Paul Mescal and Daisy Edgar-Jones reached overnight fame when they first appeared in hit BBC drama Normal People as young lovers Connell and Marianne. But before they appeared in the Sally Rooney adaptation, which has received rave reviews and sparked awards-season excitement, the two young stars were little known actors trying to make it big in the industry. For instance, you may not have known that Daisy had a number of small roles in well-known TV shows dating back to 2016 and Paul had a leading role in a hilarious advert that you will not want to miss. Intrigued to know more? We've done some investigating and this is what the stars were up to before the show...
Paul Mescal before Normal People
Irish-born Paul's big break came when he was cast as Connell in Normal People. Prior to starring the drama, the young actor was mostly appearing in theatre productions such as The Great Gatsby and A Midsummer Night's Dream in Dublin. But the 24-year-old did appear on TV before taking on the role as Paul – he appeared in a sausage advert. Yes, that's right, fans have excitedly managed to locate video footage of him taking on the starring role in an advert for Henry Denny and Sons sausages and they were loving it. Take a look at the video to see.
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WATCH: Fans have discovered Paul Mescal's starring role in a sausage advert!
Daisy Edgar-Jones before Normal People
Daisy has gained huge recognition in as Marianne in Normal People and her performance is being described as her breakthrough role; but prior to playing Marianne, Daisy wasn't exactly a stranger to TV. One of the earliest roles the 21-year-old actress gained was in popular ITV's Cold Feet as Olivia Marsden. She first appeared in the show in 2016 and was a recurring character until its last season in February 2020.
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© Photo: BBCDaisy appeared in Outnumbered way back in 2016
The same year she joined Cold Feet, Daisy, then 18-years-old, had a role in the Outnumbered Christmas Special episode. She joined the hit BBC sitcom and eldest son Jake's girlfriend, Kate. Daisy then appeared in two episodes of BBC's Silent Witness as Jessica Thompson, before appearing in two episodes of Gentleman Jack. In 2019, she was cast as Emily Gresham in Fox's adaption of War of the Worlds.
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