WHERE’S THE TACHE, MAGNUM?

Iconic 80s private eye Magnum’s been at the razor for an all-action remake – but the breathtaking Hawaiian sets are still there...

Fire up the Ferrari, dig out the shades – Magnum PI is back! The Hawaii-based private detective show that made Tom Selleck a star in the 80s has been remade with a cool new cast.

Solving the crimes now is American Jay Hernandez, who is best known for his role alongside Kirsten Dunst in the 2001 movie Crazy/ Beautiful. ‘It’s a dream come true to play Magnum,’ says Jay. ‘We’ve captured the charm and heart of the original.’

Back too are Magnum’s buddies, chopper pilot Theodore ‘TC’ Calvin, and bar owner Orville ‘Rick’ Wright.

Magnum works as a security consultant for superrich author Robin Masters and lives at his palatial estate Robin’s Nest, which is run by Higgins – in this version the abrasive Jonathan Higgins is now the glamorous Juliet ‘Higgy’ Higgins.

‘Magnum and Higgy clash, in the way Magnum did with Jonathan in the original, but the dynamic between them is different,’ explains British actress Perdita Weeks, 33, who plays her. Perdita is the younger sister of Foyle’s War star Honeysuckle Weeks.

‘There’s mutual respect – Higgy admires Magnum’s bravery and resourcefulness and he likes the way she uses the knowledge she acquired while working for MI6 to help him with his cases – but there’s also an emotional connection between the two of them.’

Surviving from the original are the glorious red Ferraris, which Magnum borrows from his boss in order to pursue bad guys across breathtaking Hawaii. In episode one alone, he manages to write off two of them, after running into a couple of vicious criminals.

What hasn’t survived the chop is the magnificent moustache sported by Selleck’s Magnum. ‘I thought about growing one, but decided to leave that particular facial hair back in the 80s,’ says Jay. ‘Magnum has stubble and sometimes a goatee beard now.’

Magnum still calls upon a team of ex-military pals to help him with his work. The private eye, Rick, TC and another pal, Sebastian Nuzo, helped each other survive a brutal prisonerof-war camp in Afghanistan while serving in the US military. But they may not be together for long. In the first of the 20- episode series, Magnum takes a call from Nuzo asking him for an urgent meeting, but when he arrives Magnum sees Nuzo being bundled into a converted ambulance by two burly men.

What unfolds is a tale of stolen gold bullion, a sunken ship – and a chase involving cars and a helicopter. Jay says, ‘Magnum cracks the case in the end with a lot of help from Higgy –

9PM, SKY ONE

See TV feature, page 18.

THE ORIGINAL GANG Tom Selleck (second from left) as the Vietnam vet-turned-private eye, with cast-mates John Hillerman, Larry Manetti and Roger E Mosley. THEODORE ‘TC’ CALVIN (Stephen Hill) A former marine and helicopter pilot, he helps Magnum to crack cases from up in the air. ORVILLE ‘RICK’ WRIGHT (Zachary Knighton) Once in the US military, he now runs a beach bar in Honolulu and has contacts all over Hawaii.