Time series 3 actor Chukwubuikem Molokwu on his on-screen stammer to portray tragic Christopher
The actor is a newcomer to our screens
Time series 3 introduces the young offenders in the fictional Alderwick institute, including actor Chukwubuikem Molokwu’s Christopher – whose stammer brings him unwanted attention behind bars.
He’s one of the, let’s just say, more ‘likeable’ characters in the Jimmy McGovern prison drama. And like many of the inmates in the Young Offender Institution, Chris has a tragic backstory…
Series 3 features debut performances from Ollie McNulty, Victor Zhao, Finn Kearns, Jack Barnes, and Chukwubuikem Molokwu.
You’ll warm to some characters more than others, but no one will forget Chukwubuikem Molokwu’s portrayal of Chris. Here’s what you need to know about the actor, and if he really has a stammer.
Does Christopher actor Chukwubuikem Molokwu have a stammer?
Time series 3 sees prison chaplain Marie-Louise (Siobhan Finneran) arrive at a Young Offender Institution, where she reunites young Christopher with his long-lost mother. But tragedy is just around the corner.
The teenager has a severe stammer, which makes him the focus of unwanted attention from several malignant presences in the prison. But does actor Chukwubuikem Molokwu really have a stammer in real life?
The actor told us he learnt to stammer for the role. He said: “Amy Morrison was my voice coach. We’d practise and practise because the main thing is stamina. It’s a physically tiring thing; you genuinely do feel tired. On set you have to be prepared to do the stammer over and over again.”
Chukwubuikem Molokwu, Chuk for short, counts Time as his very first TV role.
‘A stammer makes the environment even more hostile and difficult’
In an interview with Samuel Bailey, who co-wrote the series with Jimmy McGovern, he told us that having a stammer in prison obviously makes things so much harder.
He said: “In Time series 3, we’re dealing with quite a few boys’ stories. We’ve got a group of four boys who are in on a murder charge. We’ve got James, a young man in complete crisis. He’s a smart kid; he knows what he’s done is wrong, but he can’t admit it to himself. And then one of the stories that was quite personal for Jimmy is Chuk’s character, Christopher.
“Christopher has a stammer and Chuk has done an amazing job of bearing the responsibility of that, something which is completely truthful to Jimmy. Living with something like that in a prison I think just makes the environment even more hostile and difficult. He’s also trying to form a relationship with his birth mother and there are a number of obstacles in the way. It’s heartbreaking, Chuk is incredible”
Does Jimmy McGovern have a stammer?
Time creator and writer Jimmy McGovern had a severe childhood stammer that left him largely unable to speak.
He experienced late speech development and a severe stammer as a child. As a young boy, he often relied on his brother Joey to translate or speak for him.
Because he struggled to talk, he spent his early years closely watching and listening to people. He now credits that with shaping his deep observational skills as a writer.
While he mostly grew out of the severe phase, he still speaks with a faint hint of a stammer today. Jimmy is listed among STAMMA’s influential people who stammer, alongside Ed Sheeran, Gareth Gates, Stormzy, and Mel B.
What is Christopher’s story in Time series 3?
Actor Chuk told us about his character, saying: “Christopher is a teen who was abandoned at the age of around four by his mother. He didn’t have a role model. There wasn’t a father figure, and he didn’t have any siblings, or even friends really. He was very vulnerable.
“I think he’s a good-hearted kid and I don’t think he has any ill intent. So obviously gang members see someone who seems smart, but vulnerable. I think that’s how he got involved in the wrong stuff.”
Christopher is a teen who “is in prison not because he’s bad-hearted, but because he just got involved in the wrong stuff”.
Read more: Top must-see dramas from writer Jimmy McGovern from Time to The Lakes
