Ricardo P. Lloyd

Ricardo P Lloyd (born 20 November 1993) is a British actor, presenter and writer. He began his career in theatre, appearing in productions, including those by Shakespeare's Globe. In 2020, The Voice named him one of the Top 20 to watch out for. In 2022, Lloyd presented and produced his own documentary for BBC Radio 4.

Early life and education Ricardo P Lloyd was born on 20 November 1993 in Ipswich, England. His grandparents were a part of the Windrush generation, migrating from Jamaica to England. Lloyd moved from Ipswich to London with his mother when he was very young. He grew up in the London Borough of Brent,

Career Lloyd began his acting career in theatre, performing in various theatre shows. He then appeared in several short films. He made his professional stage debut in 2015 in a production of Animal Farm at Oxford House (settlement). In the same year, he filmed a part in a short film titled Cussin.

In April 2019, Lloyd acted in Shakespeare Walks, where he took on the role of Snug (A Midsummer Night's Dream). He also performed in Shakespeare within the Abbey, produced by Shakespeare's Globe. Lloyd worked alongside Oscar-winning actor Mark Rylance and his wife Claire van Kampen. These shows were created to celebrate Shakespeare's birthday, brought alive by a company of different actors.

" one of the most moving celebrations of Shakespeare I've experienced" – Michael Billington The Guardian In November 2019, Lloyd portrayed Romeo in the critically acclaimed topical (theatre) production Excluded, produced by Intermission Theatre, a company which helps disenfranchised teenagers stay away from crime.

On 3 November 2019, Lloyd made an appearance on BBC One's Sunday Morning Live season 10, episode 20, presented by Sean Fletcher and Ria Hebden. Lloyd performed a scene from Excluded with fellow cast and was then interviewed by Ria Hebden. He was seen wearing an eye patch with the word 'excluded' on it, created for him by British artist Eugene Ankomah. When interviewed by Vanessa Feltz on her BBC Radio London breakfast radio show (23 October 2019) what it meant, Lloyd said it was a symbol to represent how society "only chooses to see what they want to see concerning young people" or people who come from where he does.

Lloyd also appeared on ITV News London, where he candidly spoke out on the effects of school exclusions, saying: "When you exclude a child, you are essentially saying they're not good enough for society." He added, "A lot of my peers who have been excluded ended up in prison or dead."

Lloyd has a number of further credits. He worked on Creation Theatre Company's The Time Machine: A Virtual Reality (2020) in the West End. Lloyd performed at the Lyric Theatre as part of the Evolution festival (2020). He also starred in the documentary film Arts hole (2020), which he co-produced with Wendy Richardson and Tara Dominick. Lloyd appeared in Kar-go's promotional video for autonomous delivery UK launch (2020).

In 2021, Lloyd wrote, acted, produced and filmed his own short film titled Call It A Problem, to inspire youth and the community during the COVID-19 pandemic, teaming up with charities The People's FC and Teviot Rangers JFC.

Lloyd starred in the short film Con-Spiracies (2021), produced by the National Film and Television School, where he played lead character Jaden. He also performed a monologue to a select audience for the virtual event My Story, My Monologue hosted by BlackRock with thousands of employees watching.

On Saturday, 9 April 2022, Lloyd played John Blanke at the National Maritime Museum part of the Caribbean Takeover celebrating black history. The event was an opportunity for visitors to discover the fusion of cultures from Africa, the Caribbean and Britain. It was the first time in the museum's history that an event was held of that magnitude celebrating black history. Lloyd was joined by other notable public figures including ITV The Chase's Shaun Wallace, as well as Leroy Logan.

In 2022, Lloyd played the lead character Johnny Smythe in the Docudrama Flying for Britain. The film follows Johnny's journey to recruitment into the wartime RAF and his experiences of combat flying as the navigator of a Stirling Bomber. The project was produced in partnership with Royal Airforce Museum and National Lottery Heritage Fund.

Lloyd was cast as lead character, Rapstar, in a Comedy short written by model Eunice Olumide commissioned by the BBC.

In April 2023, Lloyd portrayed George Augustus Polgreen, performing for the second time at the National Maritime Museum, for the second year of the Caribbean Takeover.

Presenting Lloyd created and presented his own radio documentary entitled My Name Is Ricardo P Lloyd for BBC Radio 4, which received rave reviews. The program was listed as one of the top choice to check out by The Guardian, The times, Daily Star and countless others. According to The Daily Telegraph Lloyd is full of insight''' It was broadcast nationally on 18 July 2022 at 11.00am and made available on BBC Sounds. The documentary features Aml Ameen and Death in Paradise star Tobi Bakare as well as leading people in the entertainment industry.

Recognition, industry supporters and awards Lloyd has been cited as ‘One of Britain's most promising acting talents’ by My London.

Lloyd has been supported and mentored by different industry leaders, including Hollywood A-listers such as Whoopi Goldberg, David Oyelowo, Naomie Harris, and Mark Rylance, who have encouraged him to continue to stretch himself as an artist and break through barriers in his industry.

In November 2021, The Guardian published an article that focused on Lloyd and actor David Harewood, comparing the actors' lives and careers. This was part of Black British culture matters, curated by Lenny Henry and Marcus Ryder for The Guardian's Saturday Culture Issue No 7.

Lloyd was recognised and celebrated by Your Brent Magazine a magazine by Brent Council for Black History Month 2022 as one of the Black British stars from brent making an impact.

In October 2023 Anglia Ruskin University honored Lloyd by featuring him in an Exhibition ‘Celebrating a Legacy of Black Excellence’ at the ARU Cambridge campus alongside boxer David Haye recognizing them both for their achievements and cultural impact.

