Anthony Head

BBC Somerset’s Helen Otter gets up close and personal (oo-er!) with the star of Buffy, Little Britain, and the new series of Doctor Who, on his farm near Bath.

Well, just how lovely is Anthony Head? Very, is the answer!

Not only had he taken time out from a completely hectic work schedule (if that was me, I’d get all the different roles mixed up, and would turn up to the Doctor Who set ready to play a character from Macbeth or something!), he also made me a rather nice cup of tea when I arrived at the farm! "Somerset has a wonderful wildness about it - it hasn’t been tamed. This is farming country, and there’s a realness here - I love it." Anthony Head

Tea in hand, we stopped to say hello to the donkeys (which were seriously cute, by the way) and horses on our way to the farm office.

Chatting about what goes on at the farm, Anthony told me why he decided to make Somerset his home, and what he thinks of the county.

"We’ve always loved this area, and as soon as we walked into this house we knew it was ours.

"Somerset has a wonderful wildness about it - it hasn’t been tamed. This is farming country, and there’s a realness here - I love it.

"After filming and working away, my home acts as a real retreat for me. There’s something very levelling and calming about coming back here."

So, onwards to Doctor Who then - beware of reading on any further if you’re a Whovian and don’t want any spoilers to... erm... spoil things! The Doctor and Rose Anthony stars in the new series of Doctor Who

"I play a very unpleasant headmaster, called Mr Finch, who has developed a plan to increase the capacity of school students.

"The first scene up is a very interesting meeting with the Doctor.

"It felt on the page very subdued, but there were other scenes where I just let rip to see what would happen - some stuff came out that surprised both me and the crew!"

Listen to the full interview to find out more about Anthony’s role, what he thinks of the new Doctor, and if he answered enough questions correctly in a Doctor Who quiz to win a VERY special prize (ahem!) courtesy of BBC Somerset: audio Anthony Head on Doctor Who > Audio and Video links on this page require Realplayer

So, after spending a lovely morning on Anthony’s farm, it was time to head off.

I could have spoken to him for much longer, though, seems as he’s starred in so many different things - like Howard’s Way, for instance. Did you know he was in that? I only found that out recently. I’m so impressed - being the true 80s kid that I am, I used to love that programme!

But, alas, I figured he had more important things to do than chat to me all day. Perhaps I’ll get chance to visit again, though - if so I’ll look forward to another cup of tea, this time with biscuits!