By the age of 14, Morrissey was one of two youth theatre members who sat on the board of the Everyman Theatre. Ian Hart (with whom he has been friends since the age of five) was one of his contemporaries, as were Mark and Stephen McGann, as well as Cathy Tyson. He became friends with the McGann brothers, who introduced him to their brother Paul when the latter was on a break from his studies at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA). When Morrissey was 15 years old, his father developed a terminal blood disorder. He was ill for some time and eventually died of a haemorrhage at the age of 54 in the family home. After leaving school at the age of 16, Morrissey joined a Wolverhampton theatre company, where he worked on sets and costumes.