Dexter
Fletcher
Tony Casemore
Concierge
Dexter
Fletcher isn't one to sit around twiddling his thumbs in between shows
and this year has been no exception. He has managed to pack in performances
alongside Robert De Niro and Michelle Pfeiffer in Stardust
and Keith Allen and Jonas Armstrong in Robin Hood, which is
no mean feat given he only had five months off in between filming series
two and three of Babylon.
"My
film Stardust has come out so my glorious moment of working
with De Niro has finally made it to the screen and Mr Vaughan (Matthew,
his long-time friend and director) is going on to bigger and better
things all the time," he explains.
"I
also had fun out in Budapest as well with the Robin Hood gang
playing Count Fredrick, a German Count with a very dodgy accent charging
about in the forest in tights with Jonas Armstrong, Lucy Griffiths and
Keith Allen."
Dexter
began his television career very early on by going to a drama club in
Islington two nights a week. He got some small extras parts in films
and TV at the age of seven before going on to do Steptoe And Son,
playing Diana Dors's son. He then landed a part in the cult transatlantic
movie Bugsy Malone.
"I
played Babyface over 30 years ago in Bugsy Malone when I was
nine years old, alongside Scott Baio and a very young Jodie Foster.
I then went on to work on numerous films before joining the RSC full
time at Stratford at the age of 16."
Despite
being best known in the UK for his role as Spike in the children's drama
Press Gang, Dexter has worked with some of the world's greatest
writers, directors and actors including Alan Rickman, Mel Gibson, Stephen
Poliakoff, Hayley Mills, Derek Jarman, Laurence Olivier, Anthony Hopkins,
Al Pacino, Jeff Goldblum, Kate Winslet, and Christopher Eccleston –
and the list doesn't stop there!
After a
break from screen acting to concentrate on theatre again in his 20s,
Fletcher returned to film in his early 30s when he landed a part in
the cult movie of the Nineties – Guy Ritchie's Lock Stock
And Two Smoking Barrels.
The HBO/BBC
hit drama Band Of Brothers followed along with Mike Leigh's
Topsy Turvy. His last two films, Tristan And Isolde
with Mark Strong, and Doom With The Rock, were both released
last year, but there is still much more that Dexter would like to do,
like zombie movies in Canada!
"I'm
about to star in a zombie movie being filmed in Canada as the lead.
And weirdly it's written by the father of a friend of mine that I haven't
seen for a long time – seven years to be exact and he called me
up out of the blue to say that his dad has got this script and the money
to do it and wants me to play the lead," he laughs.
"It's
a kind of interesting role as I start off as a mild-mannered school
teacher when suddenly there is the epidemic which sweeps the country
and people begin to die. From there come a few survivors and my mild-mannered
school teacher turns into a zombie killer.
"And
because my character does actually survive the entire movie I'm hoping
that it's successful and silly and fun and scary and that they go on
to make three more of them which would do no harm."
In order
to play the role of Tony Casemore, the ever-efficient concierge of Hotel
Babylon, Dexter initially spent some time with a real–life concierge
whose identity he is reluctant to reveal.
"I
can't really tell you who he is because I don't want to compromise him
– he was very good to me and gave me a real insight into the job
and into the more unsavoury side of the job which I hope I've managed
to convey. He also lent me his Golden Keys which I wear on set on my
lapels.
"What
I loved about Tony was that he is fixer, a mover and a shaker and has
his finger on the pulse of the hotel," says Dexter. "Tony
is the character in Babylon who manages to get a handle on situations
and get things back on track...the man who people turn to in a crisis...and
that is a role I hadn't played before and ultimately is what appealed
to me about the part," he adds.
"But
primarily the scripts were really good and the great thing about the
hotel is that it throws up all these different situations, so as an
actor I get to play out various scenarios like throwing people out of
the hotel and dealing with prostitutes. Tony is somewhere in the middle
ground between the office and the guests," explains Dexter.
Essentially
Tony is a family man but in series three of Hotel Babylon his
role as father figure and husband is challenged when he meets an attractive
young hotel guest whose proposition is hard to turn down.
"Yes
he is a good family man," he explains, "and he always tries
to make the right decision but the writers are challenging Tony's values
this series but I'm glad to say he still remains steadfast and loyal.
"He
sacrifices a lot in order to create a comfortable family life at home
for his wife and kids and there is always that unintentional clash because
he does work so hard he never gets to see his family. When his daughter
Liz turns up at the hotel for an audition a lot of home truths hit him
and he is forced to reassess his position both as a father and within
the hotel.
"But
I think he learns a lesson in that particular episode about how you
can't take people for granted in the family, even though you have to
do the right thing, which hopefully he ends up doing and she kind of
forgives him in the end."
With a
list of guest artists queueing up to be in Hotel Babylon, Dexter
was the only actor to have direct scenes with Paula Abdul in episode
one.
"Last
year Ray (Coulthard who plays James) had some lovely scenes with Jerry
Hall and one in particular where she kisses him which I managed to photograph
on my mobile phone...this year Paula Abdul insisted that I would be
the only one she would speak to, and yes, Ray did beg to have a scene
with Paula but she said 'no I will only speak to Fletcher as he is the
most handsome best-looking actor on set'," he jokes.
"Actually
she was dreamy – she came with her little entourage which was
all very glamorous and exciting but she was very up on her scene and
knew her lines and it was a real thrill to work with her. We love it
when people like her want to come on our little show."
The show
keeps going from strength to strength and the list of guest artists
keeps getting longer and longer, which Dexter believes is in part due
to the terrific writing that attracts the talent, and the good time
they have when they come to the set.
"Well
aside from me being enormously good-looking and attractive to be around
– I think the guest artists all know they are going to have a
good time.
"When
you watch the show you can see that everyone is having a blast and from
what I'm told that really comes across, and it's fun to do something
that you wouldn't normally get to – Jon Culshaw, Alan Davies and
John Barrowman are all playing roles that they don't normally play.
"And
the drama is just as good as the comedy elements so actors know they
will get a crack at one or the other of those.
"I think the
real success of the show is that it doesn't take itself too seriously.
It's glamorous, it's sexy, lots of people watch it, enjoy it and it
is the ultimate guilty pleasure."
Hotel
Babylon
Series three
Staff profiles
Guest star profiles
Max Beesley
- Charlie Edwards
Emma
Pierson - Anna Thornton-Wilton
Michael Obiora
- Ben Trueman
Ray Coulthard
- James Schofield
Martin
Marquez - Gino Primirola
Natalie
Mendoza - Jackie Clunes
Alexandra
Moen - Emily James
Lee Williams
- Jack Harrison
