Joining an established cast can be nerve-racking for any young actor, especially if you know you’re going to get your bum pinched by a famous, older co-star, writes Kate Whiting.
Danny Miller, who played gay Aaron Livsey in Emmerdale until last spring, is donning a suit and tie to play Det Sgt Rob Waddington in Scott & Bailey, which means he’ll be in charge of the two female detective constables played by Suranne Jones and Lesley Sharp.
As we’ve seen in the first few episodes of the third series, DC Janet Scott (Sharp) has been acting detective sergeant for eight months, following the departure of DS Andy Roper from Syndicate 9 of the Manchester Metropolitan Police.
Warm welcome
She’s in two minds about taking on the extra responsibility that comes with being a DS, but the decision is made for her when, in episode four, Det Ch Insp Gill Murray (Amelia Bullmore) appoints 25-year-old Rob to the role.
And while Miller was given a warm welcome to the Manchester-based set by the predominantly female cast when he started filming in January, the actor says the scene in which Janet pinches Rob’s bottom still proved “challenging” to film. “It was strange, I knew it was coming and it was towards the end of the shoot. I just thought, ‘How are they going to film that? What are they going to say?’ And I could imagine the amount of innuendo there would be on set. But it was fine, everyone’s so professional and it’s not real, is it? Plus, it’s not every day you get to have your bum pinched by Lesley Sharp!”
Amazingly, Rob’s arrival doesn’t put anyone’s nose out of joint. Mostly because, according to Miller, he’s a “genuinely lovely person”, but Janet pinches his bum just to “show him up a little bit”.
He explains: “Janet takes away the maturity he’s got. It’s almost like having your book knocked [off the desk] in school. You’d finally got your hand up and answered the question and then someone goes and bullies you like that.
“It’s that kind of impression that Janet gives, she knows she’s embarrassed him, but she doesn’t even know why she’s done it. There’s nothing behind it, I think it’s an older lady finally finding a friend who’s a bit younger than her.”
The pair’s relationship develops through the series and Rob becomes a confidante to Janet. “A lot of younger people would confide in their mother, but you never see scenes on TV where the older lady confides in the younger man,” says Miller.
“You see Janet taking her problems later on in the series towards Rob and he’s a good listener – he’s got a really charming personality.”
In return, Janet takes Rob under her wing and teaches him the ropes. He’s been fast-tracked through the force so although he’s a “bright spark”, he’s not very experienced. Gill points him in Janet’s direction and tells him to learn from her.
Ranked higher
But at the same time he’s still ranked higher than her and Rachel Bailey (Jones). “He’s got to have that foot-down mentality and you do see it now and again throughout the series – he steps up to the plate and tells the girls to settle down and do their jobs. That’s when you realise that rank comes before age,” says Miller.
To get into the role, Miller, who’s only just turned 22 in real life, spent time chatting to the police advisor on set and watched a documentary which showed real briefing scenes.
Much of Scott & Bailey revolves around the private lives of the two DCs, with Rachel newly wed to traffic cop Sean (Sean Maguire) but already struggling with married life, and Janet finding it difficult living under the same roof as her soon-to-be-ex-husband Adrian (Tony Pitts).
But we don’t see much of Rob’s home life, so Miller chatted to writer Sally Wainwright about his backstory. “Because of his likeability, he’s probably got a childhood sweetheart, a two-year-old and he’s got his head screwed on. He’s mature for his age and he knows what he wants out of life and he’ll do it the right way,” says the actor.
Miller doesn’t seem too dissimilar from his alter ego in that respect.
Having made the tough decision to leave the security of Emmerdale, after winning numerous accolades including two British Soap Awards for Best Actor, he didn’t jump at the first job offer, but waited for the right role to come along.
“There were different offers on the table, but my agent said, ‘Let’s not get giddy and start taking everything, let’s wait until the right things come up’.”
His first post-Emmerdale role was in ITV’s supernatural drama Lightfields earlier this year and he considers Scott & Bailey to be his “big break”.
He says Emmerdale will always be a big part of his life and doesn’t rule out a return.
“You never say never, but I left for reasons to see what else was out there, so I’m happy doing that at the moment.”
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