Actor is water-boarded ‘for real’ in gangster movie

Jamie Bannerman is a former pupil of Oakmeeds Community College in Burgess Hill and has just received his big break starring in the gangster movie ‘Full English Breakfast’, which premieres at The Prince Charles Cinema in Leicester Square, London next Tuesday.

Through flashbacks, the film follows the violent career of Dave Bishop played by real-life former gangster Dave Courtney, who famously organised the security for Ronnie Kray’s funeral in 1995.

Courtney is also thought to be the inspiration for Vinnie Jones’ debt-collecting hard man in the movie Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.

Courtney plays a ruthless drugs baron, whose young, trophy wife falls for his new driver, Jamie Sullivan, played by Jamie Bannerman.

Jamie, 34 of Haywards Heath, who went to LAMDA, described Courtney as ‘a bit of a live wire’ in the flesh, adding: “When I heard all the stories about him I thought: ‘Oh my God’ but he was actually very nice.”

Jamie plays a character who has been discharged from the army in Afghanistan. Penniless and suffering from Post Traumatic Stress, he is taken in by drugs baron, Dave Bishop.

Jamie not only becomes emotionally attached to Bishop’s wife, he is also kidnapped and brutally interrogated by rival drug dealers.

“During the interrogation scene I was water-boarded - they put a towel over your face and pour water over it,” said Jamie. “It gives you the sensation of drowning. It’s the first time they’ve done it for real in a film. I wasn’t acting it. It was for real and it was the worst experience of my life. ”

Manish Patel, the producer of Full English Breakfast has high hopes for Jamie.

He said: “Hollywood beckons. We spent ages looking for an actor of Jamie’s calibre and I would liken him to Tom Hardy, he is that good.”