Adam Steven Deacon (born 4 March 1983) is an English actor. He is known for his lead role in the films '' Kidulthood'', sequel ''

Adulthood An adult is an animal that has reached full growth. The biological definition of the word means an animal reaching sexual maturity and thus capable of reproduction. In the human context, the term ''adult'' has meanings associated with social an ...

'', and for his directorial debut, '' Anuvahood''.

Career

Deacon was brought up by his English mother in

Stoke Newington Stoke Newington is an area in the northwest part of the London Borough of Hackney, England. The area is northeast of Charing Cross. The Manor of Stoke Newington gave its name to Stoke Newington (parish), Stoke Newington, the ancient parish. S ...

, Hackney. His father is Moroccan. His father walked out on the family when Deacon was two years old, and to this date the pair have never had any contact."Crunchtime for Hackney actor and BAFTA hopeful Adam Deacon"
, ''Hackney Gazette'', 8 February 2012. Although his acting career began with guest appearances in ''Bill's New Frock'', '' Shooters'', '' Ali G Indahouse'' and ''

The Bill ''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, broadcast on ITV (TV network), ITV from 16 October 1984 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, "Woodentop (The Bill), Woodentop" (part of the ''Storyb ...

'', he also starred in the ITV drama ''Wall of Silence'' in 2004. Deacon's breakthrough came when he landed a starring role in the urban drama film '' Kidulthood''. He then worked with the film's writer and director

Noel Clarke Noel Anthony Clarke (born 6 December 1975) is an English actor, writer, director and producer. Rising to prominence for playing Mickey Smith in ''Doctor Who'' (2005–2006, 2008, 2010), he received critical acclaim for writing, directing, and ...

on a number of other projects until 2011, including the sequel ''

'', '' 4.3.2.1.'' and the one-off television pilot '' West 10 LDN''. Deacon co-wrote, co-directed and played the lead role in urban comedy '' Anuvahood''. Following this, '' Time Out'' magazine labeled Deacon "The New Face of Youth Cinema". In February 2012, he won the BAFTA Rising Star Award. Deacon has since appeared in many lead and supporting roles in feature films, including '' Bonded by Blood'', '' Jack Falls'', '' Shank'', '' Everywhere and Nowhere'' and '' Payback Season''. He had a guest role in '' Victim''. In November 2012, he co-hosted the

Music of Black Origin Awards The MOBO Awards (Music of Black Origin, also known as the MOBOs) are an annual British music award presentation honouring achievements in " music of black origin", including hip hop, grime, UK Drill, R&B, soul, reggae, jazz, gospel, and Ba ...

telecast with Miquita Oliver where Deacon played a comical part in the awards. In May 2021, he appeared in an episode of the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

soap opera '' Doctors'' as TK Nelson.

Legal issues

In July 2015, he was found guilty of harassment without violence at West London Magistrates' Court, having had a highly publicised feud with Noel Clarke with accusations of Clarke bullying him and sabotaging Deacon's career, which Clarke stated was not true. On 20 July, Deacon was found guilty. The court, which heard that Deacon had been diagnosed with

bipolar disorder Bipolar disorder (BD), previously known as manic depression, is a mental disorder characterized by periods of Depression (mood), depression and periods of abnormally elevated Mood (psychology), mood that each last from days to weeks, and in ...

and had been self-medicating using

cannabis ''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae that is widely accepted as being indigenous to and originating from the continent of Asia. However, the number of species is disputed, with as many as three species be ...

, banned Deacon from contacting Clarke again. On 7 April 2016, he was arrested after police were called to reports of a man reportedly armed with a

machete A machete (; ) is a broad blade used either as an agricultural implement similar to an axe, or in combat like a long-bladed knife. The blade is typically long and usually under thick. In the Spanish language, the word is possibly a dimin ...

style knife and threatening members of the public in London. He was unable to attend a hearing in March due to being "in hospital for treatment for underlying mental health issues". On 7 April, a jury delivered two not-guilty verdicts for affray and possessing an offensive weapon accepting Deacon was mentally ill and not criminally responsible for his actions.

Filmography

Film

Television

Music videos

Discography

Singles

* " Keep Moving" (with Bashy, featuring

Paloma Faith Paloma Faith Blomfield (born 21 July 1981) is an English singer, songwriter, and actress. After signing with Epic Records in 2008, Faith released her debut album, '' Do You Want the Truth or Something Beautiful?'' (2009), which produced the UK ...

) (2010) * "Hype Hype Ting" (with

Boy Better Know Boy Better Know, often abbreviated as BBK, is a British grime collective and record label. The collective was founded in North London in 2005 as an independent record label by brothers Jamie and Joseph Adenuga, better known as Jme and Skepta, ...

and JME) (2011) * "Do It" (featuring Professor Green) (2011) * "People's Champion" (2012) * "Flying High" (2012) * '"Soldier" (2013)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Deacon, Adam Male actors from London Alumni of the Anna Scher Theatre School BAFTA Rising Star Award winners English male film actors English male television actors English people of Egyptian descent English people of Moroccan descent Grime music artists Living people People with bipolar disorder Rappers from the London Borough of Hackney English male web series actors 1983 births Actors from the London Borough of Hackney People from Stoke Newington People convicted of harassment 21st-century English criminals English male criminals Criminals from London