Whirlwind Tammy!
7th August 1993 - TV Week
By Glen Williams
Credit to nahala_night on instagram, for providing all magazine scans
The Police Rescue star gets in a spin over her latest acting milestone
In a crowded restaurant, Police Rescue star Tammy Macintosh leaps from the table to re-enact a scene that saw her swinging from a skyscraper, 44 floors up.
She is oblivious to the stares her midday pantomime is drawing.
She swings from imaginary ropes and teeters back and forth with a fearful expression consuming her elfin face. In her mind, she is still up there on the ledge.
Judging by the number of white knuckles clutching the table tops, those watching also believe she is in real danger – if only mentally.
The episode that has her in such a spin is called Whirlwind, airing on the ABC on August 19.
This is the storyline she was awaiting, a drama-packed episode that has allowed Tammy to prove to herself she is a serious actor.
“I put more into that episode than I’ve put into anything ever before,” she says, she says returning to the safety of the table.
“I’ve never ever been able to say I’m happy with what I do, but Whirlwind changed that. I’ve done great work and I know it. Just this year, I have given myself to acting totally. I feel confident and secure now.”
While Police Rescue has established Tammy has an actor, she admits she hasn’t always enjoyed working in the show.
“I hated working on the show at first,” she recalls. “I was new to Sydney, I was away from my boyfriend, and I would go back to my horrible flat and ball my eyes out. I used to be there on the floor in a tantrum, screaming, ‘I don’t want to be here! I want to go home!’. Fortunately, Gary Sweet was fantastic. I spent time with him and his wife, Jill, and they helped me to settle in. I love Sydney now and would probably move here if I could.”
Tammy, 23, says she wants to leave her mark in the industry.
“I used to work in Coles, and I used to read articles about Justine Clarke and I’d say, ‘Roo in Home and Away, I love you, I love you!’ “she says. “I used to think Justine Clarke was the ant’s pants of acting, that she was going to be the Michelle Pfeiffer of Australia. I told Justine this recently, and she laughed. It’s weird, because now I’m in those same magazines and I’m working with people I used to look up to. I’ve a strong sense of where I’m going. I want to make films and do plays that will change people’s lives.”
She cites Jodie Foster as her personal heroine and motivator.
“The main reason I became and actress was so I would have the power of Jodie Foster, who is my idol,” Tammy says. “I swear, I am going to work with her. Whether it be as an extra or cleaning her toilet, I am going to work with that woman.”
Tammy will take her role of Constable Kathy Orland to the big screen in Police Rescue: The Movie.
“I’m excited about the movie,” she says. “The great thing for me is it will be directed by Michael Carson, who directed the Whirlwind episode.”
As for Police Rescue returning next year, Tammy is uncertain.
“There is talk of a fourth series, but we’ll just have to wait and see. If there is a fourth series, I’ll do it because I think rescue is the best thing since sliced bread. It is the kind of show you could stick with for years and still be able to grow, develop and learn and never be bored.
The question of marriage causes Tammy to laugh.
“I’m only 23. I can’t think of marriage when I’m 23. In the meantime, I’m inspired. I think I’m on Earth to change peoples lives and make people happy. I believe that. I can’t see any other reason for being here.”