Scouser is the other Stevie G

MERSEYSIDE boasts two incredibly talented men by the name of Stevie G.

One is footie ace STEVEN GERRARD — Liverpool skipper and world-class England midfielder.

The other is fellow Scouser STEPHEN GRAHAM — one of Britain’s most underrated acting talents and star of the brilliant new Brit flick This Is England.

You might be forgiven for not recognising him straight away.

But Stephen boasts an impressive CV and celebrity pals any actor would kill for.

He has worked with some of the world’s best directors including MARTIN SCORSESE and STEVEN SPIELBERG.

And he counts Hollywood actor LEONARDO DiCAPRIO, OASIS rocker NOEL GALLAGHER and ARCTIC MONKEYS as friends.

This week I saw a screening of his latest leading role in director SHANE MEADOWS’ new film about a skinhead gang.

He plays a chilling, volatile character called Combo who has just come out of prison in 1983, and his performance blew me away.

But the married dad-of-two is keeping his feet firmly on the ground. He told me: “I have been lucky enough to work with some big names. But I’ve also been lucky enough to shake Kop legend KENNY DALGLISH’s hand, which takes some beating. Basically, I’m just a lad from Kirby in Liverpool.

“I’d probably swap a BAFTA for a Champions League winners medal — as long as I could score the winning goal.”

Stephen made his name with his standout performance in GUY RITCHIE’s movie Snatch as bungling boxing promoter Tommy.

He also starred in Spielberg’s brilliant Band Of Brothers and Scorsese’s Gangs Of New York. He next stars alongside HELEN MIRREN and JIM BROADBENT in his latest film, Inkheart.

And even though he stood on Helen’s toe in his opening scene, he joked that “The Queen” taught him how to make a proper cuppa.

Stephen revealed: “I put the milk in first and she said, ‘Stephen, darling. This is how one does it.’”

Bizarre readers may know Stephen best for his part in Arctic Monkeys’ When The Sun Goes Down video.

He said: “The Arctic Monkeys loved This Is England. They thought it was really good.

“I heard their new album around the same time, which is superb. It would be good to do a film with an Arctic Monkeys soundtrack.”

Another showbiz pal, Leonardo DiCaprio, has seen a snippet of This Is England too.

He added: “I saw Leo a couple of weeks ago and he was sound.

“I showed him a little bit of the film and he can’t wait to watch it.

“He’s a top man. I phoned him up the other month and told him I was doing a little film over in LA.

“I planned to get a hotel but he invited me to stay so I lived with him for a month and a half in LA.”

Stephen reckons the film’s director, Shane, is up there with the best.

“I look at Shane and think the similarities between him and Scorsese are amazing,” he says. “Their enthusiasm and the way they work with actors is incredible.

“And they are both little, fat and funny.”