Callum Scott Howells (born 29 April 1999) is a Welsh actor, singer, and television personality who began his career as a child. He is known for his role as Colin Morris-Jones in the
Channel 4 drama ''
It's a Sin'' (2021).
Early life and education
Howells was born in
Pontypridd to parents Alison and Keith and grew up nearby in
Tonyrefail and
Porth
Porth ( cy, Y Porth) is a town and a community in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, within the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan, Wales. Lying in the Rhondda Valley, it is regarded as the gateway connecting the Rhondda Fawr and Rh ...
. His grandfather, Bryn Howells, was a life member of the
Treorchy Male Choir
Treorchy Male Choir, also known as Treorchy Male Voice Choir, is a choir based in Treorchy in the Rhondda, Rhondda Valley, Wales, United Kingdom.
History
Choirs have existed in the Rhondda Valley for more than a 150 years and Treorchy is one of ...
.
Callum attended
Treorchy Comprehensive School
Treorchy Comprehensive School is an English language, comprehensive school in the village of Treorchy, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. The school is situated on the southern side of the valley, and is 500 metres in length from the main gate on Conwa ...
, where he was head boy. He took classes with Rhondda Stage School, Superstars in the Making in
Barry Barry may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Barry (name), including lists of people with the given name, nickname or surname, as well as fictional characters with the given name
* Dancing Barry, stage name of Barry Richards (born c. 19 ...
, and was a member of the
National Youth Music Theatre
The National Youth Music Theatre (NYMT) is an arts organisation in the United Kingdom providing pre-professional education and musical theatre stage experience for young people. Based in London, it is constituted as a private limited company (orig ...
.
He was scouted by an agent when he was 16 and went on to train at the
Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama, graduating in 2020.
Career
Howells made his debut in a regional production of ''
Oliver!
''Oliver!'' is a coming-of-age stage musical, with book, music and lyrics by Lionel Bart. The musical is based upon the 1838 novel '' Oliver Twist'' by Charles Dickens.
It premiered at the Wimbledon Theatre, southwest London in 1960 before op ...
'' He was a founding member of the boys' choir
Only Boys Aloud
Only Boys Aloud is a Wales-based boys' choir founded by choral director Tim Rhys-Evans. Only Boys Aloud finished third in the ''Britain's Got Talent'' competition in May 2012 and released their debut album in November 2012.
History
Only Boys A ...
, performing with them on series 6 of ''
Britain's Got Talent'' in 2012 and later for
Prince Harry and
Meghan in 2018. He has since become a youth ambassador.
He appeared in series 2 of the
CBBC reality documentary series ''
Show Me What You're Made Of
''Show Me What You're Made Of'' is a CBBC documentary series hosted by Stacey Dooley. The series follows British children as they go around the world to experience some of the world's toughest jobs for themselves. Each series is filmed in a dif ...
''. He was 13 at the time. He later returned as a guest presenter. He worked as a Royal Correspondent on the
CBBC series ''
Blue Peter
''Blue Peter'' is a British children's television entertainment programme created by John Hunter Blair. It is the longest-running children's TV show in the world, having been broadcast since October 1958. It was broadcast primarily from BBC Tel ...
''.
Howells won the 2013 Star of the Stage talent show. In 2014, he played Godfrey in
Matthew Bourne
Sir Matthew Christopher Bourne (born 13 January 1960) is an English choreographer whose work includes contemporary dance and dance theatre.
Choreographer
In 2007, Bourne contemplated a gay version of ''Romeo and Juliet''. Despite the succ ...
's
New Adventures
New Adventures is a British dance-theatre company. Founded by choreographer Matthew Bourne in 2001, the company developed from an earlier company Adventures in Motion Pictures, now dissolved.
History
Adventures in Motion Pictures (AMP) was est ...
production of ''Lord of the Flies'' at the
Wales Millennium Centre
Wales Millennium Centre ( cy, Canolfan Mileniwm Cymru) is an arts centre located in the Cardiff Bay area of Cardiff, Wales. The site covers a total area of . Phase 1 of the building was opened during the weekend of the 26–28 November 2004 an ...
. He performed with
Treorchy Male Choir
Treorchy Male Choir, also known as Treorchy Male Voice Choir, is a choir based in Treorchy in the Rhondda, Rhondda Valley, Wales, United Kingdom.
History
Choirs have existed in the Rhondda Valley for more than a 150 years and Treorchy is one of ...
in 2015, Pendyrus Male Choir in 2017, and Dunvant Male Choir in 2018.
When he was 17, Howells auditioned for the singing competition ''
Let It Shine'' with the song "
You'll Be Back
"You'll Be Back" is the seventh song from Act 1 of the musical ''Hamilton'', based on the life of Alexander Hamilton, which premiered on Broadway in 2015. Lin-Manuel Miranda wrote both the music and lyrics to the song. It is sung by Jonathan Gro ...
" from ''
Hamilton Hamilton may refer to:
People
* Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname
** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland
** Lord Hamilt ...
''. He was part of Group 4 and made it to the final 25. However, he pulled out to make time to play Arpad Laszlo in the
West End production of ''
She Loves Me'' at
Menier Chocolate Factory.
In May 2016 he played the lead role in ''Blackout'', a production in the nationwide Connections programme of the
National Theatre. The first public review of his acting was headed “Actor to Watch” and read “Callum Scott Howells delivers a performance of ferocious impact.”
In March 2019 he appeared at the Other Room Theatre in Cardiff in ''Crave'' by
Sarah Kane
Sarah Kane (3 February 1971 – 20 February 1999) was an English playwright, screenwriter and theatre director. She is known for her plays that deal with themes of redemptive love, sexual desire, pain, torture—both physical and psychological� ...
produced by the
Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama.
In October 2019, it was announced Howells would star in
Russell T Davies' miniseries ''
It's a Sin'' as Colin Morris-Jones. The character is loosely based on a real-life past boyfriend of Davies. The series premiered in January 2021 on
Channel 4 and February on
HBO Max.
From 3 October 2022, Howells played The Emcee in the
West End production of
''Cabaret'' at the Kit Kat Club at the
Playhouse Theatre. On New Year's Eve 2022 he appeared in a vignette from the show on BBC 1's ''
The Graham Norton Show''.
Howells had been cast to play in
Gary Owen's play ''Romeo and Julie'' for the
Royal National Theatre
The Royal National Theatre in London, commonly known as the National Theatre (NT), is one of the United Kingdom's three most prominent publicly funded performing arts venues, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Opera House. I ...
in 2020. Due to the
COVID-19 pandemic,however, the co-production with the
Sherman Theatre was postponed and instead opened at the
Dorfman Theatre in February 2023.
The Times described Howell in the Romeo role as: "an entertaining, unsentimental, smartly judged performance."
Personal life
Howells identifies as
queer
''Queer'' is an umbrella term for people who are not heterosexual or cisgender. Originally meaning or , ''queer'' came to be used pejoratively against those with same-sex desires or relationships in the late 19th century. Beginning in the lat ...
.
He has voiced his support for
Welsh independence.
Filmography
Stage
Awards and nominations
Notes
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Howells, Callum Scott
Living people
1999 births
21st-century Welsh male actors
Alumni of the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama
Choristers
People educated at Treorchy Comprehensive School
People from Porth
People from Pontypridd
People from Tonyrefail
Welsh LGBT actors
Welsh LGBT singers
Queer actors
Queer men
Welsh child singers
Welsh male child actors
Welsh male musical theatre actors
Welsh male stage actors
Welsh television personalities
21st-century Welsh LGBT people