The Coronation Street blog has been
fortunate to have been in conversation with Craig Gazey, who
plays Corrie's Graeme Proctor. We asked fans for the
questions they'd like to ask Craig and here's Craig's
replies below!
Firstly,
almost everyone sent their congratulations to Craig on his
award for Best Newcomer at the National Television Awards
2010s.
Questions from fans in the
UK and
overseas:
Q:
I'd like to know how Craig got his
Corrie
break?
A:
Gennie Ratcliffe, the casting
director,
watched my showcase upon leaving
school.
She brought me in just for
a chat and said that she would bring me in
for
an audition when a suitable part came
along.
I thought she may have forgotten
all about me until I got a phone call three years
later.
Q:
Where did Craig go to drama
school?
A:
The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, to which I owe an
awful lot.
Q:
Were there any other careers he had considered
before
he became an actor?
A:
I've wanted to be an actor
since the age of five, so not
really.
I used to say that I wanted to be a part-time
actor
and a part-time doctor
(not ambitious at all!) and the only reason I said that was
because I liked wearing the doctor's
costume that I got for
Christmas.
Q: Does Craig ever get the
opportunity to voice any opinions
about his character to Corrie?
A: I do
try. I get rather excited about new
ideas for my
characters. I'm good friends with some of
the writers so I chew their ears off over a pint, don't
know how much say I have
though!
Q: Would Craig like to have the
opportunity to do a comedy double-act
such as Rita and Mavis did, and Lloyd and Steve
and/or Eileen,
or Rita and
Norris do now?
A: Well, I kind of do, with
David. I know he's the straight man but
we've had some hilarious scenes
together.
Q: Do you think Graeme and Kirk
should become friends on Corrie and become a funny
double-act?
A: Well, it's funny you should say
that. You will start to see much more of Graeme and Kirk and there's
some really good scenes. I quite like
working with
Andy Whyment, who plays Kirk, because
Kirk makes Graeme look intelligent! But as far as a double
act set in stone, I prefer the fact that Graeme is his own
entity and can fit in almost anywhere because let's face it,
wherever he is, whoever he's with, he'll always be in his own
world.
Q:
Is Graeme ever going to have a love interest? It would be nice
for
him to settle down, but maybe David Platt will mess it up
for
him.
A:
Yes, he does get a love interest and let's just say he does
rather well for
himself!
Q: Who would you like to see as your character's
girlfriend?
A: The person who he IS going to have a
relationship with...
Q:
You steal every scene you're in. Do
your co-stars often crack up when they're acting alongside
you?
A:
Why thank you, very kind! Quite
a lot, yes because I can be very straightfaced when I'm
delivering utter absurdity.
Only today Rachel, who plays Natasha,
was unable to keep her face straight at my character's
antics. It
can be rather difficult though, for example,
when I slept in dog mess and asked
Natasha:
"Have you let one off?"
Q:
Where can I get a t-shirt like the one you had on at the party
a little while ago where you were trying to chat up
Natasha?
The one with the gold chains on it.
A: I
went shopping with our costumer designer which I do quite
often because I know what Graeme would and wouldn't
wear. The
t-shirt came from Foot Asylum in the Arndale Centre in
Manchester,
it's made by Two Angle.
Q:
Are there plans to see lots more of you on the show? I
would love to see your character involved
more with Aunty Pam? That would be a
scream! You also need a
girl!
A:
I'm rather busy filming at the minute so you are going to see
a lot more of Graeme in the not so distant
future. I would love to have dealings
with Aunty Pam, I think she's a great character and Kate
Anthony, who plays Pam, is a lovely
actress.
Q:
Is the voice you use on Corrie
your real voice? It is quite squeaky on
screen.
A:
Yes, it is my own voice! I put it on a bit but they are the
same dulcet tones.
I find it to be rather nasal – it sounds like a vacuum cleaner
in my head.
Q: Are you as mad in real life as you are on
Corrie?
A:
I am just as mad in real life.
Although I'm a different mad.
Graeme is laid-back and a
fantasiser.
I was recently described in an interview as intense, very
intense.
I think that sums me up.
With huge thanks to Craig Gazey and ITV for the
interview.
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