Q&A: SAS Rogue Heroes’ Jack O’Connell

Jack O’Connell established an early reputation for playing delinquents and rough diamonds in Shane Meadows’ This is England and E4 teen drama Skins. For these roles, he had no shortage of real-life experience to draw on: growing up in Derby, he was regularly in and out of court, until acting lessons helped set him on a less self-destructive path. In 2015, he was named BAFTA’s Rising Star, following his multi-award-winning performance in Angelina Jolie’s war film Unbroken.

Since 2022, 34-year-old O’Connell has played Lt Col Paddy Mayne in SAS Rogue Heroes. Adapted by Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight from Ben Macintyre’s bestselling book about the wartime origins of the world’s greatest Special Forces unit, the first series was one of the decade’s biggest drama hits. In series two — coming soon to BBC One and BBC iPlayer — Paddy is tasked with commanding the regiment as it spearheads the Allied assault on Nazi-occupied Europe.

Why do you think SAS Rogue Heroes struck such a chord with viewers?

It’s a real romper-stomper. It’s steeped in history. They were an amazing generation, and we all feel incredibly fortunate to have been allowed to tell the story on behalf of the regiment. Their approval is important to us. You have to dig deep on these long jobs, and we do get put through it. But it’s nothing compared to what these lads would have gone through.

Paddy has a short fuse. Is all the fighting and smashing things up cathartic?

It is the first time. But after the 30th time, you can sort of do without it. When you get to my age, you’re more concerned with not putting your back out. I doubt I could cut it in the real SAS. I’d have to knock the fags on the head.

Paddy recites the poetry of William Blake, like Tommy Shelby in Peaky Blinders. Is he Tommy’s spiritual successor?

That’s a question for Mr Knight. But I think those two men probably have quite a lot in common.

Your job has taken you from the Arctic in 2021 miniseries The North Water to Africa…

That’s probably the most mind-blowing part of this career — the people I’ve met, and the places I’ve got to go. Being 78 degrees north, and then the following year in the fucking Sahara Desert. You’re just like, ‘This is wild, man.’ It’s shit people would save up their whole lives to see. And then I’m shooting up in Newcastle and see the Northern Lights! I was racing all round Svalbard in a boat for two months and I didn’t get to see that. Who knew you just had to come up to Northumberland?

You’re very good at playing volatile characters. Are you volatile in real life?

No, I’m very vanilla, very boring. I like guided tours, cooking and a few pints with a crossword. I’m getting very close to my bird-watching years.

You have literally branded yourself Jack the Lad, though. Any regrets about that?

I mean, naturally, yeah. Any tattoo you get as a 15-year-old I think you inevitably regret. Don’t tattoo yourself with big bold letters saying anything at 15.

You’ve been actively pursuing different types of roles recently, like Mellors in Netflix’s Lady Chatterley’s Lover…

I guess so. You kind of have to put your hat in the ring more for things that aren’t as obvious for you. I enjoy that — I enjoy testing myself, and other people. But bad lads are fun to play. When you don’t have to be liked by an audience, it can be wildly liberating.

A case in point being Blake Fielder-Civil in the Amy Winehouse biopic Back to Black. How did you approach playing such a divisive figure?

I had to meet the man. That was paramount. And having met him, I felt it gave me a bit of permission to discredit anything that was written about him. The tabloid press is the last place I’m going to look for information about anyone. You just have to try to cancel out all the noise. Divisive? Yes. But could I justify his actions? I felt like I could. It’s certainly not for me to judge the behaviour of any twentysomething-year-old.

Is acting in danger of becoming an exclusively middle-class pursuit?

I’m hoping the priority might shift with the change of government. I think the other lot are quite well renowned for seeing art within the community as a total luxury, but it isn’t. It should be a right, and it’s just fucking desperate to see it getting stripped away from people on an ordinary level.

Is it true that, while filming Harry Brown (2009), Michael Caine shouted “Star of the future!” at you?

I mean, listen, yeah. But make sure you include that you brought it up, not me.