VIDEO: ‘Tash Force’ - the comedy mockumentary - at King George’s Hall, Blackburn

Tash McDermott is the star of “Tash Force”, a new comedy mockumentary centring around his final few days working as the head of Head of Lancashire Constabulary’s Football Intelligence Unit.

The film gets its world premiere next week and despite Tash’s phone ringing off the hook with offers from Hollywood agents, female fans and requests for village pantomimes, the man himelf (portrayed by Sabden’s very own Mark Woodward) nipped into the Burnley Express office to spend a few minutes talking about the premiere, which takes place at King George’s Hall on Thursday and how it all came about.

“These independent film-makers came along and said they would like to make a film. They wanted somebody with a lot of star quality and a lot of charisma and so they asked moi. They wanted to film my day-to-day business and I was actually undercover at the time doing some surveillance trying to catch a hoodlum. I won’t tell you the end of the film because you won’t go and see it and then that would be pointless.”

The film, which is the brainchild of scriptwriter Ian Wiggins, was shot during the summer of 2010 around East Lancashire, with all the cast and crew working for free and extras coming from the Ribble Valley, Burnley and Blackburn.

Since filming shut down Tash has left the police force and after a few unsuccessful job roles now has his sights set firmly on Hollywood. .

“I did follow that line of work (after leaving the force). I did a bit of security work and was also site supervisor at a school for a while. I thought to myself though ‘this isn’t for me’. My heart’s in entertainment.

“I’ve done a sportman’s dinner, been asked to be Father Christmas at Bury Market next Christmas and have even done a village pantomime. I’ve always had a taste for it and when they made this film about me I thought ‘this is where my calling in life is.’”

It’s probably a lucky thing the acting roles did keep coming as well with a few of his former colleagues less than enamoured with Tash’s “star quality”.

“There was a lot of jealousy. I could hear people talking behind my back saying ‘look, he’s a big shot now’ and ‘he’s changed’. I didn’t change at all. I’m still the same person.”

And that same person is promising a “night to remember” at next week’s premiere, which is being held in aid of two charities.

One of the charities to benefit is the Glove Project, which will help pay towards a well for a village in Gambia named Cheesay, as the one they have is contaminated. The other is a local charity to help a boy named McCauley Riley who is suffering from a terminal brain condition.

Tickets are available from King George’s Hall box office on 0844 8471664 or from Ticketmaster, priced £8.50

“Tash Force” will also be shown in independent cinemas and is followed by the DVD release on April 23rd – available in all good stockