Ellis Howard Says Scouse Pride Before Anything Else at BAFTAs
Ellis Howard used the 2026 BAFTA Television Awards red carpet to turn a Best Actor nomination into a blunt statement of identity: he said he feels "Scouse before anything else." The nomination for What It Feels Like For A Girl put him in a category crowded with Merseyside names, and his comments made the local angle part of the awards story.
Howard said he was "so buzzing" to be at the ceremony and grateful to be nominated alongside "two other Scousers." He said he cried when the news came through, and that Stephen Graham phoned him after he found out.
What It Feels Like For A Girl
Howard was nominated for his performance in What It Feels Like For A Girl, the adaptation of Paris Lees' coming of age memoir. His role as a queer teen grappling with gender identity drew universal acclaim, which is the kind of recognition that can carry an actor from breakout notice into awards-season credibility.
He said the nomination landed while he was in an airport terminal, and that the people around him probably thought he was "mental" when he reacted. That detail gives the nomination a less polished edge than the usual awards-night script: he was not staged for a reveal, he was mid-travel, and the call from Graham landed as the moment became real.
Archbishop Beck College
Howard and James Nelson-Joyce both attended Archbishop Beck Catholic College, which was formerly on Cedar Road and is now on Long Lane. Emma Griffiths said it is unusual for two students from the same school to end up in the same BAFTA category, and she said, "What are the chances that two students from Archbishop Beck Catholic College would be in the same category [at the BAFTAs]?"
Griffiths added that seeing former pupils reach that stage was "in absolute awe" territory for the school, while Howard said Liverpool's openness and storytelling culture shaped him. He also pointed to the city's record on charity donations through JustGiving, tying civic pride to the way he talks about his work.
Stephen Graham, Taron Egerton
Howard said growing up listening to Stephen Graham on television "blew up the parameter" for the dreams he had for himself. That makes the BAFTA list feel less like a single nomination and more like a cluster of Merseyside visibility, with Stephen Graham and Taron Egerton also among the nominees.
James Nelson-Joyce used the same night to make his own point about the city, saying Liverpool is "the greatest city in the world" and that people there always find a way through. Howard is still filming The Rachel Incident in Dublin, with two weeks left, so the awards run is landing while his next job is already in motion.
