Gian Sammarco
Born
Giancarlo Sammarco

(1970-01-30) 30 January 1970
Northampton, England
Occupation(s)Actor (former), nurse
Children1

Giancarlo[1] "Gian" Sammarco (born 30 January 1970) is an English former child actor and nurse. He is best known for playing the title role in the television dramatisations of The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13¾ (1985) and its sequel, The Growing Pains of Adrian Mole (1987).

Early life and education

Born in Northampton, England, the son of Jacqueline and Pietro Salvatore Sammarco, Gian Sammarco is one of a large family of Italian descent. He attended Kingsthorpe Upper School (now Kingsthorpe College) in that town. The artistic director of the Royal Theatre in Northampton, Michael Napier Brown, selected Sammarco from 200 boys who auditioned to appear in his first theatre production, The Innocents.[2]

Career

He was among 100 boys auditioned by Thames Television for the role of Adrian Mole, having been suggested by Michael Napier Brown. Napier Brown also recommended another actor, Lindsey Stagg, also from Northampton, who won the role of Pandora Braithwaite.[2] In 1987 he toured the UK in the play Widow's Weeds by Anthony Shaffer.[3]

Apart from the two series of 'Adrian Mole', Sammarco's other television appearances included an interview on Des O'Connor Tonight (1985), co-presenting the first series of the children's Saturday morning show Get Fresh (1986),[4] playing Whizzkid in the 1988 Doctor Who story The Greatest Show in the Galaxy, and the geeky trainspotter in the Press Gang episode "Something Terrible" (1990). His last acting role was in the 1990 children's Indiana Jones-style comedy series, Jackson Pace: The Great Years, alongside Keith Allen and Josie Lawrence.

Personal life

In August 1990, Sammarco married Stephanie Bates at the Northampton Register Office. Bates was a fan of the Adrian Mole series and had written to him regularly until the relationship blossomed. Sammarco and Bates had a son, Jon, who was born 19 January 1992. Sammarco then gave up acting soon after the birth of his son and trained as a nurse. He is now a psychiatric nurse at the Berrywood Hospital in Northampton.

In 1998, he subsequently married Joanne Young, a nursing colleague, and continues to live in Northampton.[2]

Filmography

Television

Year Title Role Notes
1985 The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Adrian Mole 6 episodes
1985, 1992 Screen Two Jennings / Boy 2 episodes
1986 Crossroads Jason Hathaway Episode #1.4312
1987 The Growing Pains of Adrian Mole Adrian Mole 6 episodes
1988 Doctor Who Whizzkid 3 episodes
1989 The Two of Us Wolfman Episode: "The Party"
1990 Press Gang Benjamin Drexil Episode: "Something Terrible"
1990 Jackson Pace: The Great Years Filo 5 episodes

References

  1. Daily Record, Glasgow, Scotland, 19 October 1999
  2. 1 2 3 'The Strange Secret Life of Adrian Mole, 29 3 /4; Growing Pains: Twice Married Giancarlo Sammarco Goes From Child Star to Geriatric Nurse' Scottish Daily Record 1999
  3. Widow's Weeds on Anthony Shaffer's website Archived 2013-10-09 at the Wayback Machine
  4. "Get Fresh". Retrieved 26 January 2008.
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