Forty years ago, Ian La Frenais encouraged Ian McShane to play Lovejoy – after a night on the tiles with Ava Gardner
Lovejoy – first aired 40 years – first aired 40 years ago on 10th January 1986 – was Ian McShane’s idea. He was a fan of the novels by Jonathan Gash and obtained the television rights sometime in the mid-eighties. He then urged me to read some of them. I hadn’t heard of these books and knew nothing about antiques, but I’d been a pal of Ian’s since the time in the late seventies we both lived in Los Angeles and played for the Exiles, the football team of mostly ex-pat Brits. Ian was a good player. His father, Harry, had been a professional with Manchester United, no less. When Harry vacationed with Ian in LA, he turned up to play with us a couple of times. Even at his more advanced age, his previous credentials were obvious. ‘Still got it, hasn’t he,’ said our most famous player, Rod Stewart...
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