Ross Kemp, a former EastEnders star, has spoken out about what the St George’s Cross means to him after protests took place in London last weekend. He has expressed his outrage at far-right activities.
Ross Kemp has no intention of letting the far-right claim his beloved St George’s Cross, and he is as English as rainy days, sticky pub floors, and fish ‘n’ chips.
The actor and documentary maker has been disturbed by recent instances in which the English flag has been used as a bulwark against the right. Thousands of people chanted offensive slogans and slammed the flag at the Unite the Kingdom rally last weekend as they waved it.
But EastEnders legend Ross says: “If it’s hijacked by other people for their means, then that’s entirely up to them, but that’s not what it means to me.
Simply put, being English is. Being English is very important to me.
It reads, “It’s on the back of a rugby shirt, not the back of an English football shirt.” When winning an Olympic medal, athletes don it regardless of their color or religion. It’s the norm, in my opinion. The mainstream is represented by the flag.
Ross made his EastEnders debut as Grant Mitchell 35 years ago and has since travelled the world through his Bafta-winning documentary work.
He was the ideal choice when looking for a host to host 40 Years on the Square, a show that celebrated EastEnders’ anniversary earlier this year.
He claims that it was a good look back at 40 years of British culture.
“I think it really showed how things in the 80s and 90s have evolved into acceptable and commonplace, as they should be,” said one critic.
In the 1960s and 1970s, people wouldn’t show domestic violence on TV because it was “like gay and lesbian relationships” like domestic violence.
“I think EastEnders was quite groundbreaking; it still is, in fact, because it continues to tell stories that would be too dry to watch in a documentary.
However, if they are centered on a storyline with intriguing characters, it can be effective at educating or explaining what is happening.
During his time on the BBC soap, Ross formed a close relationship with his on-screen mother, the late Barbara Windsor, who played Peggy Mitchell.
Babs passed away in 2020 at the age of 83, but she continues to be a part of his life.
He says, “Oh, Barbara’s never far away,” with fondness. In my office, I have a photo of her, and I speak with her widower frequently. I had a very positive relationship with Barbara and we got along very well.
“I delivered her a funeral eulogy.” She and I had a very special relationship, and we were very close.
“And it’s interesting that a lot of people frequently pass away. Does she not appear to have significantly faded away? That demonstrates how long she spent with the public and how much time she had for them.
Ross, like his late co-star, respects soap fans and refuses to criticize the television series that earned him a star.
He acknowledges that some jobs may not be available for him because of his role as such an iconic character.
He admits, “I’d like to do a little more acting,” to be honest. The spice of life is abundance. I have a lot of freedom to switch between those genres and produce programs about interesting subjects.
“I don’t rule out anything,” he says. Some people, in my opinion, do soaps and then pretend to never be there because they succeed elsewhere. And if that’s the way they want to proceed, I admire that. There’s no problem with that at all.
I don’t look very different from Grant Mitchell, so I don’t think it would be difficult for me to change my hairstyle! Without Grant, I’ve always been very honest about the fact that I don’t believe I would have received a documentary commission.
Ross Kemp, who won a Bafta for Best Factual Series in 2006 for his role in Gangs, says: “It was up to me as Ross Kemp to make it as good of a documentary as I possibly could.
“I’ve won a few documentary awards, and I’m very proud of the team I work for, and they’ve grown close friends over the years.
What I’ll say is, “If I have the opportunity to act in something I think is good and they want me,” I’ll accept the position.
Source: Mirror
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