In 2023, Lloyd exceeded the noteworthy threshold of 100,000 subscribers on his official YouTube channel. As recognition of his achievement, Lloyd was awarded with a YouTube Creator Award.

In 2024, Ricardo P Lloyd was nominated for a Nela Academy Award for his notable acting and meaningful social and cultural contributions, ultimately winning the award.

Activism and advocacy As well as being an actor, Ricardo P Lloyd is an activist. He continues to use his influence to publicly raise awareness for key social issues such as class discrimination, social exclusion, racism, and diversity in the UK.

Lloyd spoke boldly about the challenges many black British actors face in the industry. In 2021, he wrote an article for The Independent extensively discussing some of his own experiences of discrimination being a black British actor. He has also written articles for various publications including Radio Times, The Big Issue, The Voice, Student Pocket Guide.

Brand deals Lloyd has a brand deal with Hidden Sea Wine, an Australian wine company. He has an equity stake in the company, he continues to act as an official ambassador, supporting their on going values of environmental responsibility they pledge to remove and recycle 10 plastic bottles from the ocean.

Personal life Lloyd is a practising Christian, he has spoken openly about how importance his faith is to him on platforms like Premier Christian Radio, saying it keeps him grounded. In 2021, he told Church Times: "Faith has enabled me to survive in this business: faith in God through Christ Jesus. I trust in him that he has a purpose regarding my life and career, and he knows what is best for me. I also need to have faith in myself, my abilities, my value. I have business skill-sets to help me create my own work. I no longer want to just survive, but thrive. I'm also trying to help other people who come from where I come from."

In 2020, Lloyd personal life played out in the Print media early that year he was listed on The Voice''s "top 20 ones to watch out for" and was working on several projects before the COVID-19 pandemic.

The stories kept on circulating about the actor: "Police appeal after actor is attacked by unknown woman in Lambeth."

One journalist added: "Because of his facial scars Ricardo will also have to step away from the camera and put his acting career on pause."

Credits Stage

Year Title Role Venue/Company Notes 2015 Animal Farm Farmer Oxford HouseDirected by Paul Sadot 2016 Fragile Things KaramWycombe Swan, Oxford House 2019 Shakespeare Walks (sweet love remember'd) Snug (A Midsummer Night's Dream) Shakespeare globe Directed by Claire van Kampen (street theatre) 2019 Shakespeare within the Abbey Benvolio & Ensemble Westminster Abbey, Shakespeare's Globe Directed by Claire van Kampen Lloyd performed alongside Mark Rylance, Martha Plimpton 2019 Excluded Romeo Knightsbridge, Intermission Youth Theatre Critically acclaimed reimagined Shakespeare theatre production directed by Darren Raymond 2020 LYRIC EVOLUTION 2020 Jahieem Lyric Theatre (Hammersmith) Endz Part of their Selected Scratch Play Performances (2020)

Film

Year Title Role Type Notes 2015 University Life Anthony Short film Runner-up in BIFA compepition in 2015 2016 Cussin Lyrical GeezerShort film 2020 Arts hole Self Documentary film Produced by Wendy Richardson and co-produced by Tara Dominick, Lloyd 2021 Call It A Problem Shawn Short film Lloyd also is credited as writer and producer 2021 Conspiracies Jaden Short film Produced by National Film and Television School2022 Flying For Britain Johnny Smythe Docudrama Funded by the Heritage Fund with support from Royal Air Force

Television

Year Title Role Type Notes 2019 Sunday Morning Live Self-Performer (Guest appearance) Television show Season 10 Episode 20, In this episosde Lloyd makes an appearance he performs and is interviewed by Ria Hebden 2023 BBC Comedy AFRISH: AN AFRO SCOT IN BRIXTON Rapstaar Television show Comedy Created by Eunice Olumide 2023 Mind Over Matter TV Show Guest Presenter Television show, Online Factual Episode 5 Lloyd Presents on show

Radio Year Title Role Type Notes 2022 BBC Radio 4 My Name Is Ricardo P Lloyd Presenter Radio documentary Lloyd also has further credits on the show.

Music video Song Year Artist Notes All things are possible 2021 Minister Taf Music video by award-winning gospel artist, Lloyd plays lead character Robert in video.

Live Online Year Title Role Type Notes 2021 My Story, My Monologue Poet intruder Virtual event Hosted by BlackRock Lloyd performed a monologue to a live online audience as part of their event.

Audiobook Year Title Role Type Notes 2023 Silenced by Jennie Ensor Luke Crime fiction Voiceover/ narration, Published by Hobeck Books

Other Year Title Role Type Notes 2020 The Time Machine: A Virtual Reality Producer assistant Site-specific theatre Produced by Creation Theatre Company, written by Jonathan Holloway (playwright), directed by Natasha Rickman, Lloyd is credited as a Producer assistant on show. 2020 kar-go UK Official Launch James Promotional video This was a part of their Autonomous UK delivery launch campaign (2020). 2021 Omnibus Theatre Workshop Various Workshop New play development 2022 Caribbean Takeover (Walking Images) John Blanke Event The National Maritime Museum 2023 Caribbean Takeover (Walking Images) George Bridgetower Event The National Maritime Museum 2023 VOLUMETRIC CAPTURE (INTERNAL PROJECT) Multi Characters, Presenter Corporate Company Wapping press/Synthesia 2023 Griswold - Community Reading Police Officer Rehearsed Reading Angela J Davis New Play, The Playground Theatre