Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

10 Questions for The Durrells star, magician and Shop Smart Save Money presenter Alexis Conran

Alexis Conran (Daniel Leal-Olivas / PA)
Alexis Conran (Daniel Leal-Olivas / PA)

HE’S known for his acting, playing Doctor Petridis in The Durrells, and as a reality star, winning Celebrity MasterChef.

Alexis Conran is also a magician and member of the Magic Circle, and was brought up in Greece.

He appears each week in Channel 5’s Shop Smart Save Money, investigating household brands.

The new series starts on Thursday on Channel 5 at 8pm.


What are you trying to do in this show?

To keep companies in check, find out if they’re duping us. I also presented The Real Hustle, looking at scams, so I’m a huge fan of the truth.

How did you find the stories for Shop Smart?

We look on social media to see what people complain about. It might just be McDonalds selling underweight fries, but it’s still wrong. We got national coverage for that one in our last series.

Can you give me another example?

I’ll be looking at high street sandwiches. They put all the filling near the see-through packaging window so we think it’s crammed, but open up the bread and there’s none anywhere else.

Are you a good businessman?

No, I’m terrible. I’m a professional deceiver but a useless businessman. I’d feel embarrassed trying to make a profit from someone.

Do you handle money well?

My mum wasn’t a big saver, and I’ve had to learn to get out of debt. I now have enough knowledge not to get into arrears again, but I still spend my money when it comes in.

When did you first feel rich?

I was 21 and just out of drama school. I had a part in Soldier Soldier and got paid around £4,000. Did I put some aside for tax? Did I heck. I spent it all.

What’s the most lucrative job you’ve done?

A commercial for a cold sore cream. I only spent a couple of hours filming with a girl who wore a helmet for our dates until her sore disappeared. It was shown for years and I earned handsomely for that.

You do so many things. What do you like best?

Difficult. Magic is my love. I have a pack of cards in my hands every single day (he shuffled cards throughout our interview). I even cut packs when I’m waiting on set.

Are you doing more of The Durrells?

I’ve just shot my scenes for the new series. It’s hard work for Keeley Hawes who is in it every minute, but with my small part it’s a joy. I should be paying them.

You have 24 hours left to live. How do you spend it?

The older I get, the more Greece calls me. I’d take the family there, pick olives and figs, buy some Greek cheese, then go out in a boat. That would be perfect for me.