| DOUGLAS HENSHALL
Devilishly dishy The Glaswegian actor, 42, star of TV sci-fi drama Primeval tells Jessica Holland about his new job as Satan. What’s your new play about? It’s about a lawyer trying to get Judas Iscariot out of Hell. It takes place in a court and there are witnesses such as Pontius Pilate, Mother Teresa, Sigmund Freud, the Devil and all the saints. It’s kind of court-room drama, but it’s very funny. I’m sure that it will offend some people, but that’s Hell for you. And you play the devil. How do you prepare for that role? I don’t walk around being horrible to everyone. But I’m on his side, that’s the way I approach any character I play. The Devil is actually quite sympathetic in this. He’s the person who says that the gates of Heaven are just as open as the gates of Hell: it’s up to you which one you choose. What’s the devil like? He looks a bit like he’s spent too long in nightclubs, like a seedy Vegas lounge singer. Have you always wanted to be an actor? No, I wanted to be a sports journalist or an artist. But I was a bit lazy. I never really worked hard enough to get into journalism or art school, so I thought: “Oh, I’ll try drama school”, It was a last resort. But once I got there, I realised it was what I wanted. What’s your favourite part of London? I love Soho. I know that’s probably a cliché but I don’t care. I like the mayhem – I like the fact that everybody from every walk of life is welcome. Do you prefer playing bad guys? Yeah, good guys always have to do the right thing. Professor Cutter, who I play in Primeval, always does the right thing and it gets a bit boring. You think: “Can you not just smack him in he mouth if he’s going to do that for you.” It’s nice now and again to play someone who doesn’t always do the right thing. The London Paper April 3rd 2008 Thank you to Jenny for this interview. |