Trivia

Shaun performed as a touring cabaret stage hypnotist & magician under the stage name Shon Paul, He was named as Ireland's youngest professional comedy stage hypnotist.

Strabane, Co. Tyrone, Shaun's hometown, was once described as the most bombed town in Europe relative to its size and the most heavily bombed town during the Northern Ireland Troubles.

Shaun enjoys playing the guitar and used to perform in venues and clubs, singing and playing Irish music.

Shaun left school at sixteen but later returned to education, embarking on a career as a secondary school drama teacher lasting a vicennial.

At the age of 18, he completed two marathons: the Derry City Marathon in 2:45 and, three months later, became the youngest fastest finisher in the Dublin City Marathon with a time of 2:41.

A passionate golfer, he played off a four handicap. His introduction to the sport came through caddying for an Irish golf professional.

As a teenager, he became a County Boxing Champion.

While caddying for an Irish professional golfer, he began writing a book on the mental aspects of golf titled The Missing Links.

John Dunlap, a native of Shaun's small hometown of Strabane, went on to print one of the most iconic American documents, the Declaration of Independence.

He was introduced to tennis by a coach who had seen him play as a teenager, and he went on to reach County level, becoming a doubles champion. Later, he continued working with the same coach and played squash at club level.

As a teenager, Shaun's PE teachers encouraged him to routinely perform a hypnotic show with his classmates, fascinated by how some students displayed behavior entirely opposite to their usual personalities. It was one of his PE teachers who secured his first professional gig at the local golf club's entertainment night, where the teacher served as the entertainment secretary.

During his teenage years, he played drums for local Irish country bands, performing in clubs and pubs.

Eager to experience flying a helicopter, Shaun received a training flight as a gift. However, when asked to bank right and the ground came into view, he was overwhelmed and nearly fainted. Undeterred, he later tried his hand at flying a small plane. But when prompted to lower the nose below the horizon, he once again succumbed to the same dramatic fainting spell.

In the past Shaun played Captain Hook in a local pantomime, he became so absorbed in scaring the children in the front row that he accidentally tumbled off the stage in front of them. The resulting screams and tears from the kids were so dramatic that he turned the mishap into a nightly routine, much to the dismay of both the children and their parents.

While performing in a film as an Irish itinerant in a scene with Shia LaBeouf and Toby Kebbell, Shaun was asked to tone down the improvised stream of expletive-laden curses. His response was, "Well, you did hire a real Irishman.

Shaun was once asked to audition for a role and was inquired if he would be willing to bleach his hair white. Unaware of the full details of the character or the production, which was still in its early stages, he declined the request and turned down the audition. Later, he realized that the character in question was Silas, the albino monk from Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code.

Andrew Higgs, the film director known for the TV series The Bill and Brookside, among other works, encouraged Shaun to pursue on-screen acting during a workshop for teachers and actors many years ago. After Shaun performed a monologue, Higgs asked if he had any on-screen acting experience. When Shaun replied that he hadn't, Higgs strongly advised him to start acting on screen without delay.

Served as a visiting examiner for the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA), assessing Higher Acting Performance and Theatre Arts qualifications.