Emerging from Nina’s shadow
WHEN Alexander England landed a role in Offspring he went on a binge session.
The actor was one of those rare people who hadn’t been following Nina Proudman’s every move since she first burst on to screens in 2010.
After landing a part in the show, England found himself on a rollercoaster of emotions as he watched the first five seasons from beginning to end.
‘‘I went back and watched it, it took a little while, but I got the compression session of
Offspring,’’ England said.
Once he was up to speed, England joined the cast for season six as Harry Crewe — a crisis and culture consultant brought in to help the hospital of St Francis weather a PR issue and, in the meantime, get close to the show’s star, Nina Proudman (Asher Keddie).
The season ended with Nina and Harry starting off a promising new relationship, although England didn’t know that’s where things would necessarily end up when he first signed on.
‘‘I didn’t know too much about what I was doing when I jumped into the show. They said ‘There’s a role, we’re not sure where we’re going to take it, jump on board’,’’ he said.
‘‘I knew as much as what happened in the first two episodes I appeared in. I think there was a little bit of testing the waters to see how I fit into the world and, happily, it’s working out.’’
This season, Harry is at the epicentre of some of the main storylines involving his family, who could give the Proudmans a run for their money.
‘‘A lot of it comes from the parents, and specifically his dad, there’s a bit of oldworld meets newworld and different ideas about what’s right and wrong going on,’’ he said.
‘‘Harry has become a Mr Fixit for anything and, in this season, we see him go from managing a problem at St Francis to working more with his family and his family’s bus company business as a favour to his sister, basically.’’
When it comes to Nina’s love life, England is aware viewers will be watching and wondering if he can live up to the charms of the show’s heroine but he has a good feeling about the two of them.
‘‘I love that the fans feel strongly because they care about the show. They care about the world and they care about the characters and it’s great that they have strong opinions about who Nina should be with and who’s right for Nina,’’ he said. — AAP The seventh season of
Offspring premieres tomorrow at 8.30pm on TVNZ 1.