For four decades, Bill Paterson has been one of the most comforting faces and voices on the box. Whether playing kindly gents or psychopaths, doing little cameos or narrating documentaries, the veteran Glaswegian is always a welcome visitor to the corner of our living room or my laptop screen. For many years he plied his trade in theatres across Europe before branching out into television and cinema. Even his films (Richard III, Comfort and Joy, etc) were the kind I’d happily watch.
Paterson’s distinctive high sloping forehead and Concorde nose were visible on BBC series Telford’s Change and Smiley’s People without drawing my attention but it was in the second series of Auf Wiedersehen Pet that he made a greater impact. Away from the German setting, there was something missing but Bill’s character Ally Fraser brought a different dimension. He was a corrupt businessman to whom Denis was indebted, leading to the tradesman crew decamping to Marbella to repair his villa and, in theory, repay the debt. He was a no-nonsense Scot, duplicitous villain and oily host, making a formidable employer and adversary.
Also in 1986 he appeared as Michael Gambon’s doctor in Dennis Potter’s weird but creepy The Singing Detective, which I saw only because it was Dad’s favourite programme, but I infinitely preferred the 1989 Channel 4 thriller Traffik. This time Bill Paterson took the starring role as a politician challenging the international heroin trade and father of an addicted daughter. It was hard-hitting stuff, focussing not just on the smuggling bad guys but also the poor Middle Eastern poppy growers sucked into the industry. It deservedly won a host of awards and was eventually adapted for cinema by Steven Soderbergh (set in Mexico) and US mini-series, but there wasn’t really a place for the original Scottish lead.
In the Nineties, Bill portrayed the estranged father of Joe McFadden’s principal character in BBC2’s The Crow Road. It was a multi-layered drama series, like the Banks book and, while much of the spotlight fell on the young star, the real highlight must surely have been Peter Capaldi’s crown of flamboyant curls!
Advance several years and I must have seen Bill Paterson in Little Dorrit and a few forgotten series Swallow (pharmaceutical conspiracy) and Trust (legal drama) but he then seemed to specialise as academics. In Sea of Souls, his Dr Monoghan ran a university unit investigating paranormal activities and apparent psychics. It ran for four series and, whilst running out of steam towards the end and requiring a certain degree of belief suspension, made for enjoyable and absorbing viewing. Thankfully it didn’t try to emulate The X-Files; the Glasgow locations and Paterson’s skilled acting made it feel more real.
In 2010, he was back in professorial mode in another sci-fi series Doctor Who. He appeared in a couple of historical stories featuring Matt Smith’s Time Lord but, having been created as an undercover android to scupper Churchill’s war effort by those pesky Daleks, for all his good intentions he was destined to meet a sticky end. Bill was another credible ‘prof’ in an eccentric Dirk Gently mystery, which I felt merited more than a slot on BBC4.
It was quite light fare but in the past few years the seventy-something Bill Paterson has provided some delightful performances in a few dark comedies. He was amongst the ensemble cast, with a pair of Rory Kinnears, in an Inside No.9 farce, but he also portrayed Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s ageing dad in Fleabag. In two superb series he was a beacon of sincerity and sanity amidst the bunch of oddballs. Whilst experiencing an uneasy relationship with his wilful daughter, and allowing himself to become engaged to the young control freak (Olivia Colman), he almost had me in tears during my lockdown viewing talking to ‘Fleabag’ after an awkward family meal out.
Bill was also involved in some emotional family scenes in the second series of Shetland, once again playing the main character’s father. I suspect that had he been thirty years younger, Paterson would have been a shoo-in for the lead role bagged by Douglas Henshall, or at least his brother-in-law, played by Mark Bonnar who I reckon has assumed Paterson’s mantle of top Scottish TV actor. In 2019 they were reunited in BBC Scotland’s priceless black comedy thriller Guilt. The elder statesman was back in Ally Fraser territory as a ruthless Glasgow gangster, and very chilling he was, too. Goodie or baddie, on screen or narrating documentaries, even at 75 Bill Paterson remains one of the best in the business.
No comments:
Post a Comment