He Kills Coppers: Interviews

"This is why I became an actor"

Published: Thursday, 13 March 2008, 4:12PM

Rafe Spall has steadily been making a name for himself. His latest role as the arrogant policeman Frank Taylor is the one he’s been waiting to play all his life.

“I’ve always wanted to play someone like Frank and be a part of a drama like this,” says Rafe who has just celebrated his 25th birthday. "He Kills Coppers has been a once in a lifetime piece to be a part of.

“There were so many bad a** moments when I just kept thinking: ‘This is why I became an actor.’“

Filming in swinging London added to the fun: “I’d be walking down a street in 1960s Soho with Liam Garrigan in these suits, looking bloody cool.

“I also got to say lines that I’ve always wanted to say. For instance, there’s a scene where I smash a glass on this guy’s head in the pub and the landlord says: 'Someone call the police,’ and I shout back: ‘I AM the bloody police.'

“I’ve always wanted to play a policeman but a policeman who is human, who gets it wrong, and gets it wrong a lot. I think Frank’s a bit of an idiot and he’s certainly not as cool as he thinks he is.” And then he stops and grins: “But he is still bloody cool.”

But it’s not all cool lines and sharp suits. He Kills Coppers is a complex drama revolving around three central characters: a policeman, a murderer and a gutter press journalist.

Inter-connecting storylines span three decades as Frank’s future becomes entwined with those of Billy Porter (Mel Raido), the man he is hunting for the death of his friend, and Tony Meehan (Steve Robertson), the journalist who breaks the story.

Frank’s ambitious nature is in sharp contrast to that of his friend and colleague, Jon Young, played by Liam Garrigan.

“They both love the job, but for Frank if turning a blind eye to whatever is going on around him means getting a step further up the ladder, then he’s prepared to do it. It’s of no consequence at this stage that what he is doing is corrupt. He eases his own conscience by convincing himself that everything he does is for the love of the job.

“From Frank’s point of view the story is driven by three things: ambition, jealousy and shame. Ambition in terms of his career; his love for Jeannie, and the jealously he feels towards Jon who wins her heart; and the crushing shame he feels about the part he played in the murder of his friend.

“He wants Jeannie for himself because he loves her too and can’t bear the thought that Jon is with her... Jeannie is a prostitute working in one of the clip joints they close down and both men are immediately smitten by her.

“It’s love at for sight for Frank even though he doesn’t realise it the time. It’s his love and obsession which then drives the whole story from there; it is the reason he sends Jon back to Shepherds Bush, the reason he gets him transferred.”

• Gallery
• Episode Guide
• Cops and Crime