Gary Oldman, one of Britain's most celebrated actors, recently shared a nostalgic moment from his childhood during an appearance on comedian Josh Widdicombe's BBC Radio 2 show. The Oscar-winning star reminisced about his early acting days, revealing that his talent for landing prominent roles began at a young age.

Early Acting Beginnings

Oldman, now 68, recalled his first major role as Joseph in a school nativity play at London's Monson Primary School in the late 1960s. The actor's former classmate, Christopher Carey, called into the show to discuss the memory, which Oldman remembered vividly despite not having spoken to Carey in 60 years.

Carey shared, "I know that I got the part in the nativity play. I got the part of Joseph, so in my mind I'm embellishing it by saying it was the day before the play, that I got pulled aside to be told I was given the part of the shepherd or the sheep. The one who replaced me was Gary Oldman. Do you remember that? Or have I made that up over the years?"

Oldman joked in response, "I think I may have replaced you, Chris. Even back then, they could tell... they could see the spark!"

Slow Horses and Jackson Lamb

Oldman's portrayal of the slovenly detective Jackson Lamb in Apple TV's critically acclaimed series Slow Horses has earned him a new generation of fans. The show, an adaptation of Mick Herron's London Rules book series, follows a group of MI5 agents in spy purgatory at Slough House.

Oldman has played Lamb since the series debuted in 2022, and the character has become one of his all-time favorites. "Where would he be in the canon, as it were? I think up there with you know, Darkest Hour, Tinker Tailor," he said after collecting his MBE in October. The star won his Oscar for his portrayal of Winston Churchill in the 2017 film Darkest Hour. He was also Oscar-nominated for Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011) and Mank (2020).

In Season 5 of Slow Horses, suspicions are raised when the team's tech nerd Roddy Ho is dating a glamorous woman. As London is hit with a series of bizarre events, the Slow Horses spot an old agency technique to destabilize regimes. "We're getting a taste of our own poison," Oldman added.

Commitment to the Role

With a sixth season already shot and production due to start on Season 7 in November, Oldman says Lamb has become the character he has inhabited consistently the longest. To fully embody Jackson's worn-out look, Oldman has made a physical commitment, including putting on extra body fat and sporting "Lamb hair."

He considers it a "small price to pay" to avoid adding to the "thousands of hours" he has spent in the makeup artist's chair over his career. "So it's of my own choosing, really, that I've got to walk around with a terrible haircut and scruff on my chin and go to Windsor Castle, meet the future king, you know, and go 'Sorry, I apologize about all of this, but, you know, I start work in a month,'" he said with a laugh.