Chirpy Jack Thorpe dropped a right clanger at his first casting… but it paid off handsomely.
The Essex lad with the lively patter and natty outfits had a Sliding Doors moment at the “dance” audition.
Or what he thought was a dance audition. Jack – who quit a cold-call sales job to chase his dream – reveals all during a chat about the Sunday Mirror’s contest to find Britain’s Most Handsome Man.
The 26-year-old is now a model with leading agency Storm, our partner for the competition which has got the model world talking.
Jack explains: “The stress of the cold- calling job was immense and when my health started to be affected I knew I had to change everything. I just felt like I was dying inside and needed something to come along and change me.
To find out more about our hunt for Britain’s Most Handsome man click here.
(Image: Storm Management)
“I moved to South East London and started at the Bird College of Performing Arts in Sidcup. The college arranged for me to go to a dance casting.
“I was young and quite disorganised at the time, being a 20-year-old boy. I actually got the wrong date and was a whole week early for the casting.
“So here I am walking into this venue, a week early.
“It looked like a normal audition, I introduced myself. The room was a bit small for dancing but I persevered.
“I asked the agents if they wanted me to dance and they kind of laughed, which I thought was a bit weird.
“They asked me to put on some clothes and do a walk for them.”
It turns out the casting was NOT for dance – but for trendy Italian clothing label Missoni, ahead of London Fashion Week. Jack got a call a week later to say he’d got the job – his first modelling gig.
He chuckles: “So yes, my entree into modelling was proper random. That one moment allowed me to get into everything I’m doing now. Don’t get me wrong. I’m so grateful. But it was a mix-up that went wrong. Or, rather, went very right!
“I thought ‘Oh my God – I can do this’. I had never really been around models. It was amazing. Incredible energy.”
Another coincidence, further down the line, would seal Jack’s entry into the big time. His pal Nathan Brewer, a fellow devotee at the Essex Dance Theatre in Chelmsford, was the only person Jack knew had modelled.
So he turned to him for advice on finding an agent – only to discover that his pal had switched roles to become one and was recruiting for Storm. Nathan, who represents Jack at Storm, says: “I saw Jack needed a bit of guidance. The rest is history. He’s been with us since 2019.”
Jack has worked for high-end labels like Alexander McQueen, Versace and Dolce and Gabbana. There have been photoshoots for Vogue and sports fashion campaigns for Nike, Adidas, Kappa and Puma.
Jack adds: “I was in Vietnam recently for a Samsung TV commercial. We stayed on private beaches and swam at night when the plankton were luminous.
“An amazing experience. I also did a great shoot for Nike in Amsterdam which was super-creative. A mixture of movement and still photos.
“The great thing about Storm is that they allowed me to include my other talent of dancing in modelling shoots.”
And such opportunities have led Jack down a new route into music. He explains: “In October I am looking to release my own music too, with an Italian production team in conjunction with Storm. It’s really exciting. I can’t wait to start that part of my journey.
“Never in my life would I have believed I could be a successful model. I’ve surprised myself.
“I’m a different person to that guy who was so stressed out doing sales that I developed a skin complaint.”
