Meet Layton Williams
Layton is ready to channel all things Strictly
Layton’s childhood began in Bury, Manchester, before he moved to Leeds at the age of 11 to train at the Billy Elliot Academy after responding to a promising newspaper advert. Just six months into his training, he made his theatre debut as Billy in the West End production of the show, and after a year and a half in the role, he became the second-longest serving actor to portray Billy Elliot.
Making his television debut at 14 years old, he starred in Beautiful People alongside Oscar-winner, Olivia Colman for two series. Moving on to train in Theatre Arts at Italia Conti Academy, he also featured in CΒι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ documentary School for Stars, before he landed his breakout role of Stephen Carmichael, in hit comedy series Bad Education in 2012.
After the show’s initial three series run, Layton returned to his theatre roots, taking on roles in The Car Man, Rent, Hairspray! and Kiss Me Kate, and in 2021 he took over the titular role of smash-hit musical Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, touring both the UK and leading the show in Los Angeles.
In the midst of his seven-year triumphant theatre run, he won the LGBTQIA+ Champion Award at the Black British Theatre Awards in 2020, and in 2022 he won the Culture award at the Attitude Magazine Awards.
He’s since featured in the acclaimed series I Hate Suzie Too, The Cleaner, Queens for the Night and provided the voiceover for dating show I Kissed A Boy. A regular supporter and advocate for LGBTQIA+ issues, Layton regularly visits schools and makes speeches at events to raise awareness anti-bullying rights. Launching Pros from The Shows, he also provides workshops for young performers across the UK.
Now it’s time for Layton to star on the Strictly dancefloor and we can’t wait to see what techniques he brings from the stage!
