The Netmums Podcast - S9 Ep7: Dangerous roads with Will Mellor

Episode Date: February 21, 2023

Will Mellor joins Wendy to talk about everything from being an embarrassing Dad and avoiding the fake tan bottle on Strictly, to travelling across Albania with Keith Lemon and the joys of parenting teens! Will stars in the World’s Most Dangerous Roads, Sundays at 8pm on Dave. Watch the full series on UKTV Play.

You're listening to The Netmums Podcast with me, Wendy Gollage. And me, Jennifer Howes. On this week's show... Like I do with anything in life, if you're going to do something, give it everything you've got. Because there's no point in doing it half-hearted, don't bother doing it. But before all of that... Hello, hello, welcome to another episode. Now I'm without my sidekick Jen today because she is off being busy editing Netmums but you're stuck with me and today's guest who's someone I feel like I know already. I've been watching him on TV since

way back in the days of Children's Ward. He's perhaps best known for roles in Hollyoaks, Broadchurch, Corrie and most recently he donned sequins and fake tan for Strictly Come Dancing. He made it to the semi-finals and he's still on the tour and now he's starring in the world's most dangerous roads, tackling perilous terrain and quite frankly a perilous driving partner. Welcome Will Mellor. Hello. What an intro. I love the fact you made it to Children's Ward. That is going back. I was 14 then. I think we're the same age. So I was 14. I think I remember watching it as a teenager. I used to love Children's Ward. It was great. Yeah, I thought I'd made it when I got in Children's Ward. I went in school, I was like, I'm on Children's Ward. Who wants me number? You know what I mean? It was like that. Everyone was like, I'm sad of you.

Did it get you any dates? It didn't. No, it made people sort of not like me very much being on telly. I must admit, it was, it wasn't,

it wasn't the thrill I thought it would be. I was like, it was my dream. And then I went into school and no one wanted to talk to me. Got it. So this afternoon,

I watched an episode, your of world's most dangerous roads with the lovely keith lemon and his not so lovely plaits what's going on with the plaits i don't care about his fashion do you know what his fashion i used to comment on it and now it's just him he wears whatever he wants to wear his head's a foot vivian westwood he wears them big hats i wouldn't like to sit behind him at the cinema or the theatre, I'll tell you that. His fashion is himself, and that's what I love about him. He's an individual, and he's eccentric in his own way.

We're very different people, but we're very, very good friends, and it really worked on this show. He was a great partner to have in the car. It made me laugh. The more terrified he was, the more I found it hilarious. There's a couple of bits that I loved. But first of all, for those who don't know what the show is, give us a little bit of a preamble as to what you and Keith get up to and where you are and why the hell you're stuck in a car with this man doing what you're doing.

The programme is called World's Most Dangerous Roads. It's been out before. I think Hugh Bonneville did it and Sue Perkins did it. There's a few people that have done it. And then obviously we had lockdown. I was supposed to do it in South Africa with Ralph Little a few years ago. And it was literally just as COVID kicked in. We flew out to South Africa.

We landed. We was on this nature reserve. I was like, this is going to be unbelievable. We're supposed to be driving up to Lesotho. And then we got this thing come through saying uh there's this covid thing he's spreading them we were all going cut as as if as if they're going to send us home because of some flu thing anyway little did we know we was actually on the plane longer than we was in south africa the next day we got we said you're gonna have to go home because covid is now the shutting

down airports i was like it's never going to happen. And then we all know what happened for the next two years. So then when they got back in touch with me and they said, we're going to revisit it. And I was so glad because I was really looking forward to it. I love an adventure. I love getting out and seeing things. And I think that's what life's about, you know.

That's where you create your greatest memories. When you go to a place, you don't know what to expect. You just see it and take it all in. So I was looking forward to it. And then they came back and obviously Ralph's away filming in Death in Paradise in Guadalupe. And they said, who do you want to do it with? And I said, it has to be Lee, Keith Lemmon, Lee Francis.

