Loyle Carner’s Leap from Music to Screen
Rapper Loyle Carner, known professionally by his stage name but using his real name Ben Coyle-Larner for acting, admits extreme nerves throughout filming his debut TV role. “Hell yeah,” the 31-year-old London-born artist confesses. “The whole time.”
With over 1.4 billion Spotify streams, Brit Award nominations, and a recent Glastonbury headline slot on the West Holts stage, Carner commands stages effortlessly. Yet, stepping into Charlotte Regan’s BBC drama Mint proved daunting for the hip-hop star.
From University Dropout to Music Success
Coyle-Larner dropped out of university to support his mother and built financial stability through his music career as Loyle Carner—a spoonerism reflecting his childhood dyslexia struggles. Directing his own music videos satisfied early filmmaking urges, but watching peers succeed inspired his pivot.
“I’ve got a lot of friends who have recently made really beautiful films,” Coyle-Larner says. “They’re people I feel are a lot smarter than me, but definitely my contemporaries in terms of hanging out. So if they can do it, I felt like maybe I could be brave enough to give it a go.”
Landing the Role in Mint
Coyle-Larner first encountered Regan, director of the acclaimed feature Scrapper, while shopping at Broadway Market in Hackney. Coincidentally, she had sent him the Mint script. Their chat sparked a friendship, as he shared frustrations over stereotypical roles lacking emotional depth.
Reading the script moved him: “I felt like I’d seen a little bit of that in it, and I was moved by it.” A lengthy audition process convinced BBC producers of his potential, securing the role of Arran.
Plot and Style of the BBC Drama
The eight-part quirky dark comedy follows teenager Shannon (Emma Laird from The Brutalist), daughter of charismatic crime kingpin father (Sam Riley from Control). Suitors flee due to her family’s fearsome reputation until Arran catches her eye at a train station.
Regan weaves handheld footage, surreal fantasies, and needle-drop montages—including 10cc’s “I’m Not in Love”—in a loosely Shakespearean tale of rival households, delivered with bold confidence.
Behind-the-Scenes Experience
Prior set visits, including Philip Barantini and Stephen Graham’s Adolescence, prepared him somewhat. Regan embraced his anxiety: “She understood I had a process that I was trying to work through, but yeah,” he laughs. “I was fucking nervous—a lot.”
Co-stars like Laird, Riley, and Laura Fraser appreciated his fresh enthusiasm. Coyle-Larner praises the result: “It’s unlike anything I’ve seen on TV. It’s magic.” He highlights Regan’s integrity and BBC’s trust in her vision.
At the Berlinale world premiere on Potsdamer Platz, the musician-turned-actor exudes calm. “I love Berlin,” he says. “As long as I can get a good kebab, I’ll be fine.”
