Philip Glenister plays Frank Le Saux
It’s taken Frank Le Saux over thirty years to become one of the most successful and prominent hauliers in the south of England. Thirty years ago, he bought his first truck. A few years later, he went international. Now, the distinctive Le Saux livery is a familiar sight on the arterial routes of the south coast, serving all major ports as well as Gatwick.
For many, it would be enough. Frank would seem to have it all. Thirty years ago, he married Cherie, an ex-dancer, a woman smart and secure enough in herself to realise that if you want Frank Le Saux and what he can provide, you have to learn to take the rough with the smooth. Together, they had two children - Hayley, and then, several years later, Tate, born with a genetic condition. Unlike Cherie, for whom this was a difficult challenge, Frank instantly accepted Tate and never failed to show him love.
Warm and charismatic, a caring husband, a strong father, able to absorb Hayley’s teenage excesses and empathise with Nancy’s distress. Frank seems to have had more than enough love to go round and it hasn’t always been confined to his marriage and his family. But it has provoked incredible loyalty from those drawn into his orbit.
But a fortune, a family and the admiration of the local community isn’t enough for Frank. Like his daughter, Hayley, he’s not easily satisfied and quickly restless. Alongside haulage, from early on, he’s flirted with, and then embraced, another line of business – he imports cocaine. It could just be impossible greed, or it could be something more complex – a natural instinct to create secrets and hoard their power. We see just how much power Frank has accrued – over people and places. And to what dark ends he’ll use it. . .
Q: Who is Frank?
“Frank is a haulage contractor who has fingers in lots of pies. A man with skeletons in the cupboard. He’s been a father figure to Nancy (Karla Crome) as she was growing up as well as having his own daughter Hayley (Laura Haddock). It’s not really a world I know much about. I’m a poncey little actor. But I’ve filmed in a few haulage places before, including for Ashes To Ashes. They’re always interesting places to film in, including the people who work there. There were quite a lot of lorries involved in Clocking Off. But I didn’t drive them. I just told them where to go. A lot of The Level is filmed in Brighton. My brother Robert got married, the first time, in Brighton and I’ve also just done a radio play with him, which was recorded in Brighton."
Q: Did you have a childhood ambition to be a lorry driver?
“Absolutely not. I wanted to be a milkman. But I didn’t realise you had to start at 3am. It’s alright when you’re seven-years-old saying that. But when you get to my age, it’s far too early. That’s one of the things about filming. You’re often up very early in the morning with long hours.”
Q: Frank is suspected of transporting drugs. Does the drugs’ issue concern you?
“I think drugs have always been around. The biggest danger is the strength of drugs these days seems to be so much stronger. Now there’s all this skunk out there which is three times the strength. That’s the thing that concerns me, the strength and people not knowing what they are taking. I’m fortunate the school my daughter goes to has a zero tolerance policy on drugs. Basically if you’re found with any sort of drug you are expelled immediately. You’re out. All you can do is educate kids about them.”
Q: One of the themes of The Level is keeping secrets. Are you good at keeping secrets? “I am, actually. If somebody tells me something in confidence I like to think I can be trusted to keep that. Absolutely.”
Q: What about whodunits? Can you spot the guilty party early on?
“Yes, often. A friend of mine who is a writer watches a new drama and as soon as he realises who’s done it, which is usually in the first 10 minutes, he switches over. And then he goes back at the very end and says, ‘I told you I was right.’ He usually is because he writes detective novels.”
Q: A vintage mobile phone features in the story. What’s your view on our mobile phone addiction today and modern technology?
“I find it quite worrying. I think it’s a generational, age thing. It can be very useful. But I also think it’s a very dangerous tool in terms of the damage it can cause. I’m not a huge fan of social media. “I’m always aware that we live in this age now when everybody’s got to have an opinion. It’s almost like people are waiting to be offended. With a remote control in one hand and the phone in the other. They’re watching something on the telly or listening to the radio and they’re just waiting for something to offend them. Everybody has to have a comment about something. Sometimes it’s quite nice to remain with a dignified silence. Something that seems rather lost on many today. That’s just a personal opinion. Other people would disagree. But I find it a weird phenomenon. I think it’s made us quite lazy in many respects as well. You don’t have to go out there and put the work in. You can do all the research on a tablet. You can just Google it and get what you need. That’s perhaps me being a bit old fashioned but that’s what I think.”
