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Ross Kemp in Afghanistan, Sky One

9:26am Tuesday 22nd January 2008

comment Comments (18)   Have your say »

Photograph of the Author By Caroline Dutton »

THERE'S something that's been bothering me for a while now.

Ross Kemp: he's an actor, right? The Cockney 'ardman character Grant Mitchell he played in EastEnders was just a role, right?

This is the actor who, before EastEnders, appeared singing in a jolly Fruit 'n Fibre cereal advert, right?

Then how come he seems to be clinging to his bruiser image in real life with a series of "look how tough I am?" documentaries?

To be fair, it doesn't seem to be doing his career any harm - he did after all win a Bafta for Ross Kemp on Gangs' (as they never fail to mention when talking about the programme, if you notice).

Anyway, Kemp is done with gangs. Now he's focusing his attention on something ever more macho: war.

Strangely, the soldiers he met in last night's Ross Kemp in Afghanistan' seemed to buy into the "one of the lads" image and opened up about their growing worries, missing their families, and the small matter of maybe dying.

They seemed to believe he really was Grant Mitchell, landlord of the Queen Vic, and no stranger to a bit of rough-and-tumble himself.

But aside from Kemp's OTT dramatic voiceover pauses used way too many times for effect, it was actually pretty touching stuff, especially the story of 18-year-old Josh who signed up at only 16.

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derek inglis, scotland says...
11:56am Tue 22 Jan 08

ross kemp is a brave man going in to the wor zone and being that brave **** that av been shotr at before and its frightning when it hapens so keep it up m8

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anon, Blackburn says...
2:39pm Tue 22 Jan 08

I think Ross did a fantastic job of raising awareness. Having a son out there serving right now is terrifying for all of us and I'm glad that Ross portrayed the truth. We need to be much more aware of what is going on and what it's like for those poor brave soldiers - some who may not even come home! Ross too to the soldiers and sent a powerful message home to us all. These men are risking everything they've got - their whole lives! We need more documentaries like this one, we need to bring home the truth, the pain and the loss that all families are feeling!

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bob, says...
11:36pm Fri 1 Feb 08

caroline he has done all of us a great honer and being there with us has gained more respecked then any one of you to bit stay at home gob shittes

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JJ, says...
12:37pm Tue 5 Feb 08

*sigh* Oh Caroline. It saddens me to see you useless stay-at-home good-for-nothing (to quote the above) 'gobshites'. At what point in any of these docs does Ross try to make himself look hard? In Ep. 2 when he is lying in a field under fire, he is absouletly petrified. I am a serving soldier myself, and the way in which he conveys the absolute terror of the situation and presents the views of 'the blokes' is wonderful, and a much needed tonic to our Amy Winehouse celeb-obsessed culture. A big well done to Kemp, and I pray that gutless critics like you come under fire one day, so you can see what it is like. Thanks.

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Pete, says...
10:22pm Tue 5 Feb 08

"Pretty Touching Stuff" One assumes you voted at the last General Election, I know most of our Armed Forces do, and if so you agreed to the actions of this government, how many of our politicians have you seen half as close to real life in Afganistan, this guy has brought the real story into the homes of many people, its not drama its whats really happening. Me thinks you should stick to reporting WI meetings. In case your wondering, yes I have had similar experiences over 35 years of service and recognise brave people when I see them.

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dapetale, n.i says...
10:12pm Mon 11 Feb 08

Whether you rate Ross Kemp as an actor (hard Man) or not, you cannot fail to spot his upmost sincerity and openess in te filming of this series. I am proud to have a history of association wit the armed forces and am glad to see the tide turning even a little in the favour of those brave men and women who are out there serving. You don't even have to agree with why they are there but the one thing we all need to remember is that we should be proud of the fact that these countrymen of ours are willing to go and fight for our country, lay their lives on the line for those that need it. Lets not forget that there may come a time soon when we need these servicemen at home to protect us here but by taking the war to the backyard of one of our enemies hopefully this will hold that off.
The point I should be making here is if you realy believe the man so vain as to think a little sand and sun with a few casualties thrown in for good measure is just a tv show where he can shine and go for the next bafta then thank god no one else on here has agreed with you. WHY DID YOU TURN THE TV OVER IN THE FIRST PLACE ITS OBVIOUS YOU WERE ON THE RIGHT CHANEL BUT NOT ACTUALLY WATCHING THE PROGRAMME>

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trish finch, wakefield says...
3:13pm Tue 12 Feb 08

Caroline Dutton, wouldn’t it be funny if you where there, having to go through what these lads are, Can just see you re applying your lippy you dizzy b*tch. Last night I sat for one hour totally speechless, How those lads are able to cope with all the **** that is thrown at them 24/7 is unbelievable, you could see the relief and pride on Ross’s face when he realised all had got back to base safely, I never realised how shocking and scary it must be to be a front line soldier, as Ross himself say's why the hell do we put up with footballers being paid £70K a week for kicking a ball and these brave lads most of them still kids get less than an office worker, how can the government justify that!, I just wanted to say to all the lads that are out there, THANK YOU, your unbelievable brave and my heart goes out to all the families and friends who have lost a son over there.

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Terry, Scotland says...
7:52pm Wed 13 Feb 08

Well done Caroline (said in best sarcastic tone). What a dire review and waste of paper space that was. Are you even watching the same programme as the rest of us.
Ross Kemp has shown week after week a genuine affection for the guys he is working with. For the Vikings to accept Kemp as one of there own and open up to him proves that there is no macho BS going on but that he has been with them when the S**t hit the fan and was just as scared as them.
For any Regiment to accept an "outsider" like that is earned and not just given because you were Grant from Eastenders.
Maybe you could tag along next time!!

