Harry’s in no hurry Sunday, June 25, 2017
It’s time for the Proudmans to return, as Offspring is set to air for lucky season seven. One of the newest faces to appear on the popular TV show, Alexander England, tells DANIELLE McGRANE about joining the cast and what’s in store for Nina’s latest love
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 onto our screens in 2010 so, after he landed a part on the show, he had to rectify that fairly quickly. Over about two weeks, 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.
He very quickly realised what it was about this show that has captured the imagination of the country, and why it was resurrected after its supposed finale at the end of season five.
“It has that great balance of being able to go into fullblown tragedy and being able to discuss very real is- sues, and then go to comedy and all this sort of clowning stuff that Asher (Keddie) gets to do. I thought it was pretty amazing that it was able to tread those two territories in a matter of scenes, swinging between one and the other which makes it a fairly unique show,” he 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 Nina (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.
It’s working out so well that Harry is at the epicentre of some of the main storylines in the upcoming seventh season involving his family, who could potentially give the Proudmans a run for their money.
“There’s a bit going on there with Harry’s family. A lot of it comes from the parents, and specifically his dad, there’s a bit of oldworld meets new-world and different ideas about what’s right and wrong going on,” he said.
“Harry has become a Mr Fix-it 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 fam- ily’s bus company business as a favour to his sister.”
There’s still plenty happening with the Proudmans, too. Billie (Kat Stewart) has taken on the role of guardian for Brody (Shannon Berry) and her baby, while also struggling to manage her marriage with Mick (Eddie Perfect), who is still overseas.
So in the midst of all of this, Harry and his family might just be a welcome distraction for Nina.
“I think as Harry and Nina try to figure out how they work, it’s interesting for Nina to suddenly have to be dealing with another family and all that stuff that’s going on,” England said.
Of course, when it comes to Nina’s love life, England is aware the whole country is going to 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.