Marcel McCalla
{{Short description|British actor}}
{{Use British English|date=June 2023}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2020}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Marcel McCalla
| image =
| alt =
| caption =
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{birth_year and age|1981|2}}
| birth_place = United Kingdom
| occupation = Actor
| years_active = 1995–present
}}
Marcel McCalla (born February 1981) is a British actor. He has appeared in several stage productions and television shows, including Grange Hill for five series and Footballers' Wives for two series.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/threecounties/content/articles/2006/05/17/blueorange_marcel_mccalla_interview_feature.shtml|title=Marcel shows his true colours?|last=Lewis|first=Katy|date=17 May 2006|work=BBC Berkshire|accessdate=18 May 2010}}
Theatre
McCalla's first role was aged 14 in 1995 in Oliver!.{{Cite news|url=http://www.wakefieldexpress.co.uk/at-the-box-office/Talented-two-in-tropical-treat.6107704.jp|title=Talented two in tropical treat|last=Zadok|first=Leon|date=26 February 2010|work=Wakefield Express|accessdate=18 May 2010}} He has had roles in two plays by Roy Williams, Emile in 2003's Fallout and Kev in the 2005 production of Little Sweet Thing.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/berkshire/content/articles/2005/04/11/marcel_mccalla_interview_feature.shtml|title=Marcel McCalla interview|date=11 April 2005|work=BBC Berkshire|accessdate=18 May 2010}} Also in 2005 he played Casey Motsisi in Who Killed Mr Drum?.{{Cite news|url=http://www.thestage.co.uk/reviews/review.php/9528/who-killed-mr-drum- |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070102021756/http://www.thestage.co.uk/reviews/review.php/9528/who-killed-mr-drum- |url-status=dead |archive-date=2 January 2007 |title=Who Killed Mr Drum? |last=Vale |first=Paul |date=5 September 2005 |work=The Stage |accessdate=18 May 2010 }} In 2006, he played Andre in Tanika Gupta's Sugar Mummies{{Cite news|url=http://www.curtainup.com/sugarmummies.html|title=Sugar Mummies|last=Loveridge|first=Lizzie|year=2006|work=Curtain Up|accessdate=18 May 2010}} and a mentally-ill patient in Joe Penhall's Blue/Orange, and he played Jimmy in A Taste of Honey at the Royal Exchange, Manchester in 2008.{{Cite news|url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/stage/theatre/article5182928.ece|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110615095726/http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/stage/theatre/article5182928.ece|url-status=dead|archive-date=15 June 2011|title=A Taste of Honey at the Royal Exchange, Manchester|last=Marlowe|first=Sam|date=19 November 2008|work=The Times|accessdate=18 May 2010}}
In 2010, he starred in Mustapha Matura's Rum and Coca-Cola as Slim.{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2010/mar/15/rum-and-coca-cola-review|title=Rum and Coca-Cola, West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds|last=Hickling|first=Alfred|date=15 March 2010|work=The Guardian|accessdate=18 May 2010}}{{Cite news|url=http://www.leedsstudent.org/index.php/ls2/arts/interview-marcel-mccalla/1177|title=INTERVIEW - Marcel McCalla. LS sits down with the ex-Footballer's Wives star to talk about his new stage role as a calypso protege|last=Mortimer|first=Vicki|date=26 February 2010|work=Leeds Student|accessdate=18 May 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100715073146/http://www.leedsstudent.org/index.php/ls2/arts/interview-marcel-mccalla/1177|archive-date=15 July 2010|url-status=dead}}
Television
McCalla's television roles include parts in Grange Hill, The Bill, Footballers' Wives, and Trexx and Flipside,{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWAWk2dSlLQ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/wWAWk2dSlLQ |archive-date=2021-12-15 |url-status=live|title=Marcel McCalla on Clinton|date=12 June 2008|work=TrexxAndFlipside|publisher=YouTube/BBC3|accessdate=18 May 2010}}{{cbignore}} and he appeared in a BBC Film Network short film called Attack in 2005.{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/filmnetwork/films/p004vtbb|title=Attack by Timothy Smith|work=BBC Film Network|accessdate=18 May 2010}} He also voiced Freezbone in the children's animation show Freefonix, and he voiced Gomez in Matt Hatter Chronicles.
McCalla's role in Footballers' Wives was in the third series as the gay black footballer Noah Alexander. He faced negative public reactions due to the role.{{Cite news|url=http://www.afterelton.com/archive/elton/people/2006/6/mccalla.html |title=Marcel McCalla Talks About His Gay Role on Footballers' Wives |last=Hall |first=Locksley |date=26 June 2006 |work=AfterElton |accessdate=18 May 2010 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090716181905/http://www.afterelton.com/archive/elton/people/2006/6/mccalla.html |archivedate=16 July 2009 }} He said of the role that "He's a character that's so different from myself: I don't earn loads of money. I'm not gay, so to play a character like that is a challenge.".
In 2011, he voiced Dyzio the Polish Bug in The Lingo Show in 2014, he was the uncredited voice of Ongo in Jelly Jamm. In 2015, he was the voice of Roley the road roller in the UK dub of the Bob the Builder reboot. From 2015 to the present, Marcel was the voice of Asher in Chuggington. From 2017 to onwards, Marcel voices Two, Four, Eight, Thirteen, Twenty, Twenty-Three, Twenty-Six, Twenty-Nine, Forty, Fifty-Five, Eighty and Two Hundred in Numberblocks.
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb name|id=0565561}}
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20121019011753/http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/individual/777627?view=credit Marcel McCalla] at the British Film Institute Film & TV Database
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Category:Black British male actors
Category:English male stage actors
Category:English male television actors