'Life On Mars' star Glenister praises writers

Life On Mars star Philip Glenister has praised the show's writers for crafting his character of Gene Hunt, although he was initially unimpressed when he started reading the first script.

"I look on Life On Mars as a western - and I'm the sheriff," Glenister told the Radio Times. "I like DCI Hunt - a gift of a part, so well written and some of the one-liners are amazing."

"He's not appalling compared with the Mitchell brothers in EastEnders," the actor added, referring to the character's often brutal approach to policing.

However, the praise for the writing on Life On Mars made a change from his initial attitude towards the show when he received his first script: "For the first 15 pages I thought 'this is just another cop show'... and then 'it's ridiculous'. But suddenly - bang! - I couldn't put it down. It's so ridiculous it's appealing. Who'd have thought a 70s cop show would be popular in 2007?"

Glenister also maligned the amount of money spent on making the show: "If we bring Life On Mars in on time and perhaps under budget, they say you can do it for less next time," he revealed "It's very frustrating when they want to hurry up and save money. I tell them, 'I didn't sign up for The Bill. Let's do it properly."