The Age from Melbourne, Victoria, Australia • Page 83

Like a chameleon There's a whole language that goes with being in the police force and actress Vikki Blanche had to wade through a lot of it. BRETT THOMAS reports. THERE are some great Australian actors who will never get nominated for a Logic, never get their photos in the glossies and never even make prime-time television at least, not willingly. They are a faceless bunch, their craft appreciated only by their co-workers and an occasionally grateful public. Every so often, though, they allow an outsider like Vikki Blanche to enter their ranks and those special thespian skills are noted with a very critical and knowing eye.

"I act for a living and they act for a living but the stakes are higher for them," said Blanche, star of ABC-TV's Phoenix series. "If I do a bad performance, I get bad reviews but if they do a bad performance, they could get shot. They're probably better actors than I am." She is, of course, talking about undercover police a breed of cop who, along with the criminals they chase, have been the subject of countless Australian television dramas. But none of them has so far managed to convey the gritty sense of realism that exists in Phoenix. being in the police force and I had to wade through a lot of it before I found my feet.

"So, when I first spoke to a couple of police they were a bit intimidating because they've got those deep voices and the big builds. I think they thought I was going to misrepresent them or wasn't cut out for the job, which is probably how you feel as a policewoman anyway when you start out. "After I got used to their tone and manner I found they have great senses of humour they're very dry, witty people." But it wasn't only the good guys that Blanche met. By somewhat shocking chance, she also managed to infiltrate the shady world of the drug dealer. "I was sitting in a bar talking to a friend of mine saying, 'I think I've got this really good job on she recalled.

"I told her I was playing an undercover drug dealer and she said, 'I'm a drug "I said, 'you're kidding' and she said, 'no, I'm not' She's quite young so that's also why I was shocked. She said she did small to medium level dealing but knew a lot of high-level dealers. "I said, 'tell me about them, what are they like, are they nice "One of the things that the undercover police had said to me was that the big danger in being an undercover drug detective During her preparation for the role of undercover drug cop Chris Faithful in the second series of this continually excellent drama, Blanche was allowed to enter the usually-closeted world of the police. She emerged with not only a small sense of professional bonding but also a feeling of admiration and a strong idea of why the job is so attractive to those who pursue it. "I spoke to a number of undercover drug people and I found they enjoy the excitement, the adrenalin rush," Blanche said.

"It was really interesting talking to them -1 thought, 'gee it's such a dangerous thing to do' because if someone finds out they can be really seriously harmed or even knocked-off. But they tend to really get off on it. "It's the excitement of making a time, meeting someone and negotiating your way through that meeting and furthering yourself up the ladder to higher amounts of money and more important drugs." Blanche was given two volumes of research material by the Phoenix writers and spent a fair amount of time looking into her role as the highly-strung cop, who she described as a "chameleon." "I'd read through all these notes and it's a whole world of its own," she explained. "There's a whole language that goes with I SIrmm Wntwrav with VMd Md toft to ricMa DsvM Robtits Stunt McCrawy Sm SciAfa Standi snd DsvM Brsdslww THIS WEEK 4.