When you get to play a career-defining character like Jamie Tartt, in a series as seminal, heart-warming and multi- award-winning as Ted Lasso , it’s going to be a pretty hard act to follow. But Phil Dunster is going about it the right way. Read Next I’m carrying the flag for Britain at the Olympics but my life is a total mess! The 32-year-old actor is on an early morning Zoom call from Santa Fe, New Mexico, where he is working on an indie road movie of which he can tell us little other than a) he is in it and b) he has “quite a few lines”, so, as to whether he is the leading star of said movie, we currently remain in the dark.
What we do know is that this, and his other new career move, will surely put paid to any danger of typecasting following his brilliant portrayal of Manc scally footballer Jamie , the cocky bad boy turned humble. Because his other next move too is a surprising one the other next move is to the next state along – though not literally – as – Dunster is swapping his football kit for his jazz hands, starring as Curly in Oklahoma! in the West End this month. Which is most unexpected.
“People are like ‘Oh really, ok? That seems mad’. I mean, I’d love to see Jamie Tartt sing Oklahoma! He’d probably do it more as a grime rap,” smiles Dunster, who has been having singing lessons on set in New Mexico, perfecting his rendition of “Oh, What A Beautiful Mornin’” in between takes. “Much to the chagrin of all the other cast members,�.
