‘It’s in the water’ – Voices of South London: Chiwetel Ejifor

Of course, performing on the grandest stage is something that acclaimed Hollywood and theatre actor Chiwetel Ejiofor – who grew up a Palace fan in South London – knows plenty about, as he told cpfc.co.uk...

Just one look at his list of accolades is enough to tell you so: Ejiofor has won both a BAFTA and a Laurence Olivier Award. An Oscar nominee, he has also received nominations for two Primetime Emmy Awards, and five Golden Globe Awards, among others.

In 2008, Ejiofor was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE). In 2015, he was advanced to Commander (CBE) for his services to the arts.

Some of his fellow Palace fans will recognise him as the protagonist of the critically acclaimed drama 12 Years a Slave, for which he received an Academy Award nomination;* others, perhaps, from his roles in Marvel’s Doctor Strange films, or last year’s Venom: The Last Dance; or even comedy titles Love Actually, Kinky Boots and the latest Bridget Jones movie. Not least to mention his Olivier-winning turn on the London stage as Othello.

It all stemmed, as Ejiofor tells us, from a South London starting point.

Born in Forest Gate in East London, he moved as a young boy south of the river, attending Dulwich College and the Dulwich Youth Theatre: “That’s what really set me off and began my love of acting, into the National Youth Theatre and then professionally” – the rest is glittering history.

Creativity and artistic flair abounds in South London – but why? “That’s a great question,” Ejiofor ponders. “It's always been there, you know. People say ‘it’s in the water in South London’ – that there are all these creative juices flowing.

“I’ve found it wherever I’ve been. When I was growing up, and I was out in Dulwich a lot, all of those street names, like ‘Burbage Road’, named after actors – and the school itself had this history of being founded by actors and theatre troupes.

“The first place I moved to, when I left the family home, was Camberwell. And in Camberwell, there was this different kind of creative energy with the arts college there, but it was also the attitude that everybody had: there was just a very creative spirit to the place.

“And the people… I had a lot of roommates, and all the different kinds of art forms were represented. There was a sculptor who lived with us! It was just a great way to grow up with that very diversified artistic field.

“We lived not far away from Coldharbour Lane, and would walk down into Brixton, and of course, Brixton had all of the music and energy of these kind of creative spirits, coming together all the time.

“South London really has that. It has all of these different pockets of creative feeling, which was wonderful, as an actor, l to grow up with.”

Embracing life south of the river to its fullest, the young Ejiofor soon found himself – when possible – attending matches at Selhurst Park, witnessing Steve Coppell’s record-breaking Crystal Palace team of the late 1980s and early 1990s in its pomp.

“Palace were my local team,” he explains. “As I was growing up, you’d get down to Selhurst Park and go to Palace games, and it was exciting.

“That team was great. The team was part of a kind of national conversation. They were just extraordinary players, with great energy. The club itself was amazing. The fans were incredibly supportive.

“I remember that long walk up to Selhurst Park on matchdays… For all of us growing up, in our late teenage years, and the White Swan [pub in Crystal Palace], you know – it was just great fun.

“In those couple of years when I first started coming to the club, there was just something that was really magical about the club, actually. It was just something really, really special – and so I fell in love with it when I was a teenager, and it’s never left me.

“It’s always been thrilling to watch Palace play. It’s a club that’s had its journey, like any club has a journey, but you see the spirit of it through all its trials and tribulations.

"There’s always been something magical about Palace.”

Ejiofor’s schedule, travelling and filming across the globe, means visits to Selhurst are less frequent these days ¬– “I do try to get to Selhurst Park if I can; being there is always the best experience” – but otherwise, the actor is an eager follower from afar, watching and listening to every match he can.

This Saturday will be no different; Ejiofor is shooting abroad in South Africa at the time of our discussion, meaning a visit to Wembley will not be possible for Palace’s third-ever FA Cup Final.

But rest assured: he will be watching on, keenly as ever.

“I wish I was in the UK for the Final,” he admits, “but I’m there in spirit, and excited to see it. I'm going to see if we can get the game up on the screens here in the hotel…

“Everybody knows I'm a Palace fan, and the guys out here are wishing me luck! People will be here following the game, and they're excited for me and cheering us on.

“And then, obviously, I have loads of friends, and loads of people, back home, and we're in constant communication about it. We're all gearing up for it.

“A lot of actor friends I have are big Palace fans – people I’ve worked with, people I've grown up with. Bill Nighy is obviously a massive Palace fan – we’ve been friends for a long, long time – and Sir David Hare, the writer, is as well, so I’ll be in contact with him.

“There’s a little community of us, and we’ll all be chatting about it in real time. It’ll be incredibly exciting. I’ll be getting messages all day…”

We put it to Ejiofor that – in the same way creativity from South London has translated into international success on the stage and screen, so too has it this season in the footballing world, given the composition of Palace’s current squad; Marc Guéhi, Nathaniel Clyne, Ebere Eze, Romain Esse and Eddie Nketiah all grew up south of the river.

“It’s amazing to see really homegrown talent coming through – it’s South London talent really represented,” he concurs. “This current Palace team are doing amazingly – they're a great side.

“We've only got to this point in the Cup a couple of times before, and I remember those two games… but I just feel incredibly excited about this one.

“Obviously the 1990s were extraordinary in their own way, and that Final against Man United was amazing – even though we were just pipped at the post. And then in 2016, again, I was right there, and we were in it...

“But I just think that this time it feels a little different. I'm crossing everything. I think we're coming back with the Cup. We've played some blinders and we've shocked everyone this season in so many different ways, and at so many different times.

“I think it's time, really – I think it's time to bring the Cup to Selhurst Park.”

Match Details

Crystal Palace v Manchester City

• Saturday, 17th May
• 16:30 BST
• FA Cup Final
• Wembley Stadium
• Live audio commentary on Palace TV+