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matt, Ireland says...
5:31pm Fri 15 Feb 08

Excellent real life documentary of what real soldiers have to endure. Ross Kemp does not come accross as a soap hard man he has shown the ordinary joe's of this world what war does and what the soldiers have to do in order to get there job done in pacificing the civillian population as well as fighting the taliban. soldiers should have the support of everyone especially by their goverment who put them there. Give them the manpower and equipment to get the job done, other wise it will go on for years to come.

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Louie, hertfordshire says...
10:34pm Mon 18 Feb 08

my GOD, i have just watched the last of Ross in afgan land & I just have to say what a brilliant documentary this is very scary & saddening but believe it would be good for certain parts to be seen by kids under 16 as it might give them some kind of semblance of what it's like to be at the end of a gun, i believe in conscription, if only to give the kids a bit of guidance of what is right & wrong. parents now are the product of a parent that wasnt good at giving a good example, i was lucky, i had parents that are still together, that brought me up to believe in right & wrong, to know that helping people is the right thing to do no matter what it costs you & that is what our boys & girls do when they join up, i for one am so proud of our forces, they have their moments but hells bells are they not entitled when you see what they have to go through, dont worry im not condoing some of the behaviours of forces personnel but we get screwed up guys & gals even if they havent been in the face of the enemy ! i have more to say but will stop now Caroline sorry love but you have a very warped opinion on things. shame. get out her & experience things like Ross did & then comment !

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Erica, North East says...
11:01am Tue 19 Feb 08

Everyone in this country should be made to watch this series. At last a show that does not gloss over the realitys of the task these men take on for their country. The scenes showing the deaths of these young hero;s should bring home the reality of life and the risk our hero's are taking. The down side is the treatment of these hero's by their own government when they come home injured and unable to continue in their role. We house and pay benefits to wasters in this country but when it comes to our troops we supply low wages substandered housing and little or no compensation. Maybe if the knife carrying yobs on our streets today had to go through what these brave men have to face our country would not be in the state it is. Well done for a honest view of what our boys are up against. As for the weak livered journalist who wrote this piece get your ar*e out there and then come back and comment!!!!

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Jon, Staffordshire says...
11:52am Tue 19 Feb 08

Mr Kemp is the ONLY member of the media to pay any tribute to our under-paid,
under-appreciated,
under-funded,
under-equiped, armed forces. We see NOTHING
in our media about the courage of these young men.NOTHING
about the battles they fight. Nothing at all until a mistake is made by us or our allies and then the media is all over it.If it wasn't for the efforts of Ross Kemp the average member of the public could be forgiven for thinking there was no war on at all.He is the only member of the British media to my knowledge to have been truely embedded with a frontline combat unit.He deserves thanks for his work and admiration for his displaying true courage under fire. His work is in stark contrast to the coverage by the rest of the British media which is little short of giving aid and comfort to the enemy.The conduct of the British media in covering this conflict and that in Iraq is nothing short of a disgrace. Mr Blair and the rest of his cronies have blood on their hands in getting our nation into the twin "Vietnams" of Afganistan and Iraq.Our troops should be brought home NOW !

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howie, germany says...
1:48pm Tue 19 Feb 08

you need to get a life he had done the Army proud and he has got bottle to go out to a war zone

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colin, Scotland says...
5:18pm Tue 19 Feb 08

Caroline's view that Ross Kemp was acting a "hard man"is a very flippant comment. We clearly see him miss IED's and mines while traveling in transports. Also he comes under fire on numerous occasions. I feel this programme gives a small indication, as to amount of danger our armed forces face on a daily basis. We should all be very proud of our armed forces, even if you disagree with the politics. You cannot deny the bravery.

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paul davies, says...
8:46am Sat 23 Feb 08

I think Ross Kemp and his team showed us as it was ,bar showing actual dead Taliban. War is not a game and the tense and stress showed as it was. The Newspapers tell us nothing the Establishment want us to hear..... I wish half the Journalists had the balls he had. It was worthy of an award but more importantly Ross Kemp shows he has what it takes to produce a gutsy documentary. Well done Ross shame on you Blaclpool Citizen ?????? a backward rag for backward northerners!!!!!

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Andrew Rowlands, says...
1:14am Sun 24 Feb 08

Well Caroline Dutton, What an absolute waist of spce you are. At least Kemp had the B*$%! to go out with our troops and show the people at home what they are going through for our freedom. I could see no bravado on his part just sheer respect for our boys. try to talk about something your good at like knitting. get a life. and yes I served for 13 years.
KEEP SAFE BOYS AND GIRLS GOD BLESS.

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Ex Lancer, Cornwall says...
10:17am Mon 25 Feb 08

Who is this Caroline Person, take a leaf out of Kate's book, get the flak jacket on and get out there, that'll change your views eh!!!!
Quote " Eh up theres Katie, we must be in the crap"!
Support the men and women who look after us with their lives. God bless them all and keep them safe.

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Stevie, Northern Ireland says...
9:20pm Tue 26 Feb 08

Caroline,
Typical response for a journo. It shows how much actually goes inyour mind. This guy has put himself at risk to bring true life documentaries to people at home.It has allowed ordinary people to understand what our soldiers go through to defend our country. So get yourself a life and write something constructive instead of pure P**S.... Maybe you could get some b***s and get outhere yourself and maybe follow up his exceelent work and write an article. Sorry i forgot your are a journo who never see further than the handle of your office door!!!!!!!!!!

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