His mother, Zelfa Hourani, is Lebanese; and his father, Randal Keynes, was a British author. He has an older sister, Soumaya, a journalist and economist, who was the Britain economics editor at The Economist magazine[6] and is currently an economics columnist at the Financial Times.[7] They grew up in Islington, London.
On his mother's side, Keynes is of Lebanese Christian and distant Persian and Turkish descent.[11] His maternal grandfather was Lebanese writer Cecil Fadlo Hourani, who was an advisor to the late Tunisian president Habib Bourguiba. The Hourani family were immigrants to Manchester from Marjeyoun in southern Lebanon. Cecil's two brothers were Albert Hourani, a historian of the Middle East, and George Hourani, philosopher, historian, and classicist. Lebanese nationality law states that citizenship is passed on patrilineally, so Keynes is legally a foreigner in the country he considers his second home.[12]
Education
Keynes attended the Anna Scher Theatre School, after going to Thornhill Primary School. He then studied at the all-boys City of London School where he was awarded the Merit prize in the 2006 European Kangaroo competition, the City of London Corporate Scholarship (2008), The Geoffrey Clark Prize for Services to Drama (2009), and The Bennet Brough Prize for Chemistry (2010).[13] He passed his A-level exams in spring 2010 with A*s and As in biology, chemistry, mathematics, further mathematics and history.[14][15]
In October 2010, Keynes began his degree in Arabic, Persian and Middle Eastern History at Pembroke College, Cambridge.[16] He consistently attained first-class results. Thus, in first year he was awarded the Marie Shamma'a Frost Prize in Oriental Studies (Arabic) and the College Scholarship;[1] in second year the College Prize and the Foundation Scholarship which made him an elected member of the Faculty Board of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies (2011–2012);[2][17] and in senior year the EG Browne Prize in Oriental Studies.[3] He spent his third year studying in Lebanon to perfect his colloquial Arabic and wrote about his experiences on a weekly column in The Tab.[18][19] His dissertation presented a comparison between the teaching of history in Iran and Saudi Arabia which required him to translate school textbooks from both countries.[20] Achieving Firsts in both Parts of the Tripos, Keynes graduated with a Double First Class Honours BA degree in Middle Eastern Studies (Arabic and Persian) in June 2014.[1][2][3][21] He was listed as one of Business Insider's"16 Incredibly Impressive Students At Cambridge University".[22]
Career
Film and audio
Skandar Keynes’ acting career began when he was 9 years old with a role as a 'boy in rags' in the Royal Shakespeare Company production of Macbeth (2001) for British television.[23] It was followed with a supporting role of a Victorian waif in the BBC2 television documentary Queen Victoria Died in 1901 and is Still Alive Today (2001).[24] His first notable film part was at the age of ten playing the role of young Enzo Ferrari in the biopic film Ferrari (2003), directed by Carlo Carlei, which depicts Ferrari's rise from a successful race driver to one of the most famous entrepreneurs of all time.[25]
Keynes achieved international prominence in the role of Edmund Pevensie in the major motion picture The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005) directed by Andrew Adamson. Shot predominantly in New Zealand and a few in Central Europe, it was released in December 2005 to critical and high commercial success, grossing more than $745 million worldwide. Unlike the others who had endured an 18-month lengthy casting process, he was cast within weeks.[26] In 2004, after the producers saw 2,000 young hopefuls, Keynes won the role of Edmund whose story is especially dramatic as his character is central to themes of betrayal, forgiveness, and redemption.[25] He performed his own complex stunts: jumping into the ditch, sword fighting, and horse riding. He also voiced his character in the video game The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. In 2006, Keynes was awarded the CAMIE Award (Character and Morality in Entertainment) for his portrayal.
He reprised his role as Edmund in Prince Caspian, directed by Andrew Adamson and released in May 2008 to generally positive reviews, grossing $419.7 million worldwide. He enjoyed the action-oriented stuntwork, touring New Zealand, Prague, Slovenia, Poland, and Czech Republic within seven months of shooting.[27] For his performance, he was nominated for Best Performance in a Feature Film – Leading Young Actor and Best Performance in a Feature Film – Young Ensemble Cast at the 30th Young Artist Awards. Keynes also voiced his character in the video game The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian.
