THE
LONG FIRM - Sir Derek Jacobi plays Lord Teddy Thursby
A chat
with two of the stars of BBC2's new four part drama exploring gangland
London in the 1960's Mark Strong and here Sir
Derek Jacobi.
A
politician embroiled in the
criminal underworld as defined
by mobster Harry Starks proved
too irresistible a role for Sir
Derek Jacobi, one of Britain’s
best-loved and respected actors,
writes Annie Frederick
“I
thought Jake Arnott’s novel
was beautifully written, with
wonderful dialogue. I loved it.
It was sexy, funny and enjoyable
to read. “I play Lord Teddy
Thursby, a married politician
who has a strange relationship
with his difficult wife, Ruth
(Judy Parfitt),” explains
Derek.“Teddy is also gay. He
meets and falls for Harry
Starks, not in a sexual sense,
but he sees a fellow traveller
in Harry. Harry is dangerous,
which is part of the attraction
and the charm – the power and
the money.
“The
circle of friends Harry has and
the life he leads are all way
beyond Teddy’s. Teddy is quite
eager to jump into that
particular pool with him. “My
character gets banged up a bit
by Harry, who is a bit outraged
with Teddy. But Teddy survives!”
Born in London’s
East End, Derek is probably best known for his Bafta Awardwinning
performance as the Emperor in I, Claudius, and for his role in the ITV
drama series Cadfael. Derek studied History at Cambridge University, where
he also indulged his passion for amateur dramatics, before graduating in
1960. Other luminaries included Corin Redrave, Sir Ian McKellan and Sir
Trevor Nunn.
“As far as I
can remember, acting is something that I had always wanted to do,”
smiles Derek. “I suppose because I was an only child who had no siblings
to play with, I lived in my own fantasy world.As part of my education, I
had the opportunity to be taken to see productions which really confirmed
what I had already subconsciously thought, so there was never really any
great revelation. I had no other talent for anything else, and I suddenly
realised that people would pay me to do it. My parents were very
encouraging.They were wonderful.”
The world in
which the book is set – the juxtaposition of criminal underworld and
showbiz glamour – is a million miles away from Derek’s personal
experience of Sixties London.
“The
book takes place within a certain framework of people and the criminal
classes,” comments the 66-year-old actor. “I knew the Kray twins were
around, ruling the East End, and were dangerous, violent celebrities,
but it wasn’t part of my world at all. My world in the Sixties was the
theatre and I was just starting out as a professional actor. I was getting
my feet on the slippery ladder, so this particular world that Jake Arnott
wrote about I knew was going on, but I wasn’t part of it at all. “I
think we are a species of voyeurs,” says Derek about the human fascination
with the criminal underworld.“Gangsters do the things that are hidden in
all of us.They are violent and wicked, and they break the law. They conduct
themselves in a way that we would all like to think that we are capable
of.We enjoy watching other people do it and then give ourselves a pat on the
back when they get their royal comeuppance! Usually, they are very
charismatic, sexy, likeable characters in their own right, who do their
business with a lot of charm.”
With over 100 film,
television and theatre productions under his belt, Derek’s CV reads
like a role call. But Derek explains why the theatre remains his favourite
medium. “It gives the most job satisfaction but it is also the most
frightening. At the end of the show the feeling of elation and the immediate
response by your audience is something that you can never get in a studio.
In the studio, the director, technicians and the editor choose which bits of
you the audience see, but in the theatre they can see all of you, all of the
time.You are totally exposed. If anything goes wrong, they see it go wrong.”
For his service to the industry, Derek was knighted 10 years ago, but the
title of “Sir” does not easily roll off his eloquent tongue. “It was
something that I completely wasn’t expecting,” says Derek. “I was very
flattered and honoured, and still am. I was very excited and also worried,
so I thought long and hard about it. I didn’t want it to affect how people
perceived me, particularly how other actors perceived me, because when I was
a young actor I was a bit scared of the Sirs and the Dames, and I didn’t
want that to happen. Then I realised that it was really about how I
conducted myself. “I find it very difficult to actually use it. If I ring
up to make a booking in a hotel or a restaurant and they ask for my name, I
just say Mr Jacobi. It is a bit difficult to say,‘well, this is Sir
so-and-so’. I find it quite hard to get my mouth round it. I am much
happier when it is just Derek or Del,” he laughs.
“The
book takes place within a certain framework of people and the criminal
classes,” comments the 66-year-old actor. “I knew the Kray twins were
around, ruling the East End, and were dangerous, violent celebrities,
but it wasn’t part of my world at all. My world in the Sixties was the
theatre and I was just starting out as a professional actor. I was getting
my feet on the slippery ladder, so this particular world that Jake Arnott
wrote about I knew was going on, but I wasn’t part of it at all. “I
think we are a species of voyeurs,” says Derek about the human fascination
with the criminal underworld.“Gangsters do the things that are hidden in
all of us.They are violent and wicked, and they break the law. They conduct
themselves in a way that we would all like to think that we are capable
of.We enjoy watching other people do it and then give ourselves a pat on the
back when they get their royal comeuppance! Usually, they are very
charismatic, sexy, likeable characters in their own right, who do their
business with a lot of charm.”
