From Tanglin to The Crown: The Remarkable Journey of Finn Elliot

Finn Elliot may only be 19 years old, but he’s already a successful actor in his own right. Aside from ‘The Crown’, Finn has also acted in three other movies/tv drama series such as ‘The Mercy’ and ‘The Last Kingdom’. Quite an impressive resume for someone his age, if you ask us!

Born in Hong Kong, Finn’s family originally hailed from Chichester in the UK before they moved to Kuala Lumpur when he was one year old. He then spent most of his childhood in Singapore where he attended Tanglin until the age of nine. After that, his family of four moved back to the UK where he studied at Oakwood School, in Chichester, and the Portsmouth Grammar school. Right now, Finn is reading Politics, Philosophy and Economics at the University of Exeter in the UK because he has a keen interest in politics and its impact on world affairs. 

Although his time at Tanglin was short, Finn told us that he had some of the best memories from that period. He said: “I have such fond memories of Tanglin. It was a great environment to grow up in. One of my favorite memories at Tanglin was going to Phuket in Year 4 for the football tour!”

A wholesome environment

Parents hold the key to their children’s dreams and this couldn’t be truer for Finn. He told us that he has always loved acting and it was all because of his mother. He said: “She always took me to watch plays since I was little. I went to the Centre Stage near Tanglin too. I loved it there. I guess it’s something I’ve always enjoyed!”

With such a wholesome and supportive environment, it’s no surprise that Finn’s first role was at Tanglin where he played King Herold during the Year 2 Nativity. Even at a young age, Finn’s stage presence was undeniable and he played the role with much relish—earning many rave reviews from the audience. Finn would eventually go on to attend the Youth Theatre in Chichester when he moved back to the UK, where he played roles such as ‘Boy’ in ‘The Witches’ and ‘John Darling’ in ‘Peter Pan’.

Getting into professional acting

Finn landed his first TV role in ‘The Outcast’, a British two-part television adaptation of Sadie Jones's 2008 debut novel of the same name. He played Lewis Aldridge, a ten-year-old boy who witnessed his mother’s traumatic drowning. It was an intense role to be sure, since it involved heavy emotions that required a delicate touch. Finn said: “The scene was filmed underwater because it was set in a river. However, we filmed all the underwater sequences in a deep swimming pool like a water tank. The bottom of the tank was decorated to look like a river, and we breathed through scuba equipment in between takes so we could stay at the bottom of the tank! It was a crazy experience. I got a huge amount of invaluable help from the actors around me during shooting for ‘The Outcast’. It was my first screen role, so I was incredibly lucky to learn from people with much more experience and knowledge than me. Everyone was so kind. It was a really fun shoot, despite the storyline being not-so-fun!”

After ‘The Outcast’, Finn would go on to act in ‘The Mercy’ and ‘The Last Kingdom’ but perhaps the most impressive role was that of a young Prince Philip during his time at Gordonstoun in Seasons three and four of the drama series ‘The Crown’. Unsurprisingly, Finn was quite excited about it even though it had been around two years since Netflix aired it.

He said: “It was an incredible experience! I got the role through a series of auditions after sending a demo reel, I still remember how happy I was when I found out, I obviously called my mum straight away! It was genuinely some of the best few weeks filming for it, alongside such a lovely cast and crew. I’m so lucky to have been a part of it. Some of the scenes were so surreal to film; from being dressed up in a 1930s-piece suit marching through the streets of Sopron in Hungary to sitting in an old airplane on top of a giant gimbal like on a rollercoaster!”

Despite the achievements at his young age, Finn remained humble. He said:

“I’ve been incredibly privileged and lucky to have the experiences I’ve had through acting. Although I’d love to continue acting, I’m not sure what the future has got in store. I’m very happy at Exeter at the moment. My goal right now is to get a degree and see where that takes me. As long as I end up at a beach, I’ll be more than happy! I also hope to be able to catch old friends at Tanglin’s alumni events like the one I recently attended in the UK. It was a really enjoyable evening that brought back many fond memories. It was especially lovely to see and talk to Mrs Chandran, who was the Head of the Infant School throughout my time at Tanglin.”