Patrick Robinson, star of stage, screen and of Strictly Come Dancing, is looking on in admiration at the "spaceship" structure that is the Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester. Patrick is about to make his Royal Exchange debut in the eagerly-anticipated new production of Tennessee Williams classic Cat On A Hot Tin Roof which premieres here next week.
But this is also the first time he's ever visited the majestic theatre housed in the old cotton exchange building in the city centre, and he has been suitably wowed. Patrick smiles: "It's a beautiful space. I studied to be an architect before I went to drama school so I look at buildings like this, and wow this is an incredible building.
"It's like a spaceship has just landed inside, like it's just materialised in Star Trek. To see the theatre within this building it's incredible, it's beautiful."
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Patrick will star in the modern theatre classic as Big Daddy, the wealthy cotton tycoon and head of a dysfunctional family in the deep south of America whose secrets and lies are played out in painful detail through the drama. Bayo Gbadamosi takes on the role of his son Brick, with Ntombizodwa Ndlovu as Maggie ‘the cat’ while Jacqui Dubois as Big Mama is also making her Royal Exchange debut.
Having studied the play at drama school, Patrick, 59, is excited to play the role for the first time on the stage.
He says: "It's the Tennessee Williams modern classic isn't it? In years gone by I'd be looking at the character of Brick, but I'm the elder statesman nowadays so it's BIg Daddy now," he laughs.
"I studied bits and pieces in drama schools, I've seen the film, and it's just one of those classic parts and classic pieces that most actors would want to have a go at." The play won the Pulitzer Prize for drama back in 1955 but 70 years on it holds its resonance - not least, as Patrick says, because it's about dysfunctional families.
He says: "I'd say Big Daddy talks about mendacity, of lies and liars and how we pretend so much in terms of what we do in relationships. You put on that false air to just get through life. I think it's very relevant today as it's all about relationships and we all have them in families."
As dysfunctional as these, I ask? Patrick says: "I'd say that if everyone had a chance to express themselves truthfully you'd see a whole heap of dysfunction within so many families. I mean the biggest one at the minute that we could all have an opinion on is the Royal Family and we can all see that, let's face it, there's real frictions in that family and it's been shown, out in the open, in public and everyone has seen what's going on, even though we don't really know what's going on.
"That's what I mean about all families having these dysfunctions going on. There's more dysfunction than harmony within families I'd say."
Patrick has been a household name for some 35 years now, ever since taking on the role of Martin "Ash" Ashford on the BBC's long-running medical drama Casualty back in 1990. In 2013 the public got to see even more of Patrick when he wowed in the BBC's Strictly Come Dancing, sashaying his way to the semi-final.
Having grown up in the South East of London, his work has seen him move around across the UK. But he's now settled with his family in South Wales and beams: "I get to see the sea every day when I'm home from work."
Having performed on stage and screen, he says theatre remains his first love, while he's also now looking to write and direct more in future. He says: "There's so much more in terms of telling the stories. I don't have that ego going that I have to be the lead all the time or stuff like that. I'm not a solo sportsman, I like team games and collaborations, that to me is much more exciting than going "look at me"."
As an "elder statesman" these days, as he puts it, I ask how he has seen the industry change in the 35 years since he first found fame, and in particular in diversity in the TV and theatre industry. He says: "I've seen it change but only as far as i'm concerned in a miniscule way in that 35 years. I've been outspoken about it from the start".
He points to his first ever major publicity for Casualty he did back in 1990 when an interview he did with a national newspaper ended up as a quote in a speech bubble next to a photo of his face saying: "I'm just the token black in Casualty". It's shocking to hear - and I ask how he dealt with that at the time.
He says: "Of course I was angry and upset, my producers said 'was it taken out of context?' I said: "Well if you ask me 'have you dealt with racism before?' I say of course. If you ask me 'is there tokenism in the industry?' Of course. I will say of course because I'm living it, I'm experiencing it, and how many of us get through?
"I see myself as an actor, not a Black one, I'm an actor. People give me the argument "well you know we are looking for a tall actor, a fat actor... " I say, I get that. But ultimately when it comes down to an actor, I can say I'm a man, not a Black man. I happen to be West Indian, Jamaican, British, English, how many boxes do you want to keep putting me in? I don't. I look at myself in the mirror and I see a man.
"So how much better has it got? Well I can be cynical and say yes since the Black Lives Matter movement I can say there's been a kneejerk reaction since. But why did they need other things to tell them to employ, to use, people of colour? Couldn't they see it before? I was saying this in 1990 so how many years is that? How much different has it been? Not much, miniscule as far as I'm concerned.
"But I'm very tired of having to keep this point of saying 'oh you're Black, tell us about your experiences of being a Black person'. Why? Can't you imagine? And that's the problem. People don't imagine what it's like to be in someone else's shoes, those who have the power to change things. They don't imagine it and of course they keep the status quo, as far as I've seen.
"I'm tired, if you want to put it that way, of having to express why it isn't inclusive. It's the people who have the power who haven't changed those things. I've had many knockbacks to do with projects moving forward. "oh we don't want to go that way" and I say "that way meaning what?" and I get: "Well we don't think we'd be able to sell this piece with a lead that's not white". So always having to talk about it, I'm tired."
Having been involved in a long-running drama for such a long time with Casualty, I ask if he would ever be persuaded to return to a soap. And namely, given he's now here with us in Manchester, would he be up for a part in our very own Coronation Street.
He smiles: "It all just depends, what the character is and for how long. Because I have done long-running dramas before I know it is a great discipline, I did The Bill as well for three years and that was great fun. So I wouldn't say no."
CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF runs from 24 March – 29 April at Manchester Royal Exchange Theatre. Tickets from royalexchange.co.uk
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