Peter Brown joins 'The Brothers' and discovers that Paul Merroney once drove a lorry in real life . . .
Page 20
Page 21
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
IT WAS only a short while ago that 33-year-old Colin Baker found himself unemployed. He .visited the local Job Centre and was told there was little work around.
Not wanting to join the dole queue, he plumped for anything that was going -and was given a job driving for a road transport company.
Within two months he was appointed executive chairman of a large combine of road hauliers.
Although his story is true, in part, not all of it is in the world of reality.
For Colin Baker is an actor who had played -bitparts in films, on stage and television, and appeared in a few TV commercials. But with the economic situation worsening, he found himself unemployed.
And, just two months after stepping into the driving cab for the first time, he landed his first major TV role in the popular BBC series The Brothers.
For Colin plays Hammond Transport's whizz-kid chairman Paul Merroney.
''It was funny really'', Colin recalled when I interviewed him during rehearsals the other day. "Just before I started on the series I drove lorries for a small company, if you can call them lorries -three tons and under " Colin admits that the part he plays as the ruthless executive in The Brothers could not be further from the real Mr Baker.
His television image upset a number of viewers. "It did initially cause me a bit of trouble. I would be walking along the street and suddenly old ladies would prod me in the ribs with their umbrellas," he said.
Most of the cast of this programme had no prior knowledge of the road haulage industry, although many of them now admit they have become interested in it.
They have found mixed reaction to the programme from the hauliers they have met while working on location and making personal appearances within the industry.
None of the cast possesses an hgv licence, although a Midlands firm has offered to get some of them through the test. A frustrating situation has arisen as a result of this because several of the actors are keen to pass the test but find they have no spare time to train in Birmingham.
Their working schedule has a two-week turn-round. They begin rehearsals for an episode on a Wednesday, when they work for a full week at the BBC TV rehearsal rooms in North Acton, West London. On the Thursday they all travel to the BBC's Pebble Mill studios in Birmingham, where the episode is recorded.
Scripts for the next episode are then handed to the cast to learn over the weekend, before locational film work is carried out on Monday and Tuesday. Then it's back to the rehearsal rooms.
Most of the location shots are taken at Kinloch's'at Epsom. The two artics seen regularly in the series are ordinary vehicles in service. The BBC scenery department has designed boards bearing the name Hammond Transport. These are hinged to the sides of the artics at the time of filming.
Patrick O'Connell, who plays the part of the senior brother, Edward, told me he has been drawn into the industry as a direct result of the programme.
"I have opened depots as a result of the programme," he said, admitting that he had not carried out much research into the road haulage industry. "I don't think a programme can to that accurate, but we rely heavily on the research carried out by the writers They go to faaclotst ,of trouble to get the
The series creator, Norman Crisp, based the boardroom on an actual transport firm.
Nobody connected with the programme can understand why the series is an even bigger success on the Continent, especially in Sweden. The show is also seen in New Zealand, Denmark, Belgium, Holland and Ireland.
In the series Derek Benfield plays the part of Bill Riley, the trade unionist who now sits on the board of directors.
Derek spoke about how the viewing public identifies with him and his TV wife, Gwen, played by Margaret Ashcroft. "People seem to identify with the Rileys. When we travel around people have told us of similar situations where a man from the work force has worked his way up to the board. It's nice to know that people do relate to the programme," he told me Margaret Ashcroft echoed the sentiments when she sal( "The other day I was parking my car in Hanover Square when a couple of lorry driver asked me where Bill was. Thi were quite serious."
Criticism of the programm has in the past been made b) the industry, but the ranks of the knockers are also embedded in the programme One of these is Robin Chadwick, who plays the ineffectual brother, David.
"This is nothing like the re me. I really have been mis-ca in this series,he told me. "I think the programme concentrates too much on the squabbles. How any man cou let his women folk treat him the way they do in the series i beyond me.
"This whole way of life is new to me. I have never really known a proper family life. In fact, I have just seen my mother for the first time in 13 years. In reality I'm a keen outdoor type, a long way from the world of big business.''., He also admits to having -y little knowledge of the ight industry. But, having d that, he would like to have hgv licence.
"'l feel so restricted in the ries," he said. "I would 31Iy like to have an hgv ence. A firm in the Midlands tually offered to get me rough the test. Unfortunately ust didn't have the time, but the offer was for the London ea, I would seriously try and ke the test."
Kate O'Mara, who plays the rnineering Jane Maxwell, ho is in charge of the air eight side of the business, imits she has become very terested in big business as a rect result of working in the tries.
"Since doing the rogramme," she said, "I have ecome fascinated with the usiness. I sometimes go and isit various sections of the Idustry. The more I do the lore it seems incredible the (ay this country runs its nport and export business.
"It seems we import one laterial, do something with it, nip it out and then import it gain at a highly inflated ost."
Producer Bill Sellars and irector Mary Ridge do well, onsidering their task each eek. The industry, which is ighly individualised, must be ne of the hardest realms of ommerce to re-create for