Kip Gamblin Interview - H&A mentioned

[Angel_Parrish]

The majority of this is about Casualty, I've put the H&A related qus in italics:

Kip Gamblin, one of the latest additions to Casualty, joined as paramedic Greg Fallon earlier this year after moving from Down Under.

The Australian actor played Scott Hunter in Home & Away for two years before leaving the programme last year. Kip moved to Britain with his family to pursue his acting career further afield.

His search led him to Casualty.

You're a relative newcomer compared with the rest of the cast. Did you find it difficult joining such a well-established show?

"No, I didn't, because this show's established and it's been going for 20 years, so they quite regularly have cast come and go all the time. It's not just relying on people that have been there 20 years, 16 years or eight years. I think the show relies on fresh faces as well. They have new people who come in, even each episode with the guest artists. I think the writers write well for new characters as well as old characters. And everyone's very friendly, they're very welcoming. I was a little bit nervous at first, but it went fine."

What were your first impressions of the cast?

"The set is in a warehouse and the cab dropped me off there and I walked in. It was great because Ben Price, who plays Nathan, hadn't been on the show very long either, so they decided to get him to show me round and introduce me to everyone. He's a really lovely guy is Ben. He took me round the set and introduced me to a lot of people. I was quite impressed with the set because on Home & Away, the set was bumped in and out every evening, so it was quite flimsy. The Casualty set is a permanent one that actually looks like a permanent hospital. Everyone was just really friendly and they want you to do well so they go out of their way to make you feel at home."

How do you feel being part of the 20th anniversary celebrations?

"Great. I've only been a small part of those 20 years, but I feel like it’s fantastic that Casualty has achieved that. There aren't many TV shows like it and for a television show to have survived 20 years I think it's a testament to the quality of the actors and the writers and the people that have worked on it over the years, so I'm excited to be involved with such a great show and organisation and from the earlier clips I've seen, it's evolved and changed a lot. It's amazing to be chosen to be part of it. I feel quite privileged."

What’s the difference between filming an Australian show compared to filming a British show – apart from the weather?

"I'd say it's a lot more thorough over here. I think with the scriptwriting there's a lot more of an established system that the scripts go through; the checks and the way people edit the scripts. It goes through a lot more filters before it comes down to the actors, which you can tell. It's of a much higher standard. I feel we get to really work with Casualty and we get a lot more time to work with the show. The directors have a lot more to play with because they're not so rushed and I think that the overall standard of acting in England is a lot better that Australia. I'm not saying that we don't produce some great actors in Australia, but I think that this country has such a huge history of drama and theatre. That would be one main difference, the performances among the cast are much higher.

"We have a lot of directors come into the show. We might get the same director on Casualty maybe once or twice a year whereas in Australia I was working with the same five directors who just rotated. Over here we have fresh directors coming in all the time and having a go. It's good for the cast and the actors because the directors don't get stuck in one form of their job and the cast get to work with all different types of directors."

What do you miss most about Australia?

"Of course, the beaches and the weather would be something I'd miss the most and, naturally, my parents and family. I don’t' think anybody comes to England for the beaches or for the weather! In the time that I've been here, this summer has been really, really lovely. People kept saying to me that when the sun comes out in England it's really beautiful and I have to admit that I've had the most fantastic summer over here."

Since you’re a paramedic on the programme, do you think you’d be able to handle a real-life emergency?

"We have a lot of medical advisors on set, so everything you see on Casualty most of the stuff is for really. The medical advisors tell us that we shouldn't be doing this and we should be doing that. So subconsciously I've taken a lot of that in. I wouldn't try to give somebody a tracheotomy or anything like that [laughs]. I would know how to check their breathing, check their pulse and put them in a stable position so I could help them get to hospital. I have two kids of my own and I find myself asking the medical advisors 'what should I do if this happens?' and 'what should I do if that happens?' so it's great – invaluable stuff. When I first joined the show, they asked me if I wanted to spend the day with some real paramedics. And when I did, I felt like I wanted to become a paramedic because it'd be so rewarding to do something like that."

