TV & Movies
The Teacher’s Samuel Bottomley Is No Stranger To School-Based Dramas
The young actor has appeared in a number of British TV classics.
Channel 5’s new thriller is going to be a challenging watch.In The Teacher, a Bradford high school teacher is accused of having a drunken encounter with a student. Starring Sheridan Smith as the troubled teacher Jenna Garvey, the four-part series will see the educator struggle to prove her innocence. But who is The Teacher star, Samuel Bottomley? The actor who plays 15-year-old Kyle, the student at the centre of the allegations.
The 20-year old actor may be someone you’re already pretty familiar with, appearing in a number of classic British school-based dramas. West Yorkshire-born, Bottomley notably starred as Jordan Wilson in Channel 4’s school drama Ackley Bridge from 2017, where he was challenged to portray his character’s abusive relationship with his father. He also played school bully, Dean Paxton, in the acclaimed musical comedy, Everybody's Talking About Jamie.
The burgeoning talent made his screen debut aged nine years old, featuring in the BAFTA-winning film Tyrannosaur in 2011, alongside celebrated actor Olivia Colman. In the years since, Bottomley has continued making waves in movies, starring in Amazon Original’s “anarchic comedy” Get Duked! in 2019, which saw four teens embark to the Scottish Highlands for a weekend on the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award scheme. Bottomley’s considerable acting CV also includes features in Ghost Stories (2017) and more recently, in the TV series Ladhood.
The Teacher is Bottomley’s latest acting pursuit alongside BAFTA-winner Sheridan Smith, and it seems despite the series’ difficult themes, the actor rather enjoyed his time on set.
“It’s the first time we’d worked together but as soon as I met her, she welcomed me into the cast with open arms,” the actor said, per The Sun. “We sat down and talked about the characters and the scripts and she never let me feel too nervous,” he added. “We were messing around all the time between takes. Everyone had a really good time filming the series and me and Sheridan were always laughing and joking.”
