Ross Girven: Trans-tasman star...

Alongside a successful career in musical theatre in Australia, actor Ross Girven has tackled a variety of television roles on both sides of the Tasman, and starred in landmark 1987 New Zealand film Ngati. He debuted on television here in trucking drama Roche, then had roles in a run of TV shows in the 1980s such as Peppermint Twist and The Marching Girls. Girven has also acted in Gloss and Shortland Street, and movie thriller Dangerous Orphans. He went on to appear in Australian cop show Water Rats, and NZ dramas Orange Roughies and The Cult.

In this ScreenTalk, Girven talks about:

• Joining a mostly female cast on The Marching Girls
• Feeling that Peppermint Twist was ahead of its time
• How the location of Ngati became a spiritual home for him
• Being upset that Gloss was cancelled
• Enjoying working with Lisa Crittenden (aka Robo-nurse) on Shortland Street
• How editing changed the nature of the film Dangerous Orphans
• Loving the scripts on The Cult but feeling the final product didn’t quite deliver
• Getting to shave his head for a role on series Legend of the Seeker

Interview, Camera and Editing – Andrew Whiteside

This interview was recorded for 2019 TV series Funny As: The Story of New Zealand Comedy. All audiovisual content is copyright to Augusto, and may not be reproduced. Publication of Funny As extended interviews made possible with funding from the NZ Lotteries Grants Board.