What do you think to the two new paramedics, Dixie and Syd?

"I think they're great. They're a marvellous contrast; Syd's playing a feisty Irish girl who's absolutely gorgeous and I think they bring something different to the show. The partnership of having two girls working together is great. Jane [Hazelgrove] who plays Dixie, is somebody who's worked in the industry for a long time, in theatre and TV, and she brings really invaluable experience to the show. Both their characters are something new. I don't know if they've gone down that way before. They've worked together before, too – it's great. It definitely brings a new dimension to the paramedic department."

What's to come for Greg? Could there be a love interest for him in Syd?

"There might be. I don't want to reveal too much, but there might be a bit of a flame happening there for Greg, which is great. And I can't blame him because she's quite a beautiful young lady [laughs]. There might also be other skeletons in the closet for Greg that come back to haunt him right when he least expects it."

Do you get recognised a lot on the street?

"I do. I get recognised a lot for Casualty and occasionally for Home & Away. I think with Home & Away, a lot of people come out of these Australian soaps and don't get work. I feel really glad that I'm now working in Casualty because it's really hard to move on and get out of that soap mould. I feel like this is a great opportunity for me. I'm now working on Casualty; I'm working on a drama that's definitely a big step up from what I was doing before. I feel quite honoured."

What’s been your most memorable moment so far?

"There are always funny moments on set. I get a lot of stick from the crew because I'm Australian. There are always a lot of Antipodean jokes. I think my first episode when I did the stunt with the horse – that was great fun because I got to run in there and grab this horse. I had a lot to do, too. With storylines, you might find that in one episode you're not doing as much and other episodes you're doing lots. In my first episode I had a lot to do because they were establishing my character."

"I also really enjoyed working with Rebecca Gibbs and James Redmond on the one where I was teaching a bit of kung fu. James is a very funny guy in real life and he has me in stitches most of the time – they all are. The kung fu episode was a cracker because she [Rebecca] was straddling me on the floor and James's character, Abs, was a bit jealous and I just played it completely straight and it worked quite well, I thought it was really funny."

Do you manage to watch Casualty in your spare time?

"I do, I watch Casualty whenever I can, when I'm at home on a Saturday evening. We'll all sit down as a family to watch it and the kids cheer and yell when I come on screen. I think it's important to see what you're doing on screen. How you're doing, how you're coming across, how your character seems, so you can add to it and see what's working and find the strong points of your character. I think it's important not to watch it while you're filming because I feel it affects you too much. Quite often you think 'oh, I don't like my hair' and you pick yourself apart personally. But when you watch the episode after the edit, you're watching it as a whole storyline and you're not looking at your performance as critically."

Who’s your favourite Casualty character?

"I must admit I like Nathan. I know Ben plays a bit of a – how can I say this – a bit of a p***k but there's a funny quirky side to his character. I just love to work with him. I must admit, now I've said him, three or four others jump into my head - Simon MacCorkindale as Harry, he's so engaging and such a fantastic performer; Derek Thompson playing Charlie is an enigma really, the way he's got that character down, he's just so relaxed and comfortable in the role and I think that really comes across. And it’s the same with Ian Bleasdale, Susan Packer and James Redmond. Nathan, Harry, Tess, Charlie and Abs – I think they hold the show. I'm trying hard to name my favourite without offending anybody [laughs]. I love them all really."

What do you think to the Cambodian episode?

"I think it'll really surprise people. It pushes the boundaries even more for the people who watch Casualty and what to expect. It's got a fantastic element that they're overseas. I think everyone's going to be blown away by it."

Do you think Casualty's got the longevity to go another 20 years?

"Well in TV, nothing is certain… I think Casualty out of any show has the longevity to go for another 20 years, but in saying that, you don't know what the future holds and what people want. The answer to that question is in the hands of the producers and where they want to go with the show. If they keep pushing the boundaries and they keep evolving and growing and pushing where the show is going, I have no doubt that it will keep going for another 20 years. It's up to us as the cast to bring it forward, too."

Is there any part of you which still wishes you were with Home & Away?