So I phoned him up and I said, listen, I've got this program. I'm going to go to Iceland. And he was like, oh, I love Iceland. Yeah, I'll do it. And then they got changed to Albania. And he went, we're going to Albania now. It's dangerous there. I said, how do you know?

He said, that's what everyone says anyway. This is the man who didn't know who Mother Teresa was, might we add, in the show. Listen, we're both like, was she from Albania? What did she do? He went, I think she was just dead nice. He was like, yeah, she was just dead nice. But so the program is about us being him.

We go to Albania and we go on the world's most dangerous roads in Albania. Let me just tell you what an unbelievably beautiful country it is. If you see it the way we see it, going over the tops of the mountains, the roads are unbelievably dangerous. We go up one road, which is called the Road of Crosses, because the amount of people that have actually died and gone off the edge,

and that didn't fill you full of confidence. And Keith, next to me, was absolutely terrified. He's well out of his comfort zone doing this. Oh, he said squeaky bum about ten times

in one episode. Yeah, he was terrified, but the thing about it is, I think the good thing to see him in this programme is you see a bit more of a different side. The mask slips a little bit. And you sort of get to know him a little bit more.

And it's good to see him out of his comfort zone. He's not a keen driver. He said he only used to do the school run. So he was like, I'm not driving, but I got him to do some driving. And basically the nature of the programme is we go across Albania on the world's most dangerous roads, staying in different places, eating the food, meeting the people and being in a car together. And what could possibly go wrong with that? That's what it's about. But it's a great, I think it's a great episode. It's got bits of everything in it. Like I said, I see a bit of a different side to him.

Yeah, we get along great. He's a good friend of mine. My favourite bit was when he drove hell for leather through the river and you were just like in the passenger seat shitting bricks because he just went for it. I shit myself. I'll tell you why. Because he said, I'm not driving. I went, you are. I won't.

I won't. I'm not driving on these roads. Anyway, he went, I'll take this. And there's a river raging past us. And I went, all right then. And I thought he was joking. And apparently he was joking, but I went with it. And you can see by my face going, well,

you could have drove back there when it was just a straight road. Across a river that's raging. And as you see in the program, we were, there's no action required. I was proper terrified. But it was good it's good it's memories

life's about creating memories and that's what we got from it so talk to me about Strictly the fake tan the sequins the chiffon shirts did you love it?

didn't do a fake tan not once they asked me and they said by week six you'll be doing fake tans I'm not having fake tans I'm not smelling like

I don't want like someone's rubbed brown sauce all over my skin and also what I didn't want to do is get out of my bed every night and look like it's been a murder scene you know like the outline

of the person and they're left in the bed no I don't want that I'm quite happy you know and I thought a bit of make up it can make me look

a bit more tan in the face you know who cares I don't want a spray tan I don't want to be washing my sheets every day. No man wants that. So I did do the spray tan. Apart from that, I got right involved.

It was one of them things, like I do with anything in life, if you're going to do something, give it everything you've got. Because there's no point in doing it half-hearted. Don't bother doing it. So I give it everything, and I did get sucked in. I was caught in the bubble. I really was. And I thought I'll have a bit of a laugh.

Don't take myself too seriously. But after the first dance, how terrifying it was, you realise you've got to put the work in here. You don't put the work in, it'd be even more terrifying and you can mess up in front of 10 million people live on telly.

No one wants that. So it was an amazing experience. One of the hardest things I've ever done. What were the hardest bits? The training was tough but necessary. And it was the not getting it out of your mind. It was on your mind 24 hours a day. Even when you're asleep, you're dreaming about it.

You get up, you're thinking about it. You're constantly aware of how you feel. So it's like, because I've got bad knees and I'm not young anymore, I'm 46. So it's literally like constantly making sure my body's all right, looking after yourself.

But the mental side of it, constantly going, Saturday's coming and I don't know this dance yet and you're going to be doing it live in front of 10 million people. It was that, doing a new thing.

So you do it six days a week. So you'd be training Monday to Thursday. Friday, you're in the studio, dress run and rehearsal. Saturday, rehearsal, dress run, audience come in, do the live show. And if you get through, you go like, yeah, I've done it. But then you think, it starts again on Monday and it's Sunday tomorrow. So it just doesn't stop.

