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A: “Luck has everything to do with [my success],” Keegan says, sipping his water. “I’ve worked hard, but so have all the talented actors I went to drama school with. The struggle to get noticed, bouncing back from rejections, the times I wasn’t asked to audition—which still happens, by the way—is always on my mind. If it wasn’t forLairds, I’m sure I’d still be bartending, running to auditions between shifts, and waiting for my phone to ring. I think ‘why me’ daily.”
Q: Were sacrifices made to get where you are now?
A: “Sometimes you have to make choices you never thought you’d make. Even with a little success, things don’t pan out the way you think. I’ve learned that achieving your dreams has a cost; it’s bittersweet. Sometimes you end up losing what’s…what’s very important to you.”
Alex pulled away.
“You okay, love?” Joan looked up from the page.
“Yeah. It’s just…”
“You don’t have to keep reading…”
How could she stop?
Q: How does it feel following in the footsteps of Benedict Cumberbatch and Kit Harington as the internet’s boyfriend?
A: “It’s flattering, but fans might be surprised. I’m actually a rubbish boyfriend, but I’m learning. I won’t repeat the same mistakes.”
Q: Your film and TV schedule has been non-stop. Why did you decide to tread the boards?
A: “The theatre community embraced me straight out of drama school when no one else would. I owe it so much; it just feels like home. But sinceLairds, I’ve been offered mostly outdoorsy movie roles that require lots of physicality. I love the films I’ve shot so far, and I’m looking forward to the action-thriller I’ll be starting in August. We’ll be shooting in Mexico, Russia, Portugal—”
Q: Is thatFull Throttle 3: Blood Lust, the Dwayne Johnson blockbuster franchise?
Alex’s jaw fell. “He’s in Full Throttle 3?”
“Ooh!” Joan squeezed Alex’s arm. “I love those movies!”
Alex looked at her grandmother and went back to reading.
A: “It is! I’ll be spending spring and summer in the gym, bulking up for it. But like I said, I’m thrilled to get back to my roots on stage, taking onConstellations. It’s very intimate.”
Q: Was that what attracted you to the play? The emotional range required?
A: “Yes. It’s a sexy, heartfelt story about boy meets girl, boy loses girl, and what might have been. I think anyone who has been in love will relate to Roland and Marianne, especially if you’ve questioned what you did or didn’t do in a relationship. That aspect especially resonated with me, and I’m sure it will touch audiences. I jumped at the chance to perform here again. Manchester and its people—they’ll always have a big place in my heart.”
A smile tugged at the corners of Alex’s mouth.
Q: You just completed filmingA Promise Unspoken in Dublin with your Constellations co-star, Fallon Delaney. Your play’s director praised what you both bring to your roles. He said: “The reason Fallon was cast is because she has a sizzling chemistry with Mark. You can’t fake that, especially live on stage.” Mark, care to say a few words about her?
A: “Fallon and I have known each other since we were kids, so yeah, there is a shorthand that we bring to the stage. She’s a very talented actress.”
Q: There are rumours that you two are dating…
A: “I’ve learned the hard way that a private life should be just that—private. I’m protective of it and those I hold close.” Keegan smiles. “Nothing to see here.”
Alex sighed as she pushed the paper away.
“All right, love?” Joan patted her hand.
Alex stared out the window at the slow-moving shops and buildings that signaled their stop was next. “That Q&A left me with more questions than answers.”
“Maybe that’s a good thing,” said Joan. “Sometimes we don’t like the answers we’re given.”