"No, no, not at all. A lot of people get surprised about that because Home & Away is so popular over here and a lot of people go 'Home & Away, the beaches, the bikinis' and so many people are so addicted to it. That was never the case for me. I wasn't a Home & Away fan. I was an actor who was looking for a job and so in working there it was a job for me. I learned a lot and I got to work with some fantastic people and I took a lot from it, but I think you need to grow. It's a five-episode-a-week drama. It's such a fast pace. In saying that, we did our best.

"I'd hate to knock anything that I've been on because I think it's fantastic and it's a great show for what it is, but there's no time frame when you're working to do much artistically. It's so rushed. You only get a few takes to do it in and I feel like if I had have stayed on Home & Away it'd have been a totally different life for me. I didn't fit the soap mould – I didn't feel like I fitted in, as in it wasn't something I aspired to be (a star in Home & Away). I was an actor, I wanted to work and I got a job. But leaving that, it was like leaving any job, but I put that behind me and I was prepared to go into whatever came along next."

Were there any other projects which interested you before you landed the role in Casualty?

"There were shows and projects that I was interested in, but I think this was what I was looking for. I was looking for a drama that was going to be steady work. I've a family, and surviving in England isn't the easiest thing to do for out-of-work actors. There was interest from a couple of reality TV shows, which was not the way I wanted to go. I thought that was going to be short-term and it would work against me if I wanted to be taken seriously as an actor. There were times when I considered that type of thing, but I'm glad I didn't go down that avenue. I auditioned for a few musicals, a few dance shows, a couple of dance companies and I even thought about studying for a while. I actually auditioned for a play at the same time I auditioned for Casualty which I got as well. It was an interesting play because it was opening at the Brisbane Festival in Australia. So that was weird."

What were the reality shows?

"One of them was particularly big. They were just putting feelers out and saying would you consider it if you were offered it'… One of them was a sports-oriented reality show where they teach you Olympic events and train you for two months and put on a mini Olympics, and they were interested in me because of my dance background. I really didn't want to do it. I didn't come here to do that sort of thing.

[xxgulcanxx]

Thanks for that

[~Natasha~]

Kip Gamblin!

I do watch Casualty, but H&A is so much better.

[ste]

Nice one Kip. Make it sound like you wanted to leave because being on H&A was not something you "aspired to".

Yeah right. Your contract was up and it wasn't renewed, buddy.

[angel luck]

Thanks a lot for that. No offence on Kip, im sure he's a really nice guy and everything, but he sounds a bit bitter towards Hom and Away in that interview, because his contract wasn't renewed and he probably felt like he had to leave Austalia and move to England if he wanted to somesort of decent acting job, in his opinion and continue his acting career.

[claire_louise]

I don't understand what makes Casualty so much better than H&A. I like both shows, but they're both essentially soap operas. Ok, so they might have more time to put into making Casualty as it's only on once a week, but there are negatives to that as well (eg. they don't get to explore the characters as deeply). It seems to me that this is just another case of Kip doing whatever he can to big himself up and put H&A down.

[Jay Preston]

Oh Kip... I won't bother commenting really. I've said it all before. Hack. Hopeless. Talentless. Destined for nothing. Etc.

Casualty a 'step up' from Home and Away. Why don't you just spit all over everyone you've worked with before. It would save time and would be more to the point.

[Flamin Gallah]

Some of the stuff ive read shows he really has a bit of hatred for H&A.....but i guess everyone says the best stuff about the show they are on currently

[[email protected]]

The majority of this is about Casualty, I've put the H&A related qus in italics:

Kip Gamblin, one of the latest additions to Casualty, joined as paramedic Greg Fallon earlier this year after moving from Down Under.

The Australian actor played Scott Hunter in Home & Away for two years before leaving the programme last year. Kip moved to Britain with his family to pursue his acting career further afield.

His search led him to Casualty.

You're a relative newcomer compared with the rest of the cast. Did you find it difficult joining such a well-established show?

