June 2008 Archives

I LOVE watching TV.

I know it's my job, but I'd watch hours of it anyway, so being the Sunday Mercury's TV Editor really is the perfect occupation for me.

I have written about television for more than 15 years and interviewed hundreds of people who appear on it.

Some have disappeared without trace (I often wonder what happened to Coronation Street star Jacqueline Pirie), but others have gone on to huge fame.

Those I have helped to make famous include David Tennant, Cat Deeley, Lucy Davis, Dale Winton, Richard Armitage, Matthew Marsden, Alistair McGowan, Claudia Winkleman and Helen Baxendale.

I like to think I helped their careers, though I have a feeling they might just have made it without me!

They were far from household names when I met them.

I did the very first interview with Lucy Davis when she had just joined The Archers and her only TV exposure had been an advert for Imodium diarrhoea tablets.

The Office and Hollywood fame were a long way in the future but I had an idea Jasper Carrott's daughter would do well. And, bless her, when I bumped into her several years later, she remembered me.

She was one of the nicest people I've ever met.

I can also report that David Tennant, who I met when he was a humble RSC actor, long before Doctor Who, is also lovely and has impossibly long legs.

Cat Deeley was only presenting on MTV when I chatted to her. She was pretty but looked like the girl next door (in fact she could have been your neighbour, when she lived in Sutton Coldfield).

It's amazing to see how glossy and groomed she looks now. What a difference access to a personal stylist, hairdresser and lots of fake tan can make.

In this blog I will be reporting back on what the stars are really like, and writing about what they produce on TV - what infuriates, puzzles and delights me.

Everyone has an opinion about what they watch on telly, so please let me know yours, especially if you disagree with me!