An actress appeared in Skins in 2007 and has shared how one star surprised her with his attitude, as she had found him ‘intimidating’ at first
Skins followed the lives of teenagers from Bristol(Image: INSTAGRAM)
Skins, the iconic drama series of the 2000s, has become a cult classic since its conclusion in 2013. First broadcast on E4 in 2007, Skins delved into the lives of a group of Bristol teenagers navigating their two years of sixth form, gaining notoriety for its controversial storylines that tackled issues such as mental health, dysfunctional families, substance misuse, and bullying.
The show also served as a launchpad for several stars who have since made their mark in the acting world, including Dev Patel, who later starred in Slumdog Millionaire and Lion, Hannah Murray, who went on to feature in Game of Thrones, and Kaya Scodelario, who gained further prominence as Teresa in the Maze Runner film franchise.
However, one woman who had a brief appearance in an early episode of Skins has revealed that there was one cast member who was already a well-known name before joining the drama – and his attitude took her aback.
Stephanie Houtman portrayed Julie in just one episode of Skins in 2007. Julie was a friend of Kaya Scodelario’s character, Effy Stonem, and appeared in an episode where the pair attended a party together.
In a TikTok video, Stephanie shared her experience of working with the Skins cast, revealing that while she was good friends with Kaya off-camera, one actor caught her off guard – Kaya’s on-screen brother, Tony Stonem, played by Nicholas Hoult.
Nicholas had already established himself as a rising star following his performance in the 2002 comedy-drama About a Boy, and Stephanie admitted she felt “intimidated” by him upon arriving on set. Nevertheless, she was taken aback by his demeanour, quickly discovering he was remarkably approachable – he even showed her how to play pool.
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When questioned about her relationship with Kaya during production, she responded: “Yes! We got on really well, we shared a trailer, she was really fun and funny. At the time, this was her first big job, so nobody knew who she was. So I wasn’t intimidated because we were on a similar level of new to this series that wasn’t even out, and we didn’t know how big it was going to be.
“Out of the younger cast, Nicholas Hoult was the only one who was really well known, so I was quite intimidated meeting him. But he was so nice. I specifically remember him trying to teach me to play pool, but knowing he was the boy in About a Boy, I was just like, ‘Oh my god’. Fangirl.”
In a separate video, Stephanie was questioned about whether she maintains contact with any members of the Skins cast, but explained that considerable time has elapsed since she filmed the episode, and she’s lost touch with the majority of them.
That said, she did reveal that she was once waited on in a Bristol restaurant by Mike Bailey, who portrayed Tony’s mate Sid Jenkins during the programme’s opening two series. Mike stepped away from acting in 2017 and has since pursued a career in teaching, though he was working at a Bristol eatery when he enquired whether Stephanie recognised him.
She recalled: “He came and served me, and he was like, ‘I don’t know if you remember who I am, but I’m going to go away. Think about it, and when I come back, you need to try and remember who I am’. I was like, ‘Who is this guy? I really recognise him’. Turns out, it was Sid. He’s really nice.”
Stephanie also let slip that she keeps in touch with one member of the cast, although they didn’t appear in the same episode or even the same series.
She explained: “I do actually speak to Amy Burnett, who played Kayleigh. I think she’s having an engagement party in Skins, and Cook crashes it. It’s a later series, though, not the series I was in. But we’re still friends. We were friends before Skins; we both went to ITV acting classes. So I still speak to her. She’s still acting, too, and she’s lovely.”
Since filming Skins, Stephanie has continued her acting career, including a role in an episode of The Outlaws. She also recently hinted at voicing a character in an upcoming video game, but kept mum on the details.