"No, I didn't, because this show's established and it's been going for 20 years, so they quite regularly have cast come and go all the time. It's not just relying on people that have been there 20 years, 16 years or eight years. I think the show relies on fresh faces as well. They have new people who come in, even each episode with the guest artists. I think the writers write well for new characters as well as old characters. And everyone's very friendly, they're very welcoming. I was a little bit nervous at first, but it went fine."

What were your first impressions of the cast?

"The set is in a warehouse and the cab dropped me off there and I walked in. It was great because Ben Price, who plays Nathan, hadn't been on the show very long either, so they decided to get him to show me round and introduce me to everyone. He's a really lovely guy is Ben. He took me round the set and introduced me to a lot of people. I was quite impressed with the set because on Home & Away, the set was bumped in and out every evening, so it was quite flimsy. The Casualty set is a permanent one that actually looks like a permanent hospital. Everyone was just really friendly and they want you to do well so they go out of their way to make you feel at home."

How do you feel being part of the 20th anniversary celebrations?

"Great. I've only been a small part of those 20 years, but I feel like it’s fantastic that Casualty has achieved that. There aren't many TV shows like it and for a television show to have survived 20 years I think it's a testament to the quality of the actors and the writers and the people that have worked on it over the years, so I'm excited to be involved with such a great show and organisation and from the earlier clips I've seen, it's evolved and changed a lot. It's amazing to be chosen to be part of it. I feel quite privileged."

What’s the difference between filming an Australian show compared to filming a British show – apart from the weather?

"I'd say it's a lot more thorough over here. I think with the scriptwriting there's a lot more of an established system that the scripts go through; the checks and the way people edit the scripts. It goes through a lot more filters before it comes down to the actors, which you can tell. It's of a much higher standard. I feel we get to really work with Casualty and we get a lot more time to work with the show. The directors have a lot more to play with because they're not so rushed and I think that the overall standard of acting in England is a lot better that Australia. I'm not saying that we don't produce some great actors in Australia, but I think that this country has such a huge history of drama and theatre. That would be one main difference, the performances among the cast are much higher.

"We have a lot of directors come into the show. We might get the same director on Casualty maybe once or twice a year whereas in Australia I was working with the same five directors who just rotated. Over here we have fresh directors coming in all the time and having a go. It's good for the cast and the actors because the directors don't get stuck in one form of their job and the cast get to work with all different types of directors."

What do you miss most about Australia?

"Of course, the beaches and the weather would be something I'd miss the most and, naturally, my parents and family. I don’t' think anybody comes to England for the beaches or for the weather! In the time that I've been here, this summer has been really, really lovely. People kept saying to me that when the sun comes out in England it's really beautiful and I have to admit that I've had the most fantastic summer over here."

Since you’re a paramedic on the programme, do you think you’d be able to handle a real-life emergency?

"We have a lot of medical advisors on set, so everything you see on Casualty most of the stuff is for really. The medical advisors tell us that we shouldn't be doing this and we should be doing that. So subconsciously I've taken a lot of that in. I wouldn't try to give somebody a tracheotomy or anything like that [laughs]. I would know how to check their breathing, check their pulse and put them in a stable position so I could help them get to hospital. I have two kids of my own and I find myself asking the medical advisors 'what should I do if this happens?' and 'what should I do if that happens?' so it's great – invaluable stuff. When I first joined the show, they asked me if I wanted to spend the day with some real paramedics. And when I did, I felt like I wanted to become a paramedic because it'd be so rewarding to do something like that."

What do you think to the two new paramedics, Dixie and Syd?

"I think they're great. They're a marvellous contrast; Syd's playing a feisty Irish girl who's absolutely gorgeous and I think they bring something different to the show. The partnership of having two girls working together is great. Jane [Hazelgrove] who plays Dixie, is somebody who's worked in the industry for a long time, in theatre and TV, and she brings really invaluable experience to the show. Both their characters are something new. I don't know if they've gone down that way before. They've worked together before, too – it's great. It definitely brings a new dimension to the paramedic department."

What's to come for Greg? Could there be a love interest for him in Syd?

