Alex MacQueen, Steve Speirs and Marques Ray interview
Here are three short interviews with some of the other stars of Krod Mandoon:
Alex MacQueen (Barnabus)
British actor Alex MacQueen plays Dongalor's aide Barnabus. MacQueen can also be seen on British TV as Keith Greene in Holby City, and featuring in a large number of British sitcoms, including The Inbetweeners, Pulling and The Thick Of It.
Barnabus was Dongalor's footman back in his academy days, as Alex MacQueen explains: "The others around the palace probably see him as reasonably junior. The fact that he has Dongalor's ear means that he can get away with a huge amount and he can wield power in his name I suppose. But in the kitchen and basements everybody is probably thinking that Barnabus has no right to have these ideas above his station."
Alex continues: "Through the eyes of Barnabus, Chancellor Dongalor would be an extremely erratic, dangerous, exciting and colourful figure. His mood swings are absolutely colossal and at first this is a very, very frightening experience but after a while it becomes very exciting to be in his presence at a time like that."
Alex likens Krod Mandoon to The Pink Panther: "Certainly the scenes that I do with Dongalor are very Pink Panther-esque. It is so eccentric in that regard and in terms of likening Krod Mandoon to a TV programme I would probably say Blackadder: there's certainly elements of pantomime to it and also some poignant elements, so it's a nice mix."
Steve Speirs (Loquasto)
A big man with the pig-like features, Loquasto insists on calling Krod 'Master' and is ever faithful. Krod's father won him casting lots in a frontier brothel and gave him to his son on his 13th birthday. At this point Krod freed Loquasto... but he still following him now.
Steve Speirs laughs: "Loquasto's not adept at anything really. Because he's half man, half pig he's not really the sharpest knife in the drawer, but I know that pigs are really intelligent creatures so I think that the not-so-bright side of him comes from the human side! He does have really lovely qualities too - he's very endearing and loyal, and although he's supposed to be the muscle of the piece he becomes the heart of the piece too - he's a big softy really."
The Grobble has a long-standing and close bond with Krod, as Steve explains: "Loquasto brings companionship and life-long loyalty to the table with Krod. He also has a special relationship with Zezelryck, which I think of as Cagney And Lacey meets La Boheme."
Being a Grobble, Steve had to spend hours in make-up every morning: "I was in the make-up trailer long before everybody else sitting next to a bucket full of hairy prosthetic ears and snouts. At the end of each day, it also took about 45 minutes to take the make-up off again!" But Steve soon got used to it, and chuckles: "We were filming just outside Budapest and on our way from one location to another near the end of a long day. My make-up had been on for so long - maybe 8 or 9 hours - that I had forgotten I was wearing it. It's a weird experience as you can't smell anything and you can't hear a lot so it's a bit like being underwater all day. Anyway, there I was sitting in the front of the mini-bus and we stopped at a bus stop to ask for directions. There was a guy looking at me a bit slack-jawed and it was only then that I realised that I was perched on the front seat dressed up as a pig!"
If Loquasto were to be transported into the 21st century, Steve thinks that he would be a politician, "because he's got a big heart but not a lot of sense." Steve concludes: "Krod Mandoon And The Flaming Sword Of Fire is about a fantasy world that's rooted in reality. It is really like walking around in someone's imagination and hopefully a world that we can all enter in to: there are heroes that want to have a go and there are cowards that would rather not have a go, so it reflects all of humanity."
Marques Ray (Bruce)
American stand-up comedian Marques Ray plays Bruce, Krod's spiritual connection to his late mentor, the great General Arcadius.
Marques says: "Krod Mandoon is about fights, sex and laughs! But not necessarily in that order... I think I was the last to join the cast, but I knew about the role for a few months because I helped a friend out with his audition. I was on a plane to Hungary a few days after my second audition. It was a head-spinning few days but so much fun!"
Bruce is certainly very colourful: "Other than his sense of fashion, I think Bruce's strength is his ability to be brutally honest and still manage to keep the gang together. Oddly, these may be his weaknesses as well, accompanied by the fact that sometimes he's a little too sensitive." He continues: "I think my favourite scene was in Dongalor's castle, when Matt Lucas's character and I talk about famous singers. It's a very short scene that probably won't be aired, but that was pretty much all improvised. Each of us just tried to make each other break character, and some of the things that came out of our mouths were hilarious. Working with Matt was a great learning experience. I think he's a comedic genius, and I just tried to soak up every single thing he did. He's hilarious at every time of the day, whether cameras are rolling or not. On top of that, he's just a great guy."
"Sean was the guy who kept us all together on and off screen. He's a real professional and made it easy for everybody to have a voice in this wonderful project. He's got great hair too. Seriously, it has to be fake. As for India, she is so talented and beautiful. She really can do it all, plus she works hard at her craft. She's got a great laugh, and is great at stunts."
He adds: "We had a blast making this show, so I really hope people are entertained by it. I would do another series in a Hummingbird beat, which is the fastest heartbeat in the animal kingdom at about 1,200 beats per minute. I should know - my Great-Great-Great-Grandfather was a hummingbird!"