Mark

Mark is a new character in RUSH, a friend of Nicky's. He is quite withdrawn and a bit of loner.

Mark is played by Richard Collins. After attending schools for deaf children – Blanche Neville, Frank Barnes and then Heathlands – he studied for a BTEC National Diploma in Performing Arts at Derby College for Deaf People. Richard is currently in the final year of a degree in deaf studies at the University of Central Lancashire.

'I really enjoyed becoming the new guy in RUSH,' says Richard. 'My storyline was a challenge for me, as I felt I was the "baddie". Mark's character is quite different from me – he hides any feelings he might have, so I had to control the way I expressed myself. But I loved working with Jonny Nelson (Nicky) and Charly Arrowsmith (Teresa), and all the cast and crew.

'The difficult part of filming is getting frozen filming outside at 7am in the morning. The other hard part is kissing on screen – we kept collapsing with laughter.

'I'm quite well-known in the Deaf community as Anne Robinson in The Weakest Deafie and I've done other impersonations of famous people for charities and fund-raising events.'

Since he was 16, Richard's ambition has been to become a teacher for the deaf. But when he finishes his degree, he first plans to go backpacking, starting with Australia.

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