Christopher Eccleston: ‘All areas of the arts are becoming ivory towers’ Christopher Eccleston believes that he is part of a disappearing breed of working class actors. “People like myself, Sean Bean, […]

Christopher Eccleston believes that he is part of a disappearing breed of working class actors.

“People like myself, Sean Bean, Maxine Peake – there’s not going to be people like us coming through in 20 years,” he maintains.

The Salford-born former Doctor Who actor is talking to i in the wake of his award-nominated performance in HBO’s The Leftovers, which tells the story of another disappearing act.

i's TV newsletter: what you should watch next Email address is invalid Email address is invalid Thank you for subscribing! Sorry, there was a problem with your subscription.

The show begins with 140 million humans vanishing from the face of the earth with no explanation, in an event known as the ‘sudden departure’.

As the show comes to a conclusion after three seasons, Eccleston has been given pause for thought about his time in the US – and the lack of diversity in the British arts.

“It’s always been a policy of the Conservative government and party to destroy working class identity.”

‘We need a spiritual revolution’

In its final season, The Leftovers came of age, resonating with critics after two seasons that struggled to find their audience.

The show’s fascinating high-concept premise presented us with damaged characters attempting to find a belief system in the wake of a catastrophic event. As Matt Jamison, Eccleston played a former reverend struggling to understand why he wasn’t taken in the sudden departure, an event which he attributes to the rapture.

Each episode brings a tidal wave of existential crisis. However, Eccleston says that questions raised by the show weren’t new for him.

“These are questions I’ve been carrying around with me for life.”

Despite moving towards agnosticism following the birth of his children, Eccleston identifies himself as “a peace-loving atheist”.

The actor is critical of organised religion and suggests that we all need to question the role it has in our lives. “We’ve had an industrial revolution, we’ve had a digital revolution, now we need a spiritual revolution,” he states.

Mancunian to New Yorker

The Leftovers is set in the New York state town of Mapleton, and Eccleston worked tirelessly to morph his Mancunian twang into a believable American accent.

“It’s a slower process for me because I learn visually. Some people learn audibly, to the ears, but I have to see the words written down phonetically and it’s a slower process.

“It improved as I went on and that’s always going to happen because you’re spending more and more time in the character.

“I was surrounded by American actors who weren’t even thinking about dialect. It was an enormous challenge for me and one that I’m very proud of.”

Eccleston notes that the only criticism of his accent has come from British viewers.

“Nobody’s picked me up on it in America, but in Britain people are going to pick me up on it because I’m part of the furniture over here, you just can’t please everybody.

“The point for me was to please the American producers and the casting producers and I can tell you for a fact that that has worked because I’m receiving work offers over there,” he says with a chuckle. “I’ve achieved my goal.”

“You can’t get into drama school if you’re from a council estate. You can’t afford it.”

Taking aim at the Tories

As Eccleston forges a new chapter of his career on the other side of the Atlantic, however, the actor fears that high profile working class actors back home will soon be a thing of the past.

“The situation is not improving,” he maintains. “It’s getting worse and worse. All areas of the arts are becoming ivory towers.”

The actor is scathing of the Conservative Party, who he holds responsible for the decline in working class talent.

“Due to student debt, we are being excluded. It’s always been a policy of the Conservative government and party to destroy working class identity.”

“If you prevent them from having a cultural voice which is what’s happening, they achieve that,” he continues. “They hate us, they want to destroy us, so we’re being ruled out of having a voice.

“You can’t get into drama school if you’re from a council estate. You can’t afford it.

Eccleston’s notable roles Let Him Have It, 1991

Shallow Grave, 1994

Our Friends in the North, 1996

Hillsborough, 1996

eXistenZ, 1999

24 Hour Party People, 2002

28 Days Later, 2002

Doctor Who, 2005

Heroes, 2007

Thor: The Dark World, 2013

Legend, 2015

The A Word, 2016

“It was different for me in the eighties and look what I’ve achieved. Look what Sean Bean’s achieved. Look what Maxine Peake’s achieved.

“But there’s not going to be the numbers in 20 years, and it’s the same for people of colour who come from that background. We’re moving towards a white culture, but we live in a multi-cultural society.”

The question of free education

Eccleston is talking not long after Jeremy Corbyn’s vow to wipe out student debt if Labour are voted into power following the next General Election.

Despite having differences in opinion with the Labour leader, Eccleston insists that higher education should be free.

“I have my problems with Corbyn, but the idea that you have to pay for your education? It didn’t happen to me,” he says.

“It’s a policy to exclude the working classes educating themselves, and realising the corruption that goes right up to the top of the Conservative Party.”