"There might be. I don't want to reveal too much, but there might be a bit of a flame happening there for Greg, which is great. And I can't blame him because she's quite a beautiful young lady [laughs]. There might also be other skeletons in the closet for Greg that come back to haunt him right when he least expects it."

Do you get recognised a lot on the street?

"I do. I get recognised a lot for Casualty and occasionally for Home & Away. I think with Home & Away, a lot of people come out of these Australian soaps and don't get work. I feel really glad that I'm now working in Casualty because it's really hard to move on and get out of that soap mould. I feel like this is a great opportunity for me. I'm now working on Casualty; I'm working on a drama that's definitely a big step up from what I was doing before. I feel quite honoured."

What’s been your most memorable moment so far?

"There are always funny moments on set. I get a lot of stick from the crew because I'm Australian. There are always a lot of Antipodean jokes. I think my first episode when I did the stunt with the horse – that was great fun because I got to run in there and grab this horse. I had a lot to do, too. With storylines, you might find that in one episode you're not doing as much and other episodes you're doing lots. In my first episode I had a lot to do because they were establishing my character."

"I also really enjoyed working with Rebecca Gibbs and James Redmond on the one where I was teaching a bit of kung fu. James is a very funny guy in real life and he has me in stitches most of the time – they all are. The kung fu episode was a cracker because she [Rebecca] was straddling me on the floor and James's character, Abs, was a bit jealous and I just played it completely straight and it worked quite well, I thought it was really funny."

Do you manage to watch Casualty in your spare time?

"I do, I watch Casualty whenever I can, when I'm at home on a Saturday evening. We'll all sit down as a family to watch it and the kids cheer and yell when I come on screen. I think it's important to see what you're doing on screen. How you're doing, how you're coming across, how your character seems, so you can add to it and see what's working and find the strong points of your character. I think it's important not to watch it while you're filming because I feel it affects you too much. Quite often you think 'oh, I don't like my hair' and you pick yourself apart personally. But when you watch the episode after the edit, you're watching it as a whole storyline and you're not looking at your performance as critically."

Who’s your favourite Casualty character?

"I must admit I like Nathan. I know Ben plays a bit of a – how can I say this – a bit of a p***k but there's a funny quirky side to his character. I just love to work with him. I must admit, now I've said him, three or four others jump into my head - Simon MacCorkindale as Harry, he's so engaging and such a fantastic performer; Derek Thompson playing Charlie is an enigma really, the way he's got that character down, he's just so relaxed and comfortable in the role and I think that really comes across. And it’s the same with Ian Bleasdale, Susan Packer and James Redmond. Nathan, Harry, Tess, Charlie and Abs – I think they hold the show. I'm trying hard to name my favourite without offending anybody [laughs]. I love them all really."

What do you think to the Cambodian episode?

"I think it'll really surprise people. It pushes the boundaries even more for the people who watch Casualty and what to expect. It's got a fantastic element that they're overseas. I think everyone's going to be blown away by it."

Do you think Casualty's got the longevity to go another 20 years?

"Well in TV, nothing is certain… I think Casualty out of any show has the longevity to go for another 20 years, but in saying that, you don't know what the future holds and what people want. The answer to that question is in the hands of the producers and where they want to go with the show. If they keep pushing the boundaries and they keep evolving and growing and pushing where the show is going, I have no doubt that it will keep going for another 20 years. It's up to us as the cast to bring it forward, too."

Is there any part of you which still wishes you were with Home & Away?

"No, no, not at all. A lot of people get surprised about that because Home & Away is so popular over here and a lot of people go 'Home & Away, the beaches, the bikinis' and so many people are so addicted to it. That was never the case for me. I wasn't a Home & Away fan. I was an actor who was looking for a job and so in working there it was a job for me. I learned a lot and I got to work with some fantastic people and I took a lot from it, but I think you need to grow. It's a five-episode-a-week drama. It's such a fast pace. In saying that, we did our best.

