His schoolmates had no idea he had a secret life as an
Actor. As he plays a drugs courier in an unflinching new film, Khan talks about fitting it all in – and how Covid has killed kissing on set
Conrad Khan was filming in a fried chicken shop not far from where he actually lives. In the scene, his character’s bullying schoolmates come in and demand he hand over his chips. Then, as
shooting began, Khan’s real-life schoolmates turned up, curious about a film crew in their local hangout. “They looked in,” laughs Khan, “and did a double take. They were so confused. They didn’t know I’m an actor. So I was quite proud. Yeah, quite cool.”
County Lines, the film Khan stars in, portrays another kind of double life. Khan plays Tyler, a quiet, troubled 14-year-old with an absent father, a hard-up mother, and little to look forward to. He is rescued from the chicken-shop bullies by local hood Simon, played by Harris Dickinson, who has a flash car. Simon buys Tyler trainers and offers him the chance to earn some money. As the title suggests, he is soon skipping school and hopping on trains out of
London, ferrying drugs to regional dealers.