Craig Parker: working at home and abroad...

Interview – 2010

Craig Parker made his television debut in 1980s soap Gloss, before starting a four year stint on Shortland Street as womanising social worker Guy Warner. He went on to play a doctor on Mercy Peak, a villain in Legend of the Seeker, and starred as a hapless diplomat in comedy Diplomatic Immunity. Parker's other screen credits include Ernest Shackleton drama Shackleton's Captain and four seasons of Reign.

In this ScreenTalk interview, Parker talks about:

How terrifying and educational Gloss was
Playing "'annoying" social worker Guy Warner on Shortland Street
The fun of Hercules and Xena
Fighting with Lucy Lawless on set
The dangers of on-set catering on Mercy Peak
An awkward sex scene with good friend Robyn Malcolm
The enormity of The Lord of the Rings
How he loved making Diplomatic Immunity despite it not being a hit
Being part of the international TV series Spartacus

This video was first uploaded on 3 January 2010, and is available under this Creative Commons licence. This licence is limited to use of ScreenTalk interview footage only and does not apply to any video content and photographs from films, television, music videos, web series and commercials used in the interview.

Interview, Camera and Editing – Andrew Whiteside

You're doing 20, 30 scenes a day sometimes . . . you get very good at going what's important about this scene, what do I need to get, what story are we telling? . . . It gets rid of a lot of the wishy-washy indecision of an actor. It also kicks your ego out the door.

– Craig Parker on the fast pace of production on Shortland Street

Craig's Full Profile