"I'd hate to knock anything that I've been on because I think it's fantastic and it's a great show for what it is, but there's no time frame when you're working to do much artistically. It's so rushed. You only get a few takes to do it in and I feel like if I had have stayed on Home & Away it'd have been a totally different life for me. I didn't fit the soap mould – I didn't feel like I fitted in, as in it wasn't something I aspired to be (a star in Home & Away). I was an actor, I wanted to work and I got a job. But leaving that, it was like leaving any job, but I put that behind me and I was prepared to go into whatever came along next."

Were there any other projects which interested you before you landed the role in Casualty?

"There were shows and projects that I was interested in, but I think this was what I was looking for. I was looking for a drama that was going to be steady work. I've a family, and surviving in England isn't the easiest thing to do for out-of-work actors. There was interest from a couple of reality TV shows, which was not the way I wanted to go. I thought that was going to be short-term and it would work against me if I wanted to be taken seriously as an actor. There were times when I considered that type of thing, but I'm glad I didn't go down that avenue. I auditioned for a few musicals, a few dance shows, a couple of dance companies and I even thought about studying for a while. I actually auditioned for a play at the same time I auditioned for Casualty which I got as well. It was an interesting play because it was opening at the Brisbane Festival in Australia. So that was weird."

What were the reality shows?

"One of them was particularly big. They were just putting feelers out and saying would you consider it if you were offered it'… One of them was a sports-oriented reality show where they teach you Olympic events and train you for two months and put on a mini Olympics, and they were interested in me because of my dance background. I really didn't want to do it. I didn't come here to do that sort of thing.

I like Casualty and H&A but the reason that Kip left was because Ella and Bec both left the show as Hayley, and probably didn't want to return to the show at that moment in time, which in turn meant that there would be no storylines for the boring, wooden Scott as a character or as Kip Gamblin !

The majority of this is about Casualty, I've put the H&A related qus in italics:

Kip Gamblin, one of the latest additions to Casualty, joined as paramedic Greg Fallon earlier this year after moving from Down Under.

The Australian actor played Scott Hunter in Home & Away for two years before leaving the programme last year. Kip moved to Britain with his family to pursue his acting career further afield.

His search led him to Casualty.

You're a relative newcomer compared with the rest of the cast. Did you find it difficult joining such a well-established show?

"No, I didn't, because this show's established and it's been going for 20 years, so they quite regularly have cast come and go all the time. It's not just relying on people that have been there 20 years, 16 years or eight years. I think the show relies on fresh faces as well. They have new people who come in, even each episode with the guest artists. I think the writers write well for new characters as well as old characters. And everyone's very friendly, they're very welcoming. I was a little bit nervous at first, but it went fine."

What were your first impressions of the cast?

"The set is in a warehouse and the cab dropped me off there and I walked in. It was great because Ben Price, who plays Nathan, hadn't been on the show very long either, so they decided to get him to show me round and introduce me to everyone. He's a really lovely guy is Ben. He took me round the set and introduced me to a lot of people. I was quite impressed with the set because on Home & Away, the set was bumped in and out every evening, so it was quite flimsy. The Casualty set is a permanent one that actually looks like a permanent hospital. Everyone was just really friendly and they want you to do well so they go out of their way to make you feel at home."

How do you feel being part of the 20th anniversary celebrations?

"Great. I've only been a small part of those 20 years, but I feel like it’s fantastic that Casualty has achieved that. There aren't many TV shows like it and for a television show to have survived 20 years I think it's a testament to the quality of the actors and the writers and the people that have worked on it over the years, so I'm excited to be involved with such a great show and organisation and from the earlier clips I've seen, it's evolved and changed a lot. It's amazing to be chosen to be part of it. I feel quite privileged."

What’s the difference between filming an Australian show compared to filming a British show – apart from the weather?

"I'd say it's a lot more thorough over here. I think with the scriptwriting there's a lot more of an established system that the scripts go through; the checks and the way people edit the scripts. It goes through a lot more filters before it comes down to the actors, which you can tell. It's of a much higher standard. I feel we get to really work with Casualty and we get a lot more time to work with the show. The directors have a lot more to play with because they're not so rushed and I think that the overall standard of acting in England is a lot better that Australia. I'm not saying that we don't produce some great actors in Australia, but I think that this country has such a huge history of drama and theatre. That would be one main difference, the performances among the cast are much higher.