Q: Cameras on phones are maybe not good news if you have a famous face?
“That whole selfie thing is something that is just part of culture now. What can you do about it? I’m not on TV enough to be bothered a great deal. It must be pretty horrendous for people on soaps who are on screen several times a week. But, touch wood, I seem to get away with it. You just think, ‘Why do you need a selfie? You’ll probably forget about it in a day.’”
Q: Frank tells Nancy he’s not like her - she makes the world a better place. Do actors make the world a better place?
“Overall, yes I think they do. Not just actors. Culture makes the world a better place. We’d be very limited without culture and the arts. Actors are just part of that bigger picture. Music, art, photography, whatever you want to call it. It’s a wonderful tapestry and I’m very proud of being part of it. It makes the world a much richer place and it would be appalling without it. Like a big black cloud. You can’t generally put a monetary value on the benefits of the arts. It’s a very contentious one in terms of what the Arts Council can give and can’t give. It’s also about people supporting their local communities rather than the bigger picture sometimes. Certainly the smaller regional theatres have strong local followings. They need the support people can give them. I’m doing my bit for the Orange Tree in Richmond at the moment, acting as an amabassador for them. They do some very good work. If you want new writing and want to find new talent, these are the places where you’re going to find it. You’ve got to learn your trade. And that all starts in the local community. It’s important that local communities help and support each other.”
Q: Frank’s wife Cherie (Amanda Burton) leaves all the jobs at home to her husband. Is that the same for you?
“My wife Beth doesn’t trust me with the DIY. She doesn’t trust me to change a light bulb. I usually have to do that on the quiet. If something needs doing we’ll get her father round. He’s quite handy. I do the bits and pieces but when it comes to anything electrical I leave that to the experts. But obviously I mow the lawn. I give myself that task. I think it’s the golfer in me. I like a nice manicured lawn. Beth is more into letting the grass grow wild. But I’m like, ‘No, it’s messy, I’m going to cut it.’ And, of course, I’ve got a shed. I don’t live in it. I’ve got a shed I go in and retreat, read books about the olden days. It’s a very nice shed built by a friend of mine.”
Q: You are now filming season two of Outcast in America? “That takes me up to Christmas pretty much. It’s 10 episodes and quite a long shoot. If you’ve got a great TV drama like The Level or Outcast it doesn’t matter which country they come from. If it’s great drama, it’s great drama.
For many, it would be enough. Frank would seem to have it all. Thirty years ago, he married Cherie, an ex-dancer, a woman smart and secure enough in herself to realise that if you want Frank Le Saux and what he can provide, you have to learn to take the rough with the smooth. Together, they had two children - Hayley, and then, several years later, Tate, born with a genetic condition. Unlike Cherie, for whom this was a difficult challenge, Frank instantly accepted Tate and never failed to show him love.
Warm and charismatic, a caring husband, a strong father, able to absorb Hayley’s teenage excesses and empathise with Nancy’s distress. Frank seems to have had more than enough love to go round and it hasn’t always been confined to his marriage and his family. But it has provoked incredible loyalty from those drawn into his orbit.
But a fortune, a family and the admiration of the local community isn’t enough for Frank. Like his daughter, Hayley, he’s not easily satisfied and quickly restless. Alongside haulage, from early on, he’s flirted with, and then embraced, another line of business – he imports cocaine. It could just be impossible greed, or it could be something more complex – a natural instinct to create secrets and hoard their power. We see just how much power Frank has accrued – over people and places. And to what dark ends he’ll use it. . .
Q: Who is Frank?
“Frank is a haulage contractor who has fingers in lots of pies. A man with skeletons in the cupboard. He’s been a father figure to Nancy (Karla Crome) as she was growing up as well as having his own daughter Hayley (Laura Haddock). It’s not really a world I know much about. I’m a poncey little actor. But I’ve filmed in a few haulage places before, including for Ashes To Ashes. They’re always interesting places to film in, including the people who work there. There were quite a lot of lorries involved in Clocking Off. But I didn’t drive them. I just told them where to go. A lot of The Level is filmed in Brighton. My brother Robert got married, the first time, in Brighton and I’ve also just done a radio play with him, which was recorded in Brighton."
Q: Did you have a childhood ambition to be a lorry driver?
“Absolutely not. I wanted to be a milkman. But I didn’t realise you had to start at 3am. It’s alright when you’re seven-years-old saying that. But when you get to my age, it’s far too early. That’s one of the things about filming. You’re often up very early in the morning with long hours.”
