Geordie actors Robson Green and Kevin Whately talk about their ITV drama Joe Maddison's War
Geordie actors Robson Green and Kevin Whately talk about their ITV drama Joe Maddison's War
Posted: 24 Sep 2010
Wor heroes
North East actors Robson Green and Kevin Whately talk about starring together for the first time in the smash hit ITV drama Joe Maddison's War - just out on DVD.
By Michael Hamilton
Pictures courtesy of ITV
Former Soldier Soldier star Robson Green admits he didn’t even read the Joe Maddison’s War script before deciding to accept his role – once he realised it was the work of Jarrow-born, award-winning writer Alan Plater.
‘They said it was an Alan Plater script and I said: “I’ll do it, no problem.” It’s a no-brainer – his work speaks for itself. He’s a wonderful writer.
‘It’s an era I wish I’d grown up in because everyone lived life to the full: they didn’t know what would happen tomorrow or the next day, so they lived from moment to moment.
‘I quite like that notion. Everything was spontaneous. There was also a definite sense of community and togetherness and true patriotism. People were very proud of their country and what it stood for.’
Robson plays the part of World War One veteran Harry, a cynical and rebellious character, and it is a part he identifies with.
‘Harry saw death and destruction on the Somme and thought there’d be some sort of reward at the end of it. Instead of which he’s spent his whole life at work, being ordered about by cocky little sods that have no idea what they’re talking about. He always rebels against authority and he doesn’t like fake sincerity or liars.
‘He doesn’t suffer fools easily and neither do I. He rebels against authority and I’m a bit like that. I dislike people who self promote. I don’t like the sort of people who run golf clubs and what they represent – who do they think they are with their president’s parking spaces?’
The film has given Robson the utmost respect for the veterans of both World Wars.
‘They were called heroes but they came back to poverty and rejection and they were left on the scrap heap to suffer. It’s a time we should never forget and we should never forget those who gave their lives for our freedom.’
Despite the sombre background of World War Two, the film has many lighter moments.
Robson, 45, says: ‘The director said to me: “This is not Dad’s Army.” But there is an underlying homage to Dad’s Army – we’re crawling over turnip fields pretending to look for submarines and there’s one scene where we arrest a statue that we think is a German solider.
‘And I loved Dad’s Army – it was wonderful. It doesn’t tire and my son Taylor watches it – he knows all the words to Who Do You Think You Are Kidding Mr Hitler. There was pathos and humour and camaraderie in Dad’s Army, just like Joe Maddison’s War.’
The film reunites Robson with Trevor Fox, who plays Eddie, who he has known since they were teenagers together at the Live Theatre in Newcastle. But it is the first time he has ever appeared alongside Kevin Whately.
‘Incredibly we have never worked together. We see each other and we both suffer in silence at St James’ Park watching Newcastle United, so it’s a lovely privilege to work with him finally.
‘There was an instant camaraderie as soon as I arrived on the set. Kevin is lovely and he’s the captain of the ship and a very good one. Trevor Fox I’ve grown up with and he’s a joy to be with too – and what a privilege to work with Derek Jacobi.’
Robson grew up in the small pit village of Dudley on North Tyneside. After school he spent two year working in the shipyards, before deciding to try his hand professionally at acting.
He now lives with his family in Surrey, but he still has a cottage on the Coquet where he loves trout-fishing. He was delighted to return there during the four weeks of filming earlier this year.
As well as Joe Maddison’s War, he has also filmed a new series of his fishing show Extreme Fishing World Tour, in which he travelled 60,000 miles in four months.
‘It’s always wonderful when – during your time filming – you can see your brothers and sisters and your mum.
‘It’s just fabulous and I love being there. I’m always relaxed in the North East and I feel very comfortable. It’s where I belong. It’s home. It’s my roots and my sense of identity – it means everything to me.”
Meanwhile Kevin Whately, who plays nice guy Joe Maddison, says the character’s dependable and easy-going nature suited him just fine.
‘I’ve always played the boy-next-door. I can’t play flash. I can’t carry it off and I don’t try,’ he explains.
‘Even before television, on stage I was always the best friend. I wouldn’t be Romeo, I’d be Benvolio. I’ve played a few villains and they are nice for one offs, but I wouldn’t want to play one in a series.
‘Everyman parts are the ones I seem to get. I don’t know why and I’m not sure I want to know! I’ve never had a matinee idol look and I’ve never had any sense of fashion, so I tend to be ordinary and play ordinary, which suits me.
‘Joe Maddison is a perfect example. He’s a grafter with a strong moral sense and he’s brave. I admire him a lot. There’s an old-fashioned honesty and generosity about him.’
Kevin was delighted to be back in his native North East for filming in the Spring, which proved a family affair, with his wife Madelaine Newton also appearing in the drama as Jenny Barlow, the local gossip.
‘We had a flat in the middle of Newcastle while we were filming. We had two or three scenes together. We haven’t acted together for a long time.
‘We actually met in a stage play in Newcastle. She played the lead in that and I had a little walk-on role. We also did a kids’ series together and she was with me in the second series of Auf Wiedersehen Pet.”
To research for the role of Joe, Kevin watched several documentaries set in the 1930s, as well as reading up on the lives of World War One platoon soldiers.
And he also drew on real-life wartime stories from his own family – his father was in the navy during the war and his uncle in the army.
‘My dad was on North Atlantic convoys. And my wife’s dad was a merchant engineer during the war and was sunk three times and torpedoed twice. But like a lot of people who lived through it, they just didn’t talk about it.
‘That’s one of the things we try to show in Joe Maddison’s War. Both Joe and Harry bottle it all up and only occasionally talk about it. It was a different time. The realities of the war were hidden from people.
‘Looking back it’s difficult not to think they were naïve in going to war, but then people are the same now. We get very nationalistic when anything springs up. But mainly when I look back at that time I just feel sorry for the kids who were in the trenches.’
Kevin had never worked with Robson Green or Trevor Fox before, but said the camaraderie amongst the almost entirely Geordie cast was ‘absolutely fantastic.’
‘Robson and Trevor have known each other for years and Trevor is hysterical. On screen Robson and I couldn’t get our punch lines in, because when Trevor set up a gag on screen he just made us howl with laughter. He’s an under-rated actor. We completely wrecked shots because we giggled right through them.’
The drama also saw Kevin reunited with Melanie Hill, who he worked with in the mid 1980s on Auf Wiedersehen Pet, when she played the wife of Timothy Spall’s character Barry in the first two series. She plays pretty local widow Selina.
Kevin now lives in Milton Keynes and admits filming in the North East made him feel nostalgic.
‘The best times are a frosty morning somewhere and you find a lovely view. The great thing is we’ve had fantastic locations – a lot of them places I haven’t seen for 40 years. And I love being outdoors.’
Filming in Northumberland also brought back memories of Kevin’s big break in television, playing Neville Hope in the 1980s comedy series Auf Wiedersehen Pet, following the fortunes of a group of Geordie builders as they try their hand in Germany.
The series also launched the careers of Geordie pals Tim Healy and Jimmy Nail.
‘I owe everything to that show really. We were all unknown and there was a real chemistry between us. We were – and still are – like a band of brothers. We’re still in touch with each other. Auf Wiedersehen Pet led directly to Morse and everything else really.’
And the 59-year-old actor, who has two grown-up children and a granddaughter – three year-old Ivy – admits he doesn’t try and work all the year round.
‘I like to spend time with the family. I’m a professional childminder to Ivy three or four days a week! I love being a granddad, but I’ve not played one yet. However, originally in the Colin Dexter books, Lewis was a 60-year-old grandfather, so I’m getting perilously close to that now!’
Alan’s family affair
Joe Maddison’s War was written by Jarrow-born playwright Alan Plater. He sadly died from cancer at a London hospice, aged 75, in June. The war-time film, set in Newcastle in 1939, was filmed on location in the North East this Spring and screened on ITV in September. Alan admitted he drew heavily on his own family history and childhood memories to fashion the characters and storyline.
When the Z Cars writer was approached to create the film for ITV he could not believe his luck. ‘They asked if I would like to write a one-off original for Kevin Whately,’ said Alan. ‘They said: “Second World War, Tyneside, Home Guard.”
‘I said: “Well you’ve walked into my family history by another door.” I was born on Tyneside and spent time up there during the war and my uncle Harry was in the Home Guard, so I knew all this stuff.’
It tells the story of Joe (Kevin Whately), a shipyard worker who feels past his prime. He is told he is too old to serve in the war and is distraught when his wife leaves him for a younger naval officer. Joe and his friend Harry (Robson Green) reluctantly volunteer to join the Home Guard, where he begins a journey of self-discovery, heroism, friendship and love.
The £19.99 ITV Studios Home Entertainment DVD is out now.
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