David Jason

David Jason is looking remarkably tanned and relaxed after recently returning from a break in America with his wife Gill and their three-year-old daughter, Sophie Mae.

Three-times winner of Best Actor at the National Television Awards and one of Britain's most respected and talented actors, the 65-year-old declares that he is beginning to take things a bit easier since he became a father for the first time at the ripe old age of 61.

?Retirement is not a word I'm ready for yet - pacing myself is more like it!? he says, flashing his trademark grin. ?I'm insisting that I have more time with projects to spend time with the family,? he adds happily. Of course, the nationally revered actor remains right on top of his game whatever he does, and will do for some time to come.

A new series of Touch Of Frost is due this year and he recently graced our screens in the hit one-off TV film Diamond Geezer, which marked a departure from his more traditional long-standing roles.

?It was great to break away and play a more senior character - I used to play many different types of roles when I began my career and Diamond Geezer was a great chance to get back to what I enjoyed doing,? says the actor.

?Although I enjoy playing Frost tremendously, after you've been that character for 10 years there is no real challenge - I've only got to put the coat and the hat on and off he goes. It becomes familiar, like an old friend, so when the part of Des came up I thought, 'If you get it right it is going to be great'.?

In fact, the 'simpleton' prison inmate, who had a spring on his step and twinkle in his eye, seems to have hit a real chord with David. ?Being in prison and playing an old lag had a certain resonance of playing Blanco with Ronnie Barker in Porridge, especially the prison sequences because they were very, very similar. I mean, I suppose all prisons are the same - not that I've ever been inside one of course!? he jokes.

The fact that David enjoyed making Diamond Geezer so much is also down to the distinct lack of bloodshed or bad language throughout the show, despite the fact that it's set in a prison. ?It had very little violence or swearing, which I kind of carry a flag about - our job is to entertain not to teach people how to swear or beat people up,? he says. ?We live in the modern world so you have to have some of it, and the story did show us some of the more slightly violent sequences - but they were quickly dealt with and it wasn't gratuitous.?

David goes on to explain that because he has been working as a popular actor for so many years - he made his debut as Del Boy over 20 years ago in 1981 - the British audience's perception of his work is one that is very family orientated. ?I've tried to strive for that and I really feel I'd let an audience down if I did something with a lot of violence and violent language. We concentrate a little too much on being too street-wise and not enough on entertainment - that doesn't mean to say all strong shows are bad but I think we're in danger of going a little too far down that road,? he adds.

This strong belief in drama for the whole family was something that lay behind his 'Quest' series. Scripted and Directed by David, The Quest, The Second Quest and The Final Quest were inspired by his experiences growing up as a young lad in the late 1950s.

?The Quest was pleasantly reviewed and the audience figures were huge, which was a delight,? he continues. ?It led us to think TV was in need of this sort of innocent show. There's not that much around that you can sit and watch with your grandma, your aunt, or whatever, knowing you're going to be safe from graphic violence or sex.?

Such has been the culture shift in recent years, that David was unsure what a modern public would make of his more 'harmless' tales.

?I realised it would be difficult to reach a younger audience. The world was such a different place in the late 50s and early 60s, especially for lads and lasses. Girls are much more forward these days and there's more communication between the sexes.

?It's quite difficult for the younger ones to understand. It took the younger members of our cast quite a while to appreciate the subtleties of the script, but the more they learned about the period, the more they got in tune. One wondered if it would entertain young people or whether they would all think we were loonies, daft as brushes. In the programme the lads walk about looking like worn-out tadpoles but that outfit is very genuine - we looked like that and thought we looked cool!?

Although David claims the shows had no real bearing on his youth, it did prompt him to track down a particular pair of old friends. ?We were all apprentices - but not at the same factory as the story suggests - and lived in neighbouring streets. We saw each other flashing about on our motorcycles and got to know each other.?

Formerly an electrician and now one of Britain's most famous faces, David's a recognisable figure who's often approached by 'friends' from his past.

?Some I do remember, but most people have stories they've completely made up. A lot of people suggest they went to school with you or worked with you as an electrician and you don't know who the hell they are!? he comments.

Now able to choose his TV projects carefully and develop some of his own, David is critical of a lot of today's 'cheap' TV. In his opinion, far less time and money should be spent on reality programming, such as Big Brother or I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here.

?That's the element of cheap TV,? he says. ?We've got to be careful not to dumb down for the audience, they shouldn't be sitting at home on the sofa vegetating - we should paint on as large a canvas as we can.? Although enjoying a new lease of life as a father, when most of his contemporaries are becoming grandfathers, it seems David, like a lot of us, still harks back to the 'good old days'. ?What we were trying to say in The Quest is you didn't realise how wonderful those days were until you were older and looked back on them,? adds David.

When asked about any future plans to tread the boards and make a return to the theatre any time soon he was anything but enthused. ?The theatre is still being kept at arms length - it's very demanding. Maybe I'll play Scrooge or something when I'm the right age!? he grins widely.