Q: Frank is suspected of transporting drugs. Does the drugs’ issue concern you?
“I think drugs have always been around. The biggest danger is the strength of drugs these days seems to be so much stronger. Now there’s all this skunk out there which is three times the strength. That’s the thing that concerns me, the strength and people not knowing what they are taking. I’m fortunate the school my daughter goes to has a zero tolerance policy on drugs. Basically if you’re found with any sort of drug you are expelled immediately. You’re out. All you can do is educate kids about them.”
Q: One of the themes of The Level is keeping secrets. Are you good at keeping secrets? “I am, actually. If somebody tells me something in confidence I like to think I can be trusted to keep that. Absolutely.”
Q: What about whodunits? Can you spot the guilty party early on?
“Yes, often. A friend of mine who is a writer watches a new drama and as soon as he realises who’s done it, which is usually in the first 10 minutes, he switches over. And then he goes back at the very end and says, ‘I told you I was right.’ He usually is because he writes detective novels.”
Q: A vintage mobile phone features in the story. What’s your view on our mobile phone addiction today and modern technology?
“I find it quite worrying. I think it’s a generational, age thing. It can be very useful. But I also think it’s a very dangerous tool in terms of the damage it can cause. I’m not a huge fan of social media. “I’m always aware that we live in this age now when everybody’s got to have an opinion. It’s almost like people are waiting to be offended. With a remote control in one hand and the phone in the other. They’re watching something on the telly or listening to the radio and they’re just waiting for something to offend them. Everybody has to have a comment about something. Sometimes it’s quite nice to remain with a dignified silence. Something that seems rather lost on many today. That’s just a personal opinion. Other people would disagree. But I find it a weird phenomenon. I think it’s made us quite lazy in many respects as well. You don’t have to go out there and put the work in. You can do all the research on a tablet. You can just Google it and get what you need. That’s perhaps me being a bit old fashioned but that’s what I think.”
Q: Cameras on phones are maybe not good news if you have a famous face?
“That whole selfie thing is something that is just part of culture now. What can you do about it? I’m not on TV enough to be bothered a great deal. It must be pretty horrendous for people on soaps who are on screen several times a week. But, touch wood, I seem to get away with it. You just think, ‘Why do you need a selfie? You’ll probably forget about it in a day.’”
Q: Frank tells Nancy he’s not like her - she makes the world a better place. Do actors make the world a better place?
“Overall, yes I think they do. Not just actors. Culture makes the world a better place. We’d be very limited without culture and the arts. Actors are just part of that bigger picture. Music, art, photography, whatever you want to call it. It’s a wonderful tapestry and I’m very proud of being part of it. It makes the world a much richer place and it would be appalling without it. Like a big black cloud. You can’t generally put a monetary value on the benefits of the arts. It’s a very contentious one in terms of what the Arts Council can give and can’t give. It’s also about people supporting their local communities rather than the bigger picture sometimes. Certainly the smaller regional theatres have strong local followings. They need the support people can give them. I’m doing my bit for the Orange Tree in Richmond at the moment, acting as an amabassador for them. They do some very good work. If you want new writing and want to find new talent, these are the places where you’re going to find it. You’ve got to learn your trade. And that all starts in the local community. It’s important that local communities help and support each other.”
Q: Frank’s wife Cherie (Amanda Burton) leaves all the jobs at home to her husband. Is that the same for you?
“My wife Beth doesn’t trust me with the DIY. She doesn’t trust me to change a light bulb. I usually have to do that on the quiet. If something needs doing we’ll get her father round. He’s quite handy. I do the bits and pieces but when it comes to anything electrical I leave that to the experts. But obviously I mow the lawn. I give myself that task. I think it’s the golfer in me. I like a nice manicured lawn. Beth is more into letting the grass grow wild. But I’m like, ‘No, it’s messy, I’m going to cut it.’ And, of course, I’ve got a shed. I don’t live in it. I’ve got a shed I go in and retreat, read books about the olden days. It’s a very nice shed built by a friend of mine.”
Q: You are now filming season two of Outcast in America? “That takes me up to Christmas pretty much. It’s 10 episodes and quite a long shoot. If you’ve got a great TV drama like The Level or Outcast it doesn’t matter which country they come from. If it’s great drama, it’s great drama.
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