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Alfie Allen says sister Lily's song Alfie didn’t motivate him: "I always wanted to be an actor"

"I always wanted to be an actor."

Alfie Allen in Atomic.

Sky UK

Published: Tuesday, 19 August 2025 at 10:55 am

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When Game of Thrones star Alfie Allen received his first ever Emmy nomination back in 2019, many fans were quick to note that he’d proved his sister Lily Allen wrong.

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The singer and songwriter once branded her little brother “lazy” and jobless in her 2007 single, Alfie. The pop track encourages Alfie to stop “wasting his life away” sleeping all day and playing computer games, and pleads with him to get a job.

And well, with a successful acting career and both Emmy and Tony nominations under his belt, Alfie – who played Theon Greyjoy in all eight seasons of Game of Thrones – certainly appears to have done as she asked.

But, speaking in an interview with this week's Radio Times magazine about his lead role in Sky’s new high-octane thriller Atomic, Alfie said it wasn’t his sister’s song that motivated him to launch his acting career.

Week 35 Alfie Allen

Alfie Allen. Getty

The actor was asked whether it's fair to say he’s having the last laugh, to which he responded: “Oh God, I dunno. I don’t look at it as anyone having the last laugh. It’s just more about… life’s challenges.”

Asked whether he found Lily’s song in any way motivational, he said: “No, I don’t think it was. I always wanted to be an actor.”

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Authors

RadioTimes.com senior trends writer Molly Moss. She is sitting outside wearing a black top, holding a white teacup with a smily face on it to her mouth

Molly MossTrends Writer

Molly Moss is a Trends Writer for Radio Times, covering the latest trends across TV, film and more. She has an MA in Newspaper Journalism and has previously written for publications including The Guardian, The Times and The Sun Online.

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