DANIEL BURKE talking The Girl On The Train and his career

Pat Hayward in conversation with Daniel Burke – 15^th July2025

Daniel Burke will be at Mayflower Theatre in Southampton from 22^nd July for a week where he will be starring in the new touring production of The Girl On The Train. I caught up with Daniel as he arrived at Theatr Clwyd in Mould and he told me about his current role and his journey to the stage.

Daniel what attracted you to audition for this production?

Well I guess there were a number of factors. First and foremost it tells a great story. The book by Paula Hawkins has sold 25 million copies and was adapted for the screen by Tate Taylor in 2016. It’s a real thriller about Rachel, a divorced woman who becomes entangled in a missing person’s investigation, that of her neighbour Megan. I play Kamal Abdic, a therapist who is working through Megan’s underlying problems but gradually gets dragged into her mysterious story, that develops into a web of secrets, lies, and deception. Although the role is not one of the biggest. It is key and is instrumental in keeping the audience guessing, whilst evolving all the time. Another factor which really appealed was the fact that this was going to be a major touring production, something that I had never done before. We went into rehearsals in December 2024 and opened at Richmond Theatre in mid-January. We have been touring ever since.

How did you get your first interests in performance?

I don’t really know, it’s not something that I ever thought about. I guess with my friends we used to role play when messing around, but nothing serious or dramatic until later in my school life. The school would put on a show each Christmas and it was less auditions and more teacher selection for the casting. Somehow, I’ll never know why and neither will my friends, I got chosen to play the lead in Sweeney Todd. I loved every moment of the experience and I guess you can say that was the point when I decided that acting was something that I wanted to pursue. So, it was on to uni and I got accepted into The Oxford School Of Drama for their 3 year Acting course. What a training ground that was, an opportunity to play demanding roles in important dramas such as Fagin in Oliver Twist, Toby Belch in Twelfth Night and Othello. It was superb grounding for what followed.

So, you graduated in 2017 and stepped out into the big wide world, what did you find?

Unlike many drama schools, ours spent some time preparing us for the big wide world and what to do and more importantly, what not to do, when looking for work. I had my heart set on trying to get a role within the RSC and while doing that a part in a small production, If And When, came up at London’s Soho Theatre and I got chosen to play the part of Adam Blake. It was a short run during which I got called back to the RSC to be told I had been selected to play Sositheus, Cicero’s slave in Part I and Marcus, Cicero’s son in Part II, in the premiere of the stage adaptation of the Cicero novels by Robert Harris. It opened at the Royal Shakespeare Company’s Swan Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon in November 2017 and ran to February 2018. I moved with the production to Gielgud Theatre in the West End in 2018 and stayed with the production for its run. While over the next few years I focused on my love for Shakespeare, I occasionally ventured into very different productions which I consider is important when developing a career. So, from a John Cleese comedic take on a French farce, which opened in Exeter and actually moved onto a short tour, through a short spell with The English Theatre in Frankfurt, all fitting in and around Covid. Since 2022 I have regularly performed with Guildford Shakespeare Company and more recently I have enjoyed playing at Storyhouse/ Grosvenor Park Open Air Theatre in Chester.

Daniel, you’ve got an amazing story of performance, with so many incredible productions. Are there any which stay in your mind as particular favourites?

It probably won’t come as a surprise, but one of my favourites is a Shakespeare play, the 2018 RSC production of Troilus and Cressida and for me as Diomed, it was almost perfection. But there are also roles that I love playing and the two that always spring to mind are Richard II, in the play that is often overlooked due to the popularity of Richard III, and Mercutio in Romeo & Juliet. Both challenging, but satisfying when you are able to get inside the character and bring out the real persona.

How are you finding this tour, your first major national tour?

Well it is very different, moving between cities every week. It doesn’t give us much time away from each other, so it’s great that we all get on really well. I’m enjoying visiting places I have never been to before and gradually discovering Britain. I never realised that Inverness was so far north. We’re in North Wales this week and then all the way down to the south coast next week when we play Southampton and then it’s off to Ireland to play Belfast, Cork and Dublin. And that will mark the end of this tour!

Well I guess that will mark the beginning of the search for the next role?

You would expect that, but I have already signed up for the next production. It’s straight into rehearsals as the opening is set for 24^th September at Storyhouse in Chester. This is a new production of the two-hander The Woman In Black, at 33 years one of the longest running plays ever in the West End. I’m going to play The Actor alongside John Mackay as Arthur Kipps, a very different play and a challenging role. The run at Storyhouse is just the outset of another tour – some different theatres on this one, including Southampton where we will be playing at the Mayflower Studios.

Daniel you never seem to stop, have a great time in Wales this week and I will see you in Southampton at Mayflower Theatre next week. Many thanks for your time today.