Everything that I had been thinking would happen when I got to drama school didn’t happen. At the same time I had been reading the gospel of John because my Uncle had got converted in a Pentecostal Church and had given me a copy of the Bible and said that he wanted me to read it. So at the same time as feeling very disillusioned with everything that I had hoped would make my life mean something, I was reading the gospel. I was brought up sort of knowing in the background about this Christian religious stuff and I completely dismissed it. It seemed to me to be nonsense whenever I talked to anybody about it.

I got a real shock when I actually read the gospel because it was different to what I thought it would be and Jesus was incredibly attractive. He wasn’t wet, He had something very interesting to say and what struck me was the way He confronted religious people. Whenever I had met anyone who was religious I was always put off with them. I always thought that they were a bit hypocritical, or controlling, or not very kind, but I found Jesus attacking religious people and disliking them for the same reason that I’d disliked them. I got a rush to find out that Jesus was actually more angry with them than I was!

Then I realised that actually, He was making demands on the people that He was calling, He was questioning them and as I read it there was that great thing where as you read the Bible the Bible starts reading you. I used to get quite shy in case anyone saw me reading this Bible because I didn’t want them to think that I was a Christian so in the digs that I was in, in this youth hostel I used to read it under the covers at night with a torch to make sure no-one saw me. Then I read the bit where Jesus says "if any man is ashamed of me and my words I will be ashamed of him before my Father in heaven" so I came out from under the sheets!

So that’s what originally happened, and then I got invited to an invitation service at a church and there were certain problems I had with believing in God. I had the whole scientific / evolution question thing going on, and I had some questions about social justice and questions about where Jesus fitted into it all. I’d more or less said to God "If you exist then here is a list of questions you have to answer, if you answer them I will respond to you."

Then I heard this sermon and in sequence this preacher, who I’d never met before, answered all my questions. So what happened when he finished preaching I had the sense of Jesus being there and I had a sense that God loved me and this was an opportunity to get into that relationship with God. He said "the kingdom of heaven is at hand" which means that it is near to you as your own hand is, so the question is are you going to grab on and get in or not? So I stood up and made a public commitment there and then. The preacher said let’s pray out loud and I thought you should just pray out loud, so I prayed out loud and asked Christ into my life. Then he said "someone’s prayed out loud, that’s very brave but it’s not necessary!" What a great way to start your Christian life!

It felt like a bomb went off in me and I didn’t know what was happening but I now know that was the Holy Spirit and that He did promise you that if you commit your life to Christ you will be given the Spirit to you and that’s what happened to me.

I went back to drama school the next Monday and said "I’ve become a Christian!" and they all looked at me as if I had freaked really and they really did think I had a problem. The tutor suggested that I should leave the course, did I want to be an actor anyway? It was as though I couldn’t possibly be a Christian and an actor, and that was very confusing. I was lucky enough to be going to a good church and got a good grounding and introduction to the Bible really and all your Christian basics that you need to survive if you’re going to walk with Christ."