Ahhh. Paul Danan still believes his stint on reality TV caused the demise of his acting career. Whatever gets you through the day, Paul. Whatever gets you through.
For some reason (presumably due to budget constraints), Love It magazine interviewed Danan recently about his career, and this is what he had to say regarding his appearance on Celebrity Love Island. Aaaall the way back in 2005.
"I spent three years auditioning in LA and never got my big break (not sure what he was doing for the other two years; he left Hollyoaks in 2000), which is when I agreed to do Love Island. Instead of thinking 'this might f**k up my acting career', I thought 'yes, of course I'll do it!' For several weeks I had a great time, albeit with loads of ups and downs. I was plied with booze by producers, I'd get crazy or angry because I was frustrated. I didn't think my fellow celebrities liked me, and I became paranoid. I wasn't thinking how I was being portrayed on TV, I thought of it as an excuse to get drunk and have a laugh, so I treated it like a normal lads' holiday (and managed to make Sophie Anderton look sane in the process)... I had spent years training to be an actor and all people thought of me was as 'that crazy drunk guy from Celebrity Love Island'. Casting directors weren't touching me because I was on a reality show." Unlike casting directors for 'drink awareness' ads. Bonus.
For those who've blanked out that period of television, Danan actually signed up to be in two series of Love Island, "because he believed that he had already 'screwed up' his career". In spite of this, Paul adds: "If I am offered another reality TV show, I'll just have to be a bit more careful what to say 'yes' to, instead of just thinking about the money."
In the meantime, he's making ends meet by putting in cameo appearances in Channel4's Kevin Bishop Show, which can be see on Fridays at 10.00pm. Which isn't too shoddy, come to think of it.
