TELLY hunk Neil Oliver has revealed that fans have asked for his HAIR
CLIPPINGS — and some even want his voice on their sat-nav.
And the long-haired historian — best known for presenting the BBC’s Coast —
says his wife is astonished at the level of female attention he gets.
The 48-year-old said: “Sometimes people say they’d be prepared to hear me
reading the telephone book or they wish I’d be the voice of their car
sat-nav so I could direct them to the coast!
“I like the idea that people are comfortable enough with the sound of my voice
that they’d let me tell them what exit to take at the roundabout — that’s
flattering.
“I’ve been asked for hair clippings, but I’ve never done that.
“I don’t get sackloads of fanmail, but a healthy doormat-covering load every
week or so. Not marriage proposals but certainly declarations of interest.”
Neil, whose debut novel is out next month, is happily married to Trudi, 46,
and they have daughter Evie, 12, and sons Archie, nine, and seven-year-old
Teddy.
He added: “Any flattery is a boost to a person’s ego as the years advance.
“But Trudi finds it funny. She sees the real me first thing in the morning
stepping out of the shower, and she’s under no illusions!
“Trudi is my No1 fan though, and likes the way I look.
“She met me when she was 17 and I was 19 and she was quite taken with my long
hair at the time. We’d end up in the divorce courts if I got it cut short
now.
“We met as university students and were together for a long time then broke up
in our 20s. We met again by chance in 2002 when I bumped into her brother.
It was as if we’d never been apart, and we’ve been together ever since.”
They wed nearly six years ago, and Neil added: “We’re very similar people from
similar backgrounds. We each had a happy and normal working class childhood.”
Neil was born in Renfrew but raised in Ayr and Dumfries. He studied
archaeology at Glasgow University and got a job in that field before
becoming a newspaper journalist.
His trademark long hair was inspired by bands he liked as a youngster, such as
Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin.
He kept his flowing locks for his 2002 telly debut on Two Men In A Trench.
He said: “I’ve had the same haircut since I was 15, and ever since I’ve had
people telling me I should get it cut. When I was at university, quite a lot
of men were fairly scruffy with long hair, and I fell into that and
fossilised.
“When I made Two Men In A Trench, the boss Pat Llewellyn was happy with my
look — she thought I looked like an archaeologist.
“But sometimes on Twitter people tell me to get my hair cut!”
He gets his mane trimmed four times a year — and jokes he is disappointed
never to have received any offers to promote a product.
Neil said: “The time has probably passed, given my years.
“I used to lie in bed and dream of getting a contract with L’Oreal . . .
because I’m worth it!”
The disadvantage of having hair down to his shoulders is that Neil often gets
mistaken for a woman from behind. He confessed: “I get that all the time.
“I’ve been called ‘love’ and ‘darling’ by people who are mortally embarrassed
when they realise my gender.
“It happens a lot on planes, the stewards and stewardesses call me madam.”
And Neil, who travels all over the globe for work, says he has a fear of
flying.
He added: “I don’t ever get on a plane without thinking about it.
“I’m genuinely anxious every time I get on one. I don’t need to be sedated or
anything, but it’s on my mind. Sometimes I fly two or three times in a week,
long-haul. I’ve filmed in Japan, California, Antarctica, Africa, Australia
and New Zealand.
“I’ve just experienced the usual things, bits of turbulence here and there.
I’m anxious when I’m the air and, when the turbulence starts, I’m as
white-knuckled as the next person.”
He also misses his wife and children when he’s away from their home in
Stirling, adding: “My job is not onerous in any way, and I enjoy it
thoroughly, but that’s the hardest part by far. I’ve missed a lot of
birthdays, school concerts. . . . just family time.
“I try to minimise how long I’m away. When I went to Australia and New
Zealand, I insisted on taking my family.
“At one point, the kids went to school in Sydney.”
Apart from his telly work, Neil’s writing has also kept him busy. He penned
novel Master Of Shadows in the spare bedroom.
He explained: “It’s a chase across Europe in the 15th century. There are two
people on the run being pursued by two groups of people for different
reasons.
“The historical context is the fall of Constantinople in 1453, which is
something I’ve known about since my early teens and long considered the best
film I’ve never seen.”
He’s just finished filming a BBC documentary called Celts which is due to be
broadcast later this year, and in 2016 he’ll be making more series of Coast
in Australia and New Zealand.
But he wants a secondary career as a novelist. He added: “My childhood
ambition was to write novels. It’s what I always dreamt of, so in the future
I’d like to continue making television and writing novels.
“I didn’t have any children when I started in TV and I wasn’t greatly
travelled, but this job has opened my eyes to the world.”
Master Of Shadows by Neil Oliver is published Sept 10 by Orion