John - Hi Richard first of all thank you for talking to us today.

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​Richard - You're very welcome!

 

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John - When you were growing up what were the TV shows that got you hooked watching them?

 

Richard - I remember watching lots of children's serials, now mostly forgotten, like 'Nobody's House', 'Sky' and 'Lizzie Dripping' (Google them!). Saturday evenings would consist of 'Dukes of Hazard', 'Buck Rogers in the 25th Century' and , of course, 'Doctor Who'. I remember enjoying anything that was out of the ordinary, creepy or with a science fiction twist. Having said that, 'Grange Hill' was compulsory after school viewing!

 

John - When did you first realise that you wanted to work in the world of television?

 

Richard - I remember reading a book called 'Doctor Who - The Making of a Television Programme' (I keep meaning to see if it is available on eBay!). It detailed just what went into making a tv show; behind the scenes and in front of the camera. It contained biographies of the actors, detailing where they trained and what their previous experience was. It dawned on me that these were ordinary people and that, if I was lucky, I could work in their world too.

 

John - Do you remember your first day working on a TV show, what was the show and how did ur first day go?

 

Richard - My first day was playing a policeman in an episode of 'Love Hurts', circa 1992. It was a very small scene set on the foreshore of the River Thames, and I remember that one of my two lines included the word 'scumbag'. Funny what sticks in the memory. Anyway, as it happened, the scene was cut from the broadcast episode - so my career had got off to an ignominious start!

 

John - Who influenced you in your career?

 

Richard - During my training at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, I read and re-read Anthony Sher's 'Year of the King', a book detailing his experiences of playing Richard III for the RSC. His way of working excited me at the time, and I was always impressed with his stage performances too. I've been lucky enough to work with him twice since, although I've never confessed to being his stalker!

 

John - Over the years who has been the most famous person you have worked with or met?

 

Richard - I've been lucky enough to work with lots of famous faces, from Steven Berkoff ('Space Precinct') to Burt Reynolds ('A Bunch of Amateurs'), from Julie Walters ('The Mary Whitehouse Story') to Helena Bonham Carter ('Great Expectations'). It's always interesting to see how these people work, what makes them tick as performers and what tricks they use. In my experience, no one has been less than civil, with very few of them exhibiting any evidence of a 'starry' ego.

 

John - When did you first hear about Space Precinct?

 

Richard - In 1993, I was working in the box office for a group of West End Theatres. I simply got the call from my agent to go to Pinewood Studios to meet Gerry Anderson about a new series (then called 'Space Police'). It was by far the biggest audition I had ever had at that time but I was so poor I could barely afford the train fare! Luckily I managed it in the end.

 

John - What were your thoughts when you first read the script?

 

Richard - I was simply bowled over at having secured a year's work! That's practically unheard of as an actor, and I was just pleased to have such an opportunity at such an early stage in my career. As time went on, I think it's fair to say that we were a little disappointed in the quality of the scripts but I believe that some of the later episodes were pretty good and stand the test of time quite well. I was always happy to play the comic relief. My character, Officer Orrin, was generally scripted as getting into scrapes and comedy predicaments with his partner, Officer Romek (played by Lou Hirsch). Great fun to do!

 

John - What did you think about the other members of the cast when you first heard who you will be be working with?

 

Richard - I was most excited at working with the lovely Simone Bendix (she played Officer Castle in the series). We had trained together at Bristol, so it was lovely to have a familiar face in the cast. As to the rest, it was nice to have a range of experiences and ages in the cast; from Jerome Willis playing Captain Podly to Mary Woodvine playing Officer Took. Both Ted Shakelford and Rob Youngblood (who played Brogan and Haldane) were friendly enough - although they often seemed bemused by us Brits and our sense of humour! We were also lucky enough to welcome guest actors for various episodes, and I found myself acting alongside the likes of Clive Merrison, Maryam Darbo and Ray Winstone.

 

John - What did you make of all the props and sets that were created for Space Precinct by Gerry Anderson and the team?

 

Richard - 'Space Precinct' was trumpeted as being the most expensive tv series ever made (a million dollars per episode), and the various sets were certainly impressive. I spent most of my time in the 'Station House' set in which the various policemen worked, and it soon began to feel like a second home. The model sets and effects were created in another studio so I never got to see them in creation, but I remember some of the final results were pretty impressive. As far as the props go, the guns were all working props in that they discharged small explosive charges when you pulled the trigger. I still have one as a momento, along with a 'multi-com', the communications devices used by the police of the 88th Precinct.

 

John - Has anything funny ever happened or gone wrong while filming live that you remember and how did you react and carry on?

 

Richard - Actually, the one event that sticks in my mind is when a battery pack caught fire in  the back pocket of my trousers. I think it was actually my first day working on 'Space Precinct'. The batteries were used to power our animatronic eyes which were animated by an off-screen operator with a remote control device. I remember feeling a sudden burning on my buttock, throwing dignity to the wind and crying 'My arse, my arse!'. Luckily, there was no lasting damage, and it certainly helped to break the ice!

 

John - How long did the prosthetic process take for you to become Officer Orrin?

 

Richard - As there were so many of us in alien makeup it was a prime consideration that the process of getting us into the masks should be as quick as possible. I should say it took half an hour or so; the chin pieces being glued onto a kind of balaclava we had to wear, onto which the top half of the head would be secured with poppers (see photo). It was a little uncomfortable and our vision was extremely limited. We soon learned to walk with confidence without seeing where we were going, even if we sometimes took a few takes to walk in a straight line without bumping into each other!

 

 

John - What is your favourite episode of Space Precinct and why?

 

Richard - The great thing about working in prosthetic masks is that it's possible to play more than one part. Alongside my role of Orrin, I was lucky enough to play a few 'guest aliens', most significantly the evil vampire-like alien Kmada, in the episode 'Predator and Prey'. He was a joy to play because he had no dialogue - so no lines to learn! I remember that this was also a fun episode for Orrin as he and Romek befriended an ape-like creature, the Zwellin (played by Rob Thirtle), who proved something of a handful.

 

 

 

John - What projects are you currently working on and where can your fans see you next?

 

Richard - As acting work can be sporadic, I also write plays which are performed around the world. While I wait for the next acting job I consider writing my profession, and I love the control that a writer has over his characters. It's up to me what they say, how they express themselves or, indeed, whether they live or die! On the acting front, I've recently appeared in a children's series called 'MI High', and have an iron in the fire that I hope will come to fruition in the new year, concerning playing a certain well-known sleuth. I could say more, but I'd have to kill you afterwards! As for Gerry Anderson fans, they can see me and many other actors and creatives from the various Gerry Anderson series at next year's 'Andercon' convention in April.

 

John - Thank you for answering our questions Richard it means allot to us.

 

Richard - You're very welcome - and congratulations on your very interesting website!