South yorkshire actor Steven is at core of TV's Apple Tree Yard

Rotherham-born actor Steven Elder is starring in new BBC1 thriller Apple Tree Yard '“ and it's a hard-hitting role.
Rotherham-born actor Steven Elder, currently starring in Apple Tree Yard on BBC1 alongside Emily WatsonRotherham-born actor Steven Elder, currently starring in Apple Tree Yard on BBC1 alongside Emily Watson
Rotherham-born actor Steven Elder, currently starring in Apple Tree Yard on BBC1 alongside Emily Watson

Without giving anything away if you missed the first episode on Sunday night, the Silverwood miner’s son was involved in a brutal finale.

Steven said: “It’s full of twists and turns and surprises.

“It’s produced by the BBC and a company called Kudos, the people behind Broadchurch. I think it’s of that quality.

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“The show stars Emily Watson, who I’ve been a fan of since seeing her in Breaking the Waves in the 1990s.

“She is extraordinary to work with, it was a privilege.”

He added: “I’m proud of the whole thing, it’s really compelling stuff.

“It’s a nice feeling that I can be working with other people of that quality, such as Ben Chaplin and Mark Bonnar. ”

Steven has appeared in shows including Lost, Vera, Silent Witness, Versailles, In The Club and The Hour.

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He changed his name when another actor was already working under his real name, Steven Lawrence.

He’d already changed it before the terrible killing of the young black Londoner.

Steven said he chose Elder because he was born in Elder Drive, Sunnyside: “I was born at number 63 in the front room.

“I took my name from Elder Drive because it’s part of my DNA and part of me.”

He is a screenwriter as well as an actor and is working on a script set in the South Yorkshire coalfields in the 1950s “as a way of honouring the background I’m from that I’m very proud of.”