"We have a lot of directors come into the show. We might get the same director on Casualty maybe once or twice a year whereas in Australia I was working with the same five directors who just rotated. Over here we have fresh directors coming in all the time and having a go. It's good for the cast and the actors because the directors don't get stuck in one form of their job and the cast get to work with all different types of directors."

What do you miss most about Australia?

"Of course, the beaches and the weather would be something I'd miss the most and, naturally, my parents and family. I don’t' think anybody comes to England for the beaches or for the weather! In the time that I've been here, this summer has been really, really lovely. People kept saying to me that when the sun comes out in England it's really beautiful and I have to admit that I've had the most fantastic summer over here."

Since you’re a paramedic on the programme, do you think you’d be able to handle a real-life emergency?

"We have a lot of medical advisors on set, so everything you see on Casualty most of the stuff is for really. The medical advisors tell us that we shouldn't be doing this and we should be doing that. So subconsciously I've taken a lot of that in. I wouldn't try to give somebody a tracheotomy or anything like that [laughs]. I would know how to check their breathing, check their pulse and put them in a stable position so I could help them get to hospital. I have two kids of my own and I find myself asking the medical advisors 'what should I do if this happens?' and 'what should I do if that happens?' so it's great – invaluable stuff. When I first joined the show, they asked me if I wanted to spend the day with some real paramedics. And when I did, I felt like I wanted to become a paramedic because it'd be so rewarding to do something like that."

What do you think to the two new paramedics, Dixie and Syd?

"I think they're great. They're a marvellous contrast; Syd's playing a feisty Irish girl who's absolutely gorgeous and I think they bring something different to the show. The partnership of having two girls working together is great. Jane [Hazelgrove] who plays Dixie, is somebody who's worked in the industry for a long time, in theatre and TV, and she brings really invaluable experience to the show. Both their characters are something new. I don't know if they've gone down that way before. They've worked together before, too – it's great. It definitely brings a new dimension to the paramedic department."

What's to come for Greg? Could there be a love interest for him in Syd?

"There might be. I don't want to reveal too much, but there might be a bit of a flame happening there for Greg, which is great. And I can't blame him because she's quite a beautiful young lady [laughs]. There might also be other skeletons in the closet for Greg that come back to haunt him right when he least expects it."

Do you get recognised a lot on the street?

"I do. I get recognised a lot for Casualty and occasionally for Home & Away. I think with Home & Away, a lot of people come out of these Australian soaps and don't get work. I feel really glad that I'm now working in Casualty because it's really hard to move on and get out of that soap mould. I feel like this is a great opportunity for me. I'm now working on Casualty; I'm working on a drama that's definitely a big step up from what I was doing before. I feel quite honoured."

What’s been your most memorable moment so far?

"There are always funny moments on set. I get a lot of stick from the crew because I'm Australian. There are always a lot of Antipodean jokes. I think my first episode when I did the stunt with the horse – that was great fun because I got to run in there and grab this horse. I had a lot to do, too. With storylines, you might find that in one episode you're not doing as much and other episodes you're doing lots. In my first episode I had a lot to do because they were establishing my character."

"I also really enjoyed working with Rebecca Gibbs and James Redmond on the one where I was teaching a bit of kung fu. James is a very funny guy in real life and he has me in stitches most of the time – they all are. The kung fu episode was a cracker because she [Rebecca] was straddling me on the floor and James's character, Abs, was a bit jealous and I just played it completely straight and it worked quite well, I thought it was really funny."

Do you manage to watch Casualty in your spare time?

"I do, I watch Casualty whenever I can, when I'm at home on a Saturday evening. We'll all sit down as a family to watch it and the kids cheer and yell when I come on screen. I think it's important to see what you're doing on screen. How you're doing, how you're coming across, how your character seems, so you can add to it and see what's working and find the strong points of your character. I think it's important not to watch it while you're filming because I feel it affects you too much. Quite often you think 'oh, I don't like my hair' and you pick yourself apart personally. But when you watch the episode after the edit, you're watching it as a whole storyline and you're not looking at your performance as critically."

