Celebrities

Former Game of Thrones star Dean-Charles Chapman would see possible Oscars victory for his World War I film 1917 tarnished by the fact his father is currently in jail.

The 22-year-old British actor plays Lance Corporal Tom Blake in the Sam Mendes directed war epic – which is nominated in 10 categories of tonight’s Academy Awards including Best Picture.

But while the cast and crew of the acclaimed film (which has already scooped multiple Golden Globe and BAFTA gongs) might celebrate an Oscars win, Dean-Charles is said to dealing with a secret heartache.

The actor, who also played Tommen Baratheon in Game of Thrones, leaned his father Dean and uncle Darren were jailed shortly after filming on 1917 wrapped in September last year over a VAT scam.


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“Dean-Charles’ huge success in 1917 has been tainted by the fact his dad was jailed shortly after filming ended,” a source told The Sun on Sunday.

“Dean is the star of a film which is the toast of Hollywood but his joy is tinged by sadness his dad will not be with him on the biggest night of his career so far. The prison sentence was a real blow to the whole family,” the source added.

Dean-Charles’ father was jailed for four and a half years, while his uncle was handed an eight-year sentence after selling bootleg diesel at their petrol station.


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The brothers – who are now serving time at Norfolk’s HMP Wayland – ran a fuel station in Pulborough, but were caught out after trying to fraud HMRC out of £3.5 million.

The pair sold an illegal mix of kerosene with diesel to motorists between 2012 and 2013 – with the fuel causing £70,000 of damage to customer vehicles.

Assistant director at the Fraud Investigation Service, HMRC, Richard Wilkinson said in September: "The gang knew what they were doing was wrong but even after being challenged by HMRC officers and investigated by Trading Standards officers, they continued to flout the law and sell illegal fuel, which damaged vehicles engines and resulted in a tax loss of nearly £3.5m – money needed to fund our public services.

"HMRC continues to target fuel fraud which creates an uneven playing field for honest businesses.”

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