Ordinary Lies focuses on car salesman Pete, JS Motors’ resident hypochondriac and recovering gambling addict, next Tuesday. But Pirates of the Caribeean actor Mackenzie Crook says he's not a gambling man at all…
What appealed to you about the role of Pete in Ordinary Lies?
"I like that's he’s just a normal bloke, really. I usually play funny, geeky or quirky roles and don’t often get to play a regular guy like Pete, which is what attracted me to the part."
We know that Pete's a bit of a hypochondriac…
"Yes, he is. He's always got an inhaler on him or he’s popping some sort of pills. You could say he’s got an addictive personality."
Does he have any real ailments – or are they all just in his head?
"Well, he may have been addicted to prescription painkillers – and he gets beaten up very early on in this week's episode… so that’s real!"
It turns out that Pete's telling a few fairly major lies – what’s making him do this?
“We’ve all told little lies to protect ourselves or other people. That’s all Pete wants to do, except he’s told some monumental lies and taken things too far.”
We know Pete's a recovering gambling addict. Is there a chance his lies could see him relapse into his addiction?
"Pete’s clean from gambling at first but, as his lies spiral out of control, the pressure really gets to him."
Are you a gambling man yourself?
“I can't imagine ever getting into gambling, but apparently it's very addictive – that thrill of possibly winning. I went to a Las Vegas casino once and realised it wasn’t my natural habitat at all!"
Has filming Ordinary Lies made you any better at lying?
“I'm no good at lying, even though I suppose that's my job as an actor. When it comes to me telling a white lie, you'd be able to tell immediately.”
Ordinary Lies continues on Tuesdays at 9pm on BBC1
