Ask: Nigel Planer

Dec 9 2007 By Colin Patterson, Sunday Sun

ACTOR Nigel Planer is best known for his role as the hippy Neil in the legendary sitcom The Young Ones.

The classically trained actor was born in London in 1953 and, after studying at the University of Sussex, he trained at LAMDA.

Between 1982 and 1984 he starred along with Adrian Edmonson, Rik Mayall and Christopher Ryan in the cult comedy.

His first break in the theatre was understudying David Essex as Che Guevara in the original West End run of Evita. Nigel was in the original London cast of Chicago, as Amos Hart. He was also a member of the original West End cast of Ben Elton’s Queen musical We Will Rock You.

Most recently, he has appeared in The Rocky Horror Show and the West End production of Wicked at The Apollo Victoria Theatre.

Under the guise of Neil from The Young Ones he had a number two hit single called Hole in My Shoe.

The Young Ones also appeared on Cliff Richard’s 1986 charity recording of “Living Doll”, which spent three weeks at number one in the UK.

The Young Ones 25th Anniversary Collection is now available on DVD.

IF you were stuck in a lift with someone, who would you like it to be?

I think that would have to be Angelina Jolie, although being stuck in a lift with her would be a bit scary.

I’d probably just giggle and look at the floor. If it was someone from history, Dr Samuel Johnson.

IS it true you suffer from claustrophobia?

Yes. I hate being confined in small spaces so much that I even hate traveling through tunnels. I’m 6ft 3in, so I bang my head on door lintels. Suffocation is my one of my worst nightmares as well.

ACTORS are known as a superstitious bunch. What’s your worst superstition?

I do a stupid thing when I see a magpie, which is to waggle my ears, make a wobbling noise with my tongue and say: “Good morning Mr Magpie!”

IF you could only listen to one song for the rest of your life what would it be?

If you were only allowed one piece of music you don’t want somebody moaning in some kind of folk-song thing, or telling you their feelings. They’d get on your nerves.

I would choose Mozart’s Jupiter. Jupiter is an absolute fail safe to put the energy of life back into you.

APART from your house, what’s the most expensive thing you have ever bought?

A very big floor rug. It’s huge. I really had to do my belt up when I wrote the cheque for it. It was a frighteningly large amount of money.”

IS it true that you don’t drive?

I do drive but I don’t own a car. I got rid of mine after I worked out how much I spent on it in a week, and it’s quite a lot. When you live in London you have to pay congestion charges as well, which adds £8 to a journey every day you set out.

Apart from the cost, I don’t really enjoy driving that much, so my indulgence is taxis.

If you work out how much a car costs you per week and think “right, I’ve got that much I can spend on taxis before I’m even spending more money”. I’m still saving cash.”

HOW environmentally friendly are you?

I’m reasonably environmentally friendly. I read somewhere that there are 871 people in the world who are actually in positions of power to change it environmentally.

They’re the people who are big enough, rich enough, important enough to actually make the big decisions that it’s going to be necessary to make about the environment.

Us as small individuals, I don’t think we have that much of a say, and I think those 871 individuals should wake up and do something within their power.

WHAT items could you not live without?

There are a few . . . my glasses, a cheap leather jacket I got years ago that I still wear most days, and a lamb’s wool hat with a peaked cap that I wear all through the winter.

WHAT do you like to do in your spare time?

I enjoy going on holiday. There is a spot in France where I last went and I am planning on going back there. I also enjoy reading and talking about books.