithful to the original and will shake you to core.

Home to world class music and theatre, Liverpool is riding high as a city of culture

Hollyoaks star prepares for 'dream role' as he returns to Liverpool for Boys from the Blackstuff

Barry is central to the play's success, bringing real stage presence. He has an adeptness at moving between comedy and serious anger in an instant - perfect for Yosser's sudden fits of rage. Before the play opened, he spoke to the ECHO about taking on the dream role and his excitement at getting stuck into Bleasdale's work.

He also touched on what he wanted to achieve with the role and the pride he had at returning to Liverpool for the play.

Born and raised in Garston, Barry got his break in TV movie 'In His Life: The John Lennon Story' in 2000. He went on to appear as Sean Smith in 22 episodes of 'Brookside' between 2002 and 2003 and 85 episodes of 'Hollyoaks', in which he played Niall Rafferty from 2007 to 2009.

Since then, the 42-year-old has enjoyed a successful career in Hollywood. Most notably, he starred in the ABC drama series 'Revenge' and took over the role of Captain Price in the 'Call of Duty' video games in 2019.

Speaking to the ECHO