Man Utd fan Justin Moorhouse told Soccer AM why he chose to wear a Man City shirt in Phoneix Nights!
Funnier to play a City fan, says Moorhouse
As Manchester United fans go, they don't come more passionate than comedian Justin Moorhouse.
When he's not touring or starring in a hit sitcom, he can regularly be found in the stands at Old Trafford supporting the Red Devils.
So when he landed the role of Young Kenny in Peter Kay's Phoenix Nights the last thing he would want to have to do is wear a Manchester City shirt, right? Wrong!
The role demanded that Moorhouse wear a football shirt, but rather than have the colours of bitter rivals City foisted upon him, he says it was his decision!
"They said to me 'you're going to be wearing a football shirt, who do you support?' and I said United," he told
Soccer AM.
"They said 'yeah we'll get you a United shirt'. I looked at the script and I said 'no you won't, this guy's a proper idiot'!
"And it was funnier I think to wear the City one than the United one - I would have had more grief for it I suppose."
"It did feel a bit weird," he added. "It felt disrespectful you know and I didn't think what (sort of) impact it would have later.
"People will speak to mates of my and they'll be like 'oh yeah your mate, he's a big Blue isn't he' and they'll go 'no (he's United)' and they go 'IS HE!?' every time.
"But it's just acting. It's like Hayley in Coronation Street; she's not actually a bloke in real life! She hasn't had an operation, honestly!"
Secret
While that revelation is unlikely to have done his reputation among fellow United fans any good, starring alongside Eric Cantona in Ken Loach's feature 'Looking for Eric' surely will have!
Cantona's role in the film was kept top secret from everyone, including the cast and crew, and Moorhouse admitted he was lost for words when he found out he would be sharing screen time with the United legend.
"I got a phone call and it was Ken Loach - the director of the film," he revealed.
"He said 'can you keep a secret?' and I said 'yeah' and I thought he was going to tell me he was a massive Tory or something.
"And he said 'one of the actors in the film, we don't want anyone to know about'. I said 'who is it?' he said 'it's Eric Cantona!'
"We went and did this improv and at the end there were some biscuits on the table. Eric Cantona looked at me and John Henshaw - who's in the film - and he's pushed this plate of biscuits over to me and said the greatest thing anyone has ever said to me; 'would you like a jammy dodger'!
"I said I'll take one, I'll put it in kryptonite and I'll never touch it again!"
