Ian Lavender Interview

Source: BBC Ceefax

Date: 29th March 2000

Ian Lavender shot to fame playing incompetent Private Pike - or "you Stupid Boy" as he was often called in the classic comedy series Dad's Army. He is currently treading the boards in Passport to Pimlico, a stage adaption of the classic Ealing Comedy, along with Dynasty's Kate O'Mara. The play is touring the country and is at the Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham, this week, then moving to the Grand Theatre, Wolverhampton on April 3.

What was your favourite TV show as a child?
Bilko - The Phil Silvers Show

Who's been your favourite actor on TV recently?
David Hyde Pierce (who plays Niles) in Frasier. He displays a beautiful blend of comic styles, from the delicate through to pure slapstick.

Who's your favourite Soap Character?
I'm afraid I don't watch any soaps.

Is There anything on TV you can't bear to miss?
Cricket and Frasier.

What are your top TV shows?
The Forsyte Saga, The Six Wives of Henry VIII and That Was The Week That Was.

How many TV's do you have?
Three - in the drawing room, bedroom and kitchen. They are all so I don't miss any of the cricket and rugby.

What's the strangest role you've ever played?
Being fitted with an iron gate for an episode of Dad's Army, and playing a six foot tall banana in the stage show of the same.

What is your dream TV role?
I've almost given up dreaming about anything due to the relative comfort of middle age.

What are you looking forward to in the 21^st century?
An increase in drama productions of all sorts from both the BBC and hopefully the independents.

What do you like best about your current role (as Arthur Pemberton in the stage production of Passport to Pimlico)?
Playing the same show night after night and getting it better.

Transcribed from Ceefax teletext by Andy Howells.

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