“Top Gear’s a perfect show the way it is,” says Philip Glenister
He might soon present it and car fan Philip Glenister says he would not change a thing about Top Gear. The Life on Mars star is in the running to replace Jeremy Clarkson, which was axed from the show for punching a producer on location. Philip won’t talk about his chances of getting the job but says he is a big fan of the show – even though a previous appearance ended in embarrassment.
He says, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. I have been on it before in the Star in a Reasonably Priced Car slot. It rained when I did it so I had a ‘w’ next to my name for wet – or ‘w****r’.
The second series of Philip’s own motor show ‘For the Love of Cars’ starts on Channel 4 this Sunday. In it he travels the country with car restorer Ant Anstead in a range of classic vehicles. He says, “To make a show that is trying to compete against Top Gear, that is foolish. Ours is our own little beast.”
In the show, Philip nearly ends up killing Ant after a camper can he is driving drifts towards a lorry, prompting his passenger to scream, ‘you’re frightening me!’ Philip admits, “I did nearly drive us into an oncoming vehicle. It was a bit like driving a boat. I felt seasick.” And adds, “The thing about classic cars is that they have a mind of their own, a camper van in particular. The ergonomics of it don’t favour handling that well. Bearing in mind he had never driven one before and we had just thrown him into it, left hand drive, I though he did very well in the circumstances. But he did nearly kill us.”
However Philip hits back, “I planned it to scare him so much that he would have to do all the driving so I could have a lie down in the back.”
The pair struck up a firm friendship after spending nearly 100 hours on the road together for the new series. Ant says, “I’m a car builder, he is an actor. To put the two together was fun. Series one was great fun. This is so much better as we are more relaxed.”
Potentially doing down his chances of getting the Top Gear job, Philip adds, “We are on screen a bit more together. It helps me as I’m not particularly knowledgeable about cars so it’s good to have somebody to bounce off.” While he is best known for his acting roles, he finds that For the Love of Cars gives him a chance to cut loose and he says, “I like to mix and match. This is something I haven’t done before. It is nice not to have to go into make-up, get dressed up in ridiculous outfits and learn lines. You just turn up and make it up and see where you go, which is most enjoyable.”
However, he will be back learning lines in make-up and ridiculous outfits this summer when he heads to the States to star in the new HBO TV drama Outcast – potentially becoming the next UK actor to make it big in the US. He says, “I just thought, ‘You only live once so you might as well give it a go. A lot of Brits are doing well in America at the moment. They see to respect British actors out there – or we are just cheaper. It’s about demons and exorcisms I am playing a Southern Preacher.”
Ant says, “He was practising the accent all the f***ing time!”
Of course, when it comes to care, Philip will forever be linked to the Ford Cortina in Life on Mars and ‘firing up the Audi’ Quattro in Ashes to Ashes. He says, “I used to do a lot of the driving and stunts in the first series of Life on Mrs as we didn’t know it was going to be a hit show. I did overheat the Cortina a few times from screeching it around. Then the second series came around and I was getting in the car and they were like, “Phil, out. You are a bit of a commodity now.” Then the stunt driver would appear. But they didn’t give a s*** in the first series.”
Given the title of Philip’s new car series, it seems only right that I ask if he has ever had some, erm, loving of his own in a motor. Laughing, he says, “I think everyone has had a bit of a session in the car, haven’t they? All I will say is mine was a Ford Escort – and it was in a car park.”
He says, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. I have been on it before in the Star in a Reasonably Priced Car slot. It rained when I did it so I had a ‘w’ next to my name for wet – or ‘w****r’.
The second series of Philip’s own motor show ‘For the Love of Cars’ starts on Channel 4 this Sunday. In it he travels the country with car restorer Ant Anstead in a range of classic vehicles. He says, “To make a show that is trying to compete against Top Gear, that is foolish. Ours is our own little beast.”
In the show, Philip nearly ends up killing Ant after a camper can he is driving drifts towards a lorry, prompting his passenger to scream, ‘you’re frightening me!’ Philip admits, “I did nearly drive us into an oncoming vehicle. It was a bit like driving a boat. I felt seasick.” And adds, “The thing about classic cars is that they have a mind of their own, a camper van in particular. The ergonomics of it don’t favour handling that well. Bearing in mind he had never driven one before and we had just thrown him into it, left hand drive, I though he did very well in the circumstances. But he did nearly kill us.”
However Philip hits back, “I planned it to scare him so much that he would have to do all the driving so I could have a lie down in the back.”
The pair struck up a firm friendship after spending nearly 100 hours on the road together for the new series. Ant says, “I’m a car builder, he is an actor. To put the two together was fun. Series one was great fun. This is so much better as we are more relaxed.”
Potentially doing down his chances of getting the Top Gear job, Philip adds, “We are on screen a bit more together. It helps me as I’m not particularly knowledgeable about cars so it’s good to have somebody to bounce off.” While he is best known for his acting roles, he finds that For the Love of Cars gives him a chance to cut loose and he says, “I like to mix and match. This is something I haven’t done before. It is nice not to have to go into make-up, get dressed up in ridiculous outfits and learn lines. You just turn up and make it up and see where you go, which is most enjoyable.”
However, he will be back learning lines in make-up and ridiculous outfits this summer when he heads to the States to star in the new HBO TV drama Outcast – potentially becoming the next UK actor to make it big in the US. He says, “I just thought, ‘You only live once so you might as well give it a go. A lot of Brits are doing well in America at the moment. They see to respect British actors out there – or we are just cheaper. It’s about demons and exorcisms I am playing a Southern Preacher.”
Ant says, “He was practising the accent all the f***ing time!”
Of course, when it comes to care, Philip will forever be linked to the Ford Cortina in Life on Mars and ‘firing up the Audi’ Quattro in Ashes to Ashes. He says, “I used to do a lot of the driving and stunts in the first series of Life on Mrs as we didn’t know it was going to be a hit show. I did overheat the Cortina a few times from screeching it around. Then the second series came around and I was getting in the car and they were like, “Phil, out. You are a bit of a commodity now.” Then the stunt driver would appear. But they didn’t give a s*** in the first series.”
Given the title of Philip’s new car series, it seems only right that I ask if he has ever had some, erm, loving of his own in a motor. Laughing, he says, “I think everyone has had a bit of a session in the car, haven’t they? All I will say is mine was a Ford Escort – and it was in a car park.”
Philip Glenister and Ant Anstead appear in the new series of For the Love of Cars, which starts on April 19 at 8pm on Channel 4
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