Who’s your favourite Casualty character?

"I must admit I like Nathan. I know Ben plays a bit of a – how can I say this – a bit of a p***k but there's a funny quirky side to his character. I just love to work with him. I must admit, now I've said him, three or four others jump into my head - Simon MacCorkindale as Harry, he's so engaging and such a fantastic performer; Derek Thompson playing Charlie is an enigma really, the way he's got that character down, he's just so relaxed and comfortable in the role and I think that really comes across. And it’s the same with Ian Bleasdale, Susan Packer and James Redmond. Nathan, Harry, Tess, Charlie and Abs – I think they hold the show. I'm trying hard to name my favourite without offending anybody [laughs]. I love them all really."

What do you think to the Cambodian episode?

"I think it'll really surprise people. It pushes the boundaries even more for the people who watch Casualty and what to expect. It's got a fantastic element that they're overseas. I think everyone's going to be blown away by it."

Do you think Casualty's got the longevity to go another 20 years?

"Well in TV, nothing is certain… I think Casualty out of any show has the longevity to go for another 20 years, but in saying that, you don't know what the future holds and what people want. The answer to that question is in the hands of the producers and where they want to go with the show. If they keep pushing the boundaries and they keep evolving and growing and pushing where the show is going, I have no doubt that it will keep going for another 20 years. It's up to us as the cast to bring it forward, too."

Is there any part of you which still wishes you were with Home & Away?

"No, no, not at all. A lot of people get surprised about that because Home & Away is so popular over here and a lot of people go 'Home & Away, the beaches, the bikinis' and so many people are so addicted to it. That was never the case for me. I wasn't a Home & Away fan. I was an actor who was looking for a job and so in working there it was a job for me. I learned a lot and I got to work with some fantastic people and I took a lot from it, but I think you need to grow. It's a five-episode-a-week drama. It's such a fast pace. In saying that, we did our best.

"I'd hate to knock anything that I've been on because I think it's fantastic and it's a great show for what it is, but there's no time frame when you're working to do much artistically. It's so rushed. You only get a few takes to do it in and I feel like if I had have stayed on Home & Away it'd have been a totally different life for me. I didn't fit the soap mould – I didn't feel like I fitted in, as in it wasn't something I aspired to be (a star in Home & Away). I was an actor, I wanted to work and I got a job. But leaving that, it was like leaving any job, but I put that behind me and I was prepared to go into whatever came along next."

Were there any other projects which interested you before you landed the role in Casualty?

"There were shows and projects that I was interested in, but I think this was what I was looking for. I was looking for a drama that was going to be steady work. I've a family, and surviving in England isn't the easiest thing to do for out-of-work actors. There was interest from a couple of reality TV shows, which was not the way I wanted to go. I thought that was going to be short-term and it would work against me if I wanted to be taken seriously as an actor. There were times when I considered that type of thing, but I'm glad I didn't go down that avenue. I auditioned for a few musicals, a few dance shows, a couple of dance companies and I even thought about studying for a while. I actually auditioned for a play at the same time I auditioned for Casualty which I got as well. It was an interesting play because it was opening at the Brisbane Festival in Australia. So that was weird."

What were the reality shows?

"One of them was particularly big. They were just putting feelers out and saying would you consider it if you were offered it'… One of them was a sports-oriented reality show where they teach you Olympic events and train you for two months and put on a mini Olympics, and they were interested in me because of my dance background. I really didn't want to do it. I didn't come here to do that sort of thing.

I reckon that his contract on Casualty won't be renewed, as he is a really wooden actor. None of the other soaps or dramas in the UK or Ireland would have him , as he is pretty talentless IMO. I reckon he will be back in Australia in the next 2/3 years or so, out of work, as he is a cr*p actor IMO.

[katya]

To think I used to really like Kip...shudder