“Les is a non-
judgemental
guy – if you
respect him, he
respects you,”
Bertrand says.
As well as playing madam
Doreen, Wilson appears as
her twin sister, Dolores.It doesn’tgetmuchmorefishoutofwaterthancountry
bloke Les Norton (Bertrand) landing himself a job in the
heart of Kings Cross as a nightclub bouncer. Thrust into
a world of police corruption, illegal casinos and brothel
turf wars, the strapping lad from the bush quickly proves
himself quite adept at navigating his way in what is
essentially a foreign city.
Set in 1985 and based on the book series by Robert
G. Barrett, Les Norton is reminiscent of early seasons of
Underbelly, but with a significantly higher dose of
comedy. The humour mostly comes courtesy of Bertrand’s
deadpan delivery as the aspiring football player running
from some sort of disgrace in his hometown. He calls it
as he sees it – a breath of fresh air in the big smoke.Bertrandis aided by a more established ensemble,
including Wenham as slick crime boss Price Galese, Kate
Box as Les’ erratic flatmate/landlady, Steve Le Marquand
as the crookedest of all TV cops and Justin Rosniak as
Eddie, an unhinged crim. They make for a colourful
bunch, emphasising even more the difference between
Les and those he comes across in Sydney.
Then there’s Wilson, who, as brothel owner Doreen,
does what we have come to expect from her – playing
a brassy, foul-mouthed, larger-than-life character devoid
of subtlety or nuance. It’s the only predictable part of
Les Norton, whichworksbetterwhenit showsus
somethingwehaven’tseencountlesstimesalready.
(Starts Sun., Aug. 4 at 8.40pm; ABC)TV
LES NORTON
STARRING: Alexander Bertrand, David Wenham, Rebel WilsonTHREE QUESTIONS WITH ...
Alexander Bertrand
The 29-year-old actor, who will also star in the upcoming miniseries Australian
Gangster on Channel Seven, talks about playing the lead in Les Norton.What did you like most about your character, Les Norton?
The part I totally loved was that it didn’t matter what creed, colour, religion
or race you are, he gives you a fair go. If someone comes outside that, he
tends to teach them a lesson.
He might look wide-eyed, but he’s no fool.
People tend to look at appearances. I’ve had it myself – I’m obviously well
built; I’ve come from a training background in the military and kickboxing,
but by no means would I consider myself stupid. Les’ superpower is people
think he’s a moron and he tends to slip through the cracks easily.
Did you feel much pressure taking on the title character?
There were a couple of moments before we started where I was like, “Wow,
this is really happening’’. And I’m in virtually every scene – there were two
days off in the entire four-month shoot. The fans have a Facebook group and
when I got cast they said, “He’s too pretty,” so I got fitted with a prosthetic
bump and break to my nose which had to be applied every morning as well.