It's the pressure and you really are caught up in this world. And you don't sort of see anybody or speak to anybody else. Go home, go to training, do the show, rest and repeat. It was like that. It was, but at the same time, when you got it right and you did it well, the sense of reward and relief and achievement was massive. So it's like climbing a mountain. If you want to see the nice view, you've got to put the work in and get up the hill.

You know what I mean? So what about the kids? Your kids are 18 and 14. Is that right? So teenagers, were they like, oh, dad, you're so cringe? Or did they love it? Did you ask them before you went on the show? Yeah, of course I did.

I spoke to them all. I sat them down and I said, listen, because they've asked me every year to do it and I've never been, I never said I'd do it. I was like, oh, no, I'm not doing that. And I sort of shied away from doing any kind of reality TV or anything like that for a long time. And I think it was because I was a bit too scared of what people would think. And also, I was told a lot that it would have a negative impact on my career as an actor and as whatever else. I just thought, well, I won't do it.

And then I lost a few people in my life, my dad especially, and I just, you know, my mindset changed and I thought, I need to do more things. I need to do things that are out of my comfort zone. I've got to grab life. I've got to do things and, you know, it gave me a bit of a shake-up to go, what are you worried about

everyone else and what they're thinking for? Just, you know, life's about making memories and it was my mum's favourite show and she had such a hard time of it and I really wanted to put a smile on her face

and as I said, I spoke to her about it and I said, I'm thinking of doing this and I sat my kids down and I told them and they went, oh yeah, go,

yeah, do it. And I said, listen, if you're going to get mortified and people are going to take the mickey at school, go on, yeah, do it. And I said, listen, if you're going to get mortified and people are going to take the mickey at school, I'm not going to do it. My daughter was like, I don't care, you know, go and do it. But my son said, yeah, do it, but you better win it.

I was like, cheers, son. No pressure. But no, I had their support and I think I surprised them a little bit because, you know, I dance around the kitchen and they're mortified when we have house parties. But this is little bit because, you know, I dance around the kitchen and they're mortified when we have house parties. But this is a bit different, you know, learning the skills and doing it. And I give it everything I've got.

And I surprised myself, you know, it's the keys to life, isn't it? You don't know what you're good at or you don't know what you can do unless you give it a go and give it a try. So I did. And they really supported me. I mean, they did take the mic and come home and they'd be doing the dance in the living room and going, Dad, what was this move? And I was like, all right, leave it.

Of course, they're my kids. I'm supposed to embarrass them. That's what dads do. So now you're doing the live show of Strictly, which we came to see on Sunday at the O2. So are you loving it? It looks bloody knackering i'm loving yeah i mean if you do the main show um which is literally terrifying this and at the same time completely consuming you don't get to see anybody really other than your family your dance partner and then the studio and that's it so this as soon as i said i'll do it if they ask me to do the tour i'm going to do it because it's a way of getting out there and seeing the people and you're doing the same dances every night.

You do a couple of group dances if you've seen and you do a couple of dances from the show, one in the first half, one in the second half. But like you just said, that's what's really important to me. You know,

seeing these little kids and their families all coming out and enjoying it and seeing the people you've seen on the TV live, that's what it's about. You know, you might inspire one little kid to go, I'm going to do that, or I'm going to do something.

Or, do you know, as a kid, I was inspired by seeing people and it made me believe in my dreams and going, I want to do that. And even if it's just to put a smile on faces, you know what I mean? It's been a tough few years for people not getting out. So of course I grabbed it, you know, I was like, yeah, man, to get the reaction from the people and also whatever else am I going to get a chance to perform in an arena until I bring my album out next year boom I know I'm joking yes packed crowd at the O2 you and Beyonce no yeah oh it was it yeah it was um it was it's an amazing thing I'm getting to go to different places we don't get to see the cities that much because literally hotel rooms, bus or coach

