BBC2, *Manchild* press packet (series one)
"Feature Interview: Anthony Head is James"
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Anthony Head commends great writing for new BBC2 comedy-
drama *Manchild*.

"I like things that are innovative and muck around with the 
genre," says Head.

Head spent five years playing Giles in the hugely popular US 
cult series *Buffy the Vampire Slayer*, and has now returned 
to Britain to play James - one of writer Nick Fisher's four 
40-something characters.

"I'm attracted to good writing. I gravitate towards it," 
Head explains. "Unfortunately, far too much is made of stuff 
that isn't terribly well written. Money is poured into it 
and people try to jazz it up and make it work."

Following a successful British television and stage career - 
he was recognised for his role alongside Sharon Maughan 
advertising a well-known brand of coffee - Head teamed up 
with *Buffy* writer Joss Whedon in 1997.

"One of the reasons I took the role of Giles is because I 
was interested in doing a character role," he says. "There's 
also an appealing intensity about the American process 
because you have a fairly short period to cover an awful lot 
of materials."

But Head admits that he was keen to return to his partner, 
Sarah, and two daughters in Bath. So the offer to play James 
came at the perfect moment.

"Everything was just spot-on. Coming back to the UK to work 
on *Manchild* happened at just the right time. It just all 
feels right," he says. "I really loved working on *Buffy* 
and now it's nice to be working with three actors who are 
all roughly the same age and all on the same page."

And Head valued the opportunity to play wealthy and wayward 
orthodontist James.

"The thing about James is that he's sort of leading-man 
material," says Head. "He's handsome - with money and 
wealth. But he's flawed. He's very human. I don' t have a 
lot in common with James, apart from being in my forties. 
The thing that we all share is the fact that we are men and 
we are all, essentially, children. We do have all of those 
silly insecurities and ultimately we are generally guided by 
women. If we're lucky enough, as I have been, to find a 
seriously good woman, then we welcome being guided!"

And Head welcomed the opportunity to work with co-stars 
Nigel Havers, Don Warrington and Ray Burdis.

"They were really enchanting and I can't remember when I've 
laughed so much on a job," he says. "It was refreshing to 
see that we all had a very different style and very 
different quality of humour - all of which fitted together 
very well. We would help other out. It was also really 
refreshing not to have egos getting in the way. No desperate 
insecurities rearing their ugly heads."

In the future, Head admits that he'd love to try his hand at 
Shakespeare.

"At my acting class in the US I've discovered *Richard 
III*," he says. "My teacher says he's never seen a sexier 
Richard and that's he'd like to see me trying a different 
perspective on the character. I took that as a challenge - 
and it was just fantastic. Of course, Richard III does 
eventually go barking mad - but he can also be very sexy!"

Head is also keen to explore a new side to *Buffy*'s Giles 
in a UK-based offshoot of the series.

"There is definitely room for a project like this - there's 
a ready-made audience for it," he says. "Giles has a whole 
side to him that we haven't seen."

In the meantime, however, it is *Manchild* that Head hopes 
to return to in the not-so-distant future.

"It was refreshing, and really, really enjoyable," he says. 
"I'm really looking forwad to the next round."



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