The blues brothers; SCOTS HUNK CAL REVEALS WHY LANDING DREAM ROLE AS A DETECTIVE IS JUST LIKE JOINING FAMILY BUSINESS.

Byline: By STEVE HENDRY

SCOTS star Cal Macaninch is delighted the long arm of the law has finally caught up with him.

The actor is back on TV playing a tough detective in new BBC drama Holby Blue.

And it is his dream part after growing up on tales of cops and robbers from his two big brothers, who were both policemen.

He said: "I've wanted to play a cop for ages. My brothers, who are both in their 60s, were policemen in the Met in London.

"Cameron was latterly in the traffic division and Colquhoun was a detective who emigrated to Australia and worked for Interpol. I heard all these great police stories when I was growing up.

"Cameron's eldest son John is a cop in London as well so he must have heard them too.

"I told them I was doing it but they haven't said much so far. I hope they like it."

In Holby Blue, Cal, 38, heads up an all-star cast which includes former EastEnders star Kacey Ainsworth and ex-Footballers' Wives actress Zoe Lucker.

He plays straight-talking Detective Inspector John Keenan, who does whatever he needs to do to make sure villains get locked up, including bending the rules.

But his troubled personal life gets messier when his estranged wife, played by Lucker, comes to work at the same station.

He said: "It was a long drawn-out process to get the part. I was starting rehearsals for a play when they first saw me and I'd finished it by the time I got the job.

"But it was worth it when I saw the scripts. Any actor would love to play Keenan because he's a great hero."

The show is based in the same fictitious area of Bristol as hospital dramas Holby City and Casualty.

Cal admits he didn't realise the connection at first and if he had, he might have thought twice about it.

He said: "I didn't want to make a spin-off of Holby or Casualty but the scripts were great and it stands on its own two feet.

"An ongoing series becomes like a factory. The scripts come later and later, there's less time to film and it takes the fun out of the acting for me.

"But I'm contracted for three years if this series is successful so I'll just do what I'm told!"

Cal hopes Holby Blue will be a hit, not least because he and his partner, Scottish actress Shauna MacDonald, are expecting their first child and would welcome job security. Meanwhile, he is back in Scotland filming Doomsday with director Neil Marshall, who made The Descent and Dog Soldiers.

The top-notch cast includes Bob Hoskins, Rhona Mitra, Adrian Lester and Malcolm McDowell.

Cal said: "It's set in the future. Plague hits Scotland and they rebuild Hadrian's Wall and enclose Scotland to minimise the threat.

"It then cuts to 30 years later and the plague has reached London somehow. Satellite photographs show movement in Scotland so something must have survived and they send a crack army unit in to see what has survived and to find an antidote.

"I'm Malcolm McDowall's sidekick and I get to be a bit evil but I can't say much more than that."

The film has been shot in South Africa, Glasgow and recently completed filming at Loch Katrine in the Trossachs and historic Blackness Castle in West Lothian, which was used to make Hamlet with Mel Gibson and Glenn Close.

Holby Blue is on BBC1, Friday, 9pm.

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CAPTION(S):

WHO'S WHO IN HOLBY BLUE Constable Neil Parker (Jimmy Akingbola): Ambitious but has self doubt.; Constable Kelly Cooper (Chloe Howman): Stickler for the rules.; Constable Billy Jackson (Joe Jacobs): Street smart, wears heart on sleeve.; DCI Harry Hutchinson (Tim Pigott-Smith): All talk and little action.; Inspector Jenny Black (Kacey Ainsworth): Sharp and respected.; DS Luke French (Richard Harrington): Ambitious career cop.; DI John Keenan (Cal Macaninch): Dedicated, job has ruined his marriage.; Station reception officer Kate Keenan (Zoe Lucker): John's wife.; Rachel Barker (Sara Powell): With Crown Prosecution Service.; Custody Sgt Christian Young (James Hillier): Manic depression sufferer.; Lucy Slater (Elaine Glover): Gutsy rookie who packs a punch.; Desk Sgt Ed 'Mac' McFadden (David Sterne): Old school cop.; Constable Robert Clifton (Kieran O'Brien): Ladies man.; Boy in blue: Cal has always wanted to play a cop like Cameron and Colquhoun

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Publication:	Sunday Mail (Glasgow, Scotland)
Geographic Code:	4EUUK
Date:	May 13, 2007
Words:	729
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