and then to the arena. But the response is incredible. And I said, sellout arenas all up and down the country. It's been great. And it's, again, making more memories. I can look back and say, I did it. You know, that's what I'm doing from now on. I'm just going to do whatever I want to do

and make some great memories, hopefully. I've got a question for you from Grace in a second. But I was just going to do whatever I want to do and make some great memories hopefully. I've got a question for you from Grace in a second but I was just going to say one of my favourite things was Anton who is just the consummate professional he has got the kind of like twee acting it up hamming it up he's just spot on for the grannies in the audience there was all these grannies behind me going oh oh, oh, Anton, loving it. It's brilliant. The good thing about the tour is it's not just about the dancing and the dancers. You get to see the singers coming out singing amongst us

and the judges are a lot more involved. They can be a bit more freer. And as you said, Anton, they all play their part really well. It's got a bit of panto to it. So loads of fun. And there is a winner every night. You know, people get to vote for their winner on the night which keeps the audience involved

so yeah, it's a really good show it is knackering but it's kept me fit I think it's the fittest I've been in years I've never lost weight that much when I did Strictly I lost over a stone in just over a month and then I just kept it up through Christmas because I knew the tour was coming. And yeah, it keeps me fit.

It means I can have a beer in the evening guilt free. Precisely. Well, here is a question for you from Grace, age seven. What was your favourite Strictly outfit? Wow. What was my favourite Strictly outfit? She was particularly taken by the pink trousers on the tour. They're quite something. That's not one of them. I look like a pack of refreshers. How many colours on me? Do you know

what it is? It depends because it depends because if you're going to go full Strictly, when I did Blackpool, they got my outfit out and I was doing the samba and honestly, I was like a pack of refreshers. I was like camp. It was like proper Mardi Gras weekend. I was like, this is proper Strictly. And I love that. Go on, get me out there in all my campness. Give me more feathers. It was like that.

But I think the answer to your question is I really did enjoy the Halloween week because you got to dress up and I loved the musical week because I've always loved Miss Saigon. And obviously, having Nancy as my dance partner, I was like, we can represent these characters. We can do this. And I love doing that. But I think when I wore the tails, when I did the song Three Times a Lady, I saw myself in them tails and I thought my mum is going to love this you know

I mean see a son in the full tails doing a waltz to one of my dad's favorite songs that was a moment I won't forget and obviously the outfit I don't really go around in tails it's not my style so only on Strictly and it was it was a moment so probably that. So let's talk about the kids for a minute is parenting easier now they're teenagers or harder? Easier. You get more sleep. And it's weird because when they're young, all you keep thinking about is, oh, can you imagine when they're older, right?

And we can, you know, they can make their own breakfast so you don't have to get up in the morning. And then, you know, we can go out for dinner. We don't have to get a babysitter. How amazing is that? And all that. Now it's happening. We're like, do you want to come and watch some telly with us? No, we can go out for dinner. We don't have to get a babysitter. How amazing is that? And all that. Now it's happening. We're like, do you want to come and watch some telly with us?

No, we're all right. It's like they don't want to know us anymore. I'm begging them to come and watch some TV. We can watch a film if you want. No, we're all right. It's like my daughter trying to get her out of her room. It's like coaxing her out with sweets. A little trail.

Leaving a little trail down to the living room. Remember, we to live here you know what I mean that's what happens but they come back sort of when they're like 12, 13

they really don't want to be around you my daughter's 14 now she's she has moments my son's 18 I hardly see him he's 19 in July

he's got a girlfriend my wife sees him when he needs his hair doing because she braids his hair for him he'll come round for a couple of days and his girlfriend

will always be with him it's unbelievable it's like I've got another I've not got someone else I've got a feed in the house now so it's

yeah it's she's on holiday with us honest to God it's like we've got a family trip coming in March I'm going to the Caribbean

where my wife's mum and dad live in Grenada we've not been there for years my wife's mum and dad live in Grenada. We've not been there for years and years and years. And we tried to go two years ago, but COVID kicked in. So we have to cancel our flights and all that. So we can't wait.

