Last Saturday Elon Musk beamed into London to support a far-right, anti-immigration march, telling protesters that “violence is coming”. The next day, on stage in Los Angeles, a British man painted a much rosier picture of multiculturalism.
“I’m just a mixed-race kid from a block of flats in a place called Kirkby,” said Stephen Graham, as he picked up an Emmy award for his lead role in the Netflix drama Adolescence. “It shows you that any dream is possible.”
Graham’s role in the show, which he co-wrote, has established him as one of Britain’s most captivating actors. It has also made him a voice on the issues facing men and boys today: a voice of empathy. He came up with the idea for Adolescence — in which he plays the father of a 13-year-old who murders a female classmate — after being shocked by real-life knife crimes.