In May 2014, Keynes was cast to voice the antagonist Sir Allan Kerr in Heirloom Audio Production's award-winning audio adventure In Freedom's Cause, a historical novel by G.A. Henty which recounts how the 14th-century Scottish hero William Wallace, famously portrayed by Mel Gibson in Braveheart, was a strong man of God.[29] Keynes also appeared as himself in its promotional short film.[30] The drama was released in November that year, winning five of the six categories it was nominated for at the 2015 Voice Arts Awards —the Oscars equivalent of voice acting:[31] Outstanding Production, Outstanding Casting, Outstanding Audio Engineering, Audiobook Narration – Inspirational/Faith-Based Fiction, and Audiobook Narration – History.[32][33] In January 2016, Keynes announced his retirement from acting.[34]
Politics
In January 2015, Keynes completed a three-month internship at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. During his stay in Amman, Jordan, he assisted in the research and writing of Living in the Shadows: Jordan Home Visits Report 2014, a study that found evidence of a rapid deterioration in the living conditions of Syrian refugees in Jordan as the Syrian conflict entered its fifth year.[35][36] The report is based on data from home visits covering almost 150,000 Syrian refugees living outside of camps in Jordan. Published on January 14, 2015, it has been widely reported in the media and cited by foreign policy think tanks.[37]
Keynes then worked at the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom as a parliamentary adviser to Crispin Blunt, a British Conservative MP and former Chair of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee (2015–2017), until January 2018.[38][39][40][41] In November 2015, he joined the committee on its visit to Beirut for an inquiry on the UK's role in the fight against the ISIL.[39] In February 2016, with committee members Daniel Kawczynski and Stephen Gethins, he attended the European Parliament forum in Brussels which focused on conflicts in the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region and discussed the then upcoming NATO Summit in Warsaw.[38][42] In December that year, he participated in the IISSManama Dialogue at the 12th Regional Security Summit in Bahrain and posed a question on the practical ways by which they could move constructive dialogue with Russia forward having identified shared interests in defeating extremism and ending bloodshed in Syria, considering their "disagreements on the causes, solutions, and desired end states of these two problems".[43] In February 2017, on behalf of the Qatar All-Party Parliamentary Group, he visited Qatar to meet ministers and officials, visit sites in development for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, and discuss issues of bilateral relations and regional crises.[44] From 2016 to 2017, he accompanied Blunt in diplomatic visits to Cairo, Tunisia, Kurdistan, and Baghdad.[45][44] Since then, Keynes has been working as a political adviser.[46]
Personal life
Keynes plays the guitar, flute, and cornet. He won a 1500-metre long race competition in 2006,[26] and also ran 42 km at the 2012 Beirut Marathon in aid of Prostate Cancer UK.[47] He earlier attained a green belt in taekwondo and did extreme sports through bungee jumping in New Zealand at the Nevis Bungy, Sky Tower, Ledge Bungy, Shotover Canyon Swing, and from a jet.[26][48][49] He plays cricket and football, and is a supporter of Arsenal Football Club.[26] At Cambridge, he was a Rugby varsity player and played football with Freddie Highmore.[3]
Keynes and his family have been visiting Marjeyoun in Lebanon yearly, despite the political situation, since he was a child. "I was here in 1996 during Operation Grapes of Wrath. I was four at the time and had no concept that it was war," Keynes told a reporter. "I remember when the gravity of the situation dawned on me. It was during the 2006 July war, I was 14 then... but it didn't really shake my view of Lebanon as effectively a second home, a place where I come to and I have family." Cognisant of the Lebanese nationality law, he expressed, "I understand that in part the law that a mother cannot pass her nationality to her children is tied with the Palestinian issue... I would like to see the law changed and be considered Lebanese by the government. When I arrive at the airport, I would like to show a Lebanese passport, and go to my [family's] house without having to get permission..."[12]
Filmography
Year
Title
Role
Notes
2001
Macbeth
Boy in Rags
Royal Shakespeare Company TV production
Queen Victoria Died in 1901 and is Still Alive Today
For European Kangaroo Merit prize: "The Chronicle 2006". Vol. 130, no. 399. City of London School. December 2006. p. 77. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
For City of London Corporate Scholarship: "Chronicle 2008/9". Vol. 133, no. 402. City of London School. December 2008. p. 10. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
For The Geoffrey Clark Prize for Services to Drama: "Chronicle 2009/10". Vol. 134, no. 403. City of London School. December 2009. p. 10. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
For The Bennet Brough Prize for Chemistry: "Prizes — Chronicle 2010/11". Vol. 135, no. 404. City of London School. December 2010. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