And it's only the four of us. And I think it's probably going to be one of the last ones. So I'm really looking forward to just, you know, wrapping myself up in them because I love my family more than anything. And I still see them as my babies and I find it hard. I'm always still trying to get them on the couch,

giving them hugs and squeezes. My daughter, it's tough. It's tough just trying to get a hug and a kiss off my little girl when she's 14. That makes me sad. Mine's 11 and the big one, I can feel It's cut The big one I can feel it coming The 7 year old Is still all hugs

And like Just But you've run out of school And run into your arms And they've run out Of the school gates And run into Now it's just like

Dad drop me off Around the corner God And give me 20 quid While you're at it Yeah Dad pick me up Don't pick me up

Outside school Pick me up Round the corner I was like I'm on Strictly You should be proud of me You should be waving me arms. I said, I'll turn up in my glitter.

I'll turn up in my glitter. She went, don't you dare. Me winding her up. I turned up once and they had the window down. They had some music on. I think it was something like Tupac or something. And she was walking towards me, fuming, going, turn it down. Turn it down.

And I thought, I was being a good girl because I had two pack on. And she goes, don't you ever turn up with music on again. Brilliant. You are the archetypal embarrassing dad. But no, I know, listen, it's hard. Having family is everything and they grow up far too fast. And yeah, time flies. And I just try to cling on to every moment I've got.

And I say that to him. I say, listen, I won't be here forever. Spend some time with your dad. That's what I always say. Oh, bless him. You've kept them quite out of the limelight. Was that a conscious decision and quite a hard thing to do? Or has it been quite easy to keep them away from social media

and off of your feeds and stuff? I'm me. I don't have all the personality. Some people, you know know they have a tv persona they put on all the or they advertise all their life that's not me if i'm promoting a program then no problem if and it's me going doing things that's different but i don't i don't really want to put them front and center um and also the same thing is i when they were younger when they didn't have a choice there was no way i'm going to put them in front of a camera

until they get old enough and I can say, listen, we've been asked to do this. Would you like to do it? We've done a couple of magazine shoots, OK Magazine stuff that we did at Christmas time. And I said, listen, they want to pay us to do this. You'll get some money. Do you want to do it or not? If they say no, we say no.

And then they get an option. And my son's a model as well, so it's good for him to do. I was about to say he's just started this modelling career. Are you nervous about him entering this kind of world of cutthroat modelling? It's quite a hardcore world to be going into. Not really, because it's something that they've asked him to do. And I've kept his expectations the same as I would do

for anyone getting into my industry. Listen, he asks you to do some bits. You make the choice. You want to do it and I've kept his expectations the same as I would do for anyone getting into my industry listen he asks you to do some bits you make the choice you want to do it or you don't it's a bit of a back burner one he's interested

in doing creative media he's done that at college behind the camera editing shooting stuff that's where he wants to be he's not like me he's not all jazz hands

wants to be in front of the camera he's very different he's very placid so he's a good looking boy so at the same time you, it's up to him. I just give him advice. And, yeah, because I'm in the industry as well, I can protect him a little bit.

And they came to him, and I know who they are. Listen, if he gets a couple of shoots out of it and he enjoys it, what's the harm that can do with it? There's no harm in it. And if it can make him a little bit of money while he's waiting for other work, then great. He's only 18. Let him have some fun. And we do stuff together.

When they come in for doing family shoots or we do some campaigns and stuff and they want me family, I always say, listen, this has come in. Do you want to do it? If they say yes, I pay, I give them some money and we do it. You know what I mean? As I say, I'm quite honest and open with my kids and my family and if money and we do it you know I mean it's you know what if as I say I'm quite honest and open with my kids and my family and if they want to do but I would never post

stuff about them without them knowing or just to you know further something for me that's that's not how I am I'm I'm quite old school and we live a very very normal life uh you know I mean we live out a bit in the country and just have a have a normal life and you know i go and do my work and i come home and i'm just dad is it hard when you're away because you spend obviously traveling strictly tours driving cars with keith around albania how do you cope with the being away from them it's hard it is hard um i feel guilty sometimes, but then, you know, it's my job. And the way I look at it is some people who do a class as a normal nine to five or it's the same job day in, day out, they probably see their kids less than I do

because they probably leave at eight in the morning, get home at six at night. Whereas when I'm working, I'm working. But when I'm not, I can be at home for three months at a time, you know, and do runs and be there constant all day, you know. So I'm lucky. And I say this to my kids. We're very lucky to have the life we have and I have to work.

But I would have to work in any situation. So we're very, very lucky. And because of the job I do do we get to go and have nice holidays together and we get to do nice things and so um yeah i i miss them because i'm you know i'm wrapped up in my family i'm not very good on my own and i need to be around my family and i'm counting down the days to get him back to him to be honest but um i'm trying to enjoy it while i'm doing it as well because my wife keeps saying listen enjoy it because it'll be over soon you'll be moaning about being at home so what is next other than a trip to the caribbean well i've got a series coming out actually uh and it's a really

timely series called cops who kill uh and it's on ci it comes out on march the 6th you'll see advertised everywhere very soon it's Each episode is about a police officer who's killed somebody and tried to get away with it. And we're starting with Wayne Cousins. And I'm the presenter, host, as you would say. But I'm more of going out, finding out why this happened and why wasn't he flagged up? How did he get through all the red flags?

And how wasn't he stopped before this happened? Was there any red flags? I go to where they were taken or where it happened. I speak to psychologists, ex-murder detectives, talking about what he did and how he did it. And all we see unseen footage of when they interviewed him. This is only Wayne Cousins. There's eight different cases. Three are not in england the rest are all in england and it's unbelievable how

in the police force how many people have been murdered by the police um and um and yeah and how they try to use their knowledge of being in the police to get away with it thankfully they didn't they They were caught. But it's all about the vetting service, how these people slip through the net. And sometimes they're protected by their colleagues. I mean, it's interesting to know that Wayne Cousins, before he committed this crime, there was a WhatsApp group

and he was known as the rapist. That's what they called him. No one thought it was important to mention it. And he'd been seen exposing himself to women before, let him get away with it, even got a better job off the back of it. That is a pretty harrowing series to have worked on, I would imagine.

But I tell you what, it's compelling and it's necessary, especially now with what's just happened recently in the press with this police officer. So I'm really excited about it. It's a new thing for me. It's a bit like, you know, when Ross Kemp goes and does these things, it's more like, rather than me being a presenter, which I've done presenting before,

it's more of me being the voice of the public. The real reactions to these stories and what these people have done and these people who have sworn to protect us and also now finding out, what are you right? If a policeman is in plain clothes and he tells you to get in his car, do you have to get in the car? Because, wait, Sarah Everard didn't know. Well, I don't know. Do you?

Well, this is the questions that you have to ask. That's what this series throws up. And it's very compelling viewing and it's necessary, I think. And it's, yeah, it comes out March the 6th on CI. You'll see it everywhere. It's on a stream on Amazon Prime as well um and it's as I say six I think it's six five five cases in this country uh two in America one in Australia uh and it's very very interesting you see unseen footage

as well of what happened when Wayne Cousins was first questioned by the police and how he denied it and then stories started to change that is a big segue from Strictly. I shot this before Strictly. I shot this last year. So I didn't know I was even doing Strictly when I'd shot this. And I'd obviously already shot the Dangerous Roads as well.

But I am always up for a challenge and always up for doing something different. I never want to be sat in one box going, I'm just an actor because I'm not that. And there's a lot more I want to do. And this hopefully will open doors to doing more hosting and presenting and being myself a bit more on television.

Because, as I say, since Strictly and since everything that's happened in my life, I'm bringing out a book as well this year that I want to do because I think it's about time. I've got something to say now. I've been asked to do it before, but I always thought I was a bit too young and I've not had enough life experience. But I've been through enough now

that I'm willing to open up and speak about how it all came about and where there's a will, basically. That's the book. So it'll be out this year. Well, thank you, Will, for sparing us some time in your crazy Strictly schedule.

And we wish you the best of luck for all of the work coming up and keep in touch with us. Thanks for having me on, take care.