PEOPLE may recognise the actor Jonathan Howard from his role as Mark in Hollyoaks, but he'll soon be making a name for himself in theatre, thanks to his performance in the role of Ste in Beautiful Thing.

Coming to Basingstoke's Haymarket Theatre on April 8 and 9, it's a brave play, based on the film of the same name, which focuses on the relationship between two young men - Ste and Jamie - who live on the Thamesmead Estate in south east London.

Ste suffers some domestic violence problems, but his relationship with Jamie exposes him to a tenderness he has never experienced before.

Given that the play deals with a gay relationship, did 20-year-old Jonathan have any qualms about taking on the role?

"I won't lie and say it wasn't a worry," he confesses. "I watched the film first, and there were a couple of scenes where I was a bit like 'Uh oh'. They were running in the park, chasing each other, and I thought 'I hope they don't put that in'.

"But when I read the play, I knew I could handle what was in there. It's more my mates giving me stick that I'm worried about."

But it's not only the content of the play which the Preston native has had to concern himself with, as the first performances of Beautiful Thing are Jonathan's first "live" performances - his professional theatre debut.

"I've been loving it, really enjoying it," he enthuses, sounding very chirpy.

"I'm not saying I don't get nervous, because I do - every night! But it's a buzz, a good feeling. It's miles different from working in TV.

"TV is a lot more staggered and takes a lot more time. You might have 15 or 20 attempts to get that one shot perfect. Theatre's more in the moment, you're in the spotlight.

"But I think the rewards are a lot greater, like when you hear everyone clapping for you at the end. Hopefully they will be doing that for me!

"My father was killed last year, and I would have liked him to come and watch it in person. He'll be looking down on me, so I've dedicated my performances to him. He was on the way to an airport when these lads tried to rob his car and he just got in the way of it.

"He saw me in Hollyoaks and kids programmes, so he did share some of my success."

As well as the aforementioned teen soap, Jonathan (pictured above) has appeared in Girls In Love, Barry in Conviction and My Parents are Aliens for the BBC and ITV.

After treading the boards with this production, what does he think he'd like to do next?

"I've just taken whatever's been on offer, whatever my agents get me. I try my best and whatever I'm offered, I take.

"I'd like to be a bit more busy but I won't complain as I know there are a lot of people in my situation who haven't even had one job like the ones I've had.

"But I do want to always have things in the pipeline. That's my aim, really - to stay as busy as I can."

Tickets for Beautiful Thing are available from the Haymarket box office on 0870 770 1088.