‘Gloss’s’ Alistair becomes more than a brat

Press, 6 September 1989, Page 19

‘Gloss’s’ Alistair becomes more than a brat

“There’s a new brat pack in the show this year," says “Gloss” star, Simon Prast.

Prast, who plays the previously irresponsible brat packer, Alistair Redfern, is back in his third series of “Gloss” (tonight at 7.30 on Two). He says there has been a new, younger and precocious element added to the story in this series, which leaves his character and many of the other original younger ones free to mature and develop.

“In this series Alistair has much more grown-up things to do. It is a more interesting part for me to play and there is more scope to do exciting things,” he says.

In this series viewers will see Alistair taking on an executive role in the Redfern business empire. “Now there is the possibility of his finding happiness with a woman and he is moving away from merely being a brat to being a balance for Rex.”

Prior to this he played the series’ perennially drunk and womanising bar owner. “I was a glorified barman for two seasons and I must have explored every possible way of playing a bar scene there is.” Simon Prast describes his character as a reluctant hero and this newly found role is one that he

has instigated with the producer of “Gloss,” Janice Finn. “Janice Finn and I had a talk before the third series started and I had a lot of my own ideas about Al incorporated into the show. I wanted him to have a male friend and I feel that the part of Chris Dunbar-Jones works really well. I also wanted him to have a lover that was a real woman and not some scheming bitch.

“He’s been thrust into this more responsible role by the turn of events, namely his father being murdered and his hopeless marriage to Gemma.” Prast is fiercely protective of his character and says he likes to have input into the scripts and helps choose the clothes that Alistair wears.

He says the scenes he likes playing the best are the steamy ones. “Sex is the best thing to play because it gives you the whole range of emotions to portray.”