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ACE : Lowdown: by Colin Irwin
Teletext : Page 185 : Channel4 : 08/04/03
TALES OF THE TRIBE
It all started when a deadly virus wiped out the world's entire adult population.
The sophisticated society they'd created crumbled, leaving anarchy and chaos in its wake...and only a bunch of teenagers able to save it.
Enter The Tribe, rulers of a world without adults, five's cult youth drama. We talk to Tom Hern, who plays the wheelchair-bound Ram.
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"I had no idea the series was so big," says Tom Hern, who plays the manic Ram in cult five series The Tribe.
"I live in New Zealand and didn't think about people watching in Europe. It was a real shock going off on a promo tour and finding hundreds of people coming out in Germany, Scandinavia and the UK.
"It's such a kick to travel so far and to meet so many people who enjoy what we do."
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Why has five's sci-fi drama The Tribe become so successful?
"It's everyone's dream to live in a world with no adults, isn't it?" laughs19-year-old New Zealander Tom Hern, who plays the unstable Ram in the series.
"It seems great Ñ you can go out and do what you like, go drinking or whatever. But it covers a lot of issues arising from that, like setting up government and cleaning water."
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"He's a mental case," says Tom Hern of his character Ram in TV's The Tribe.
"He's a paraplegic so I spent some time in a wheelchair preparing for the role. It makes you use different tools Ñ you have to be more expressive with your eyes and your hands."
Not that he's in a wheelchair for much longer. "A lot of it with him is psychosomatic and by the end of series five I end up on my feet!"
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New Zealander Tom Hern got his big break in The Tribe after landing a job as a kids' TV reporter.
"It was great," he says. "I did it from 13-16 and did various things. I spent a week in the Antarctic doing a report and I went to Hong Kong to report on the Rugby Sevens.
"Ultimately I'd like to make movies in Hollywood but I love music too. I enjoy MC-ing and I'd love a hip hop group."
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TALES OF THE TRIBE: TOM HERN FACTS
From: New Zealand.
Age: 19.
Fave actor: John Travolta.
Singer: Ben Harper.
Ideal Woman: Alicia Keys.
Music: R&B, hip hop.
Most famous person met this week: Atomic Kitten. "They were great!"
The future: Rock stardom, movie stardom and, er, stardom.
For now: Just enjoying playing Ram in The Tribe.
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WIN A TRIBE DVD!!
There's never been a teen drama series quite like The Tribe.
A new DVD containing 52 episodes running over 22 hours, plus an hour of outtakes and character profiles is out now and we have a copy to give away. For a chance to win just tell us the name of Tom Hern's character.
Answers on a postcard to Ace, Teletext, PO Box 32549, London W4 5TX or e-mail ace@teletext.co.uk
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| (teletext interview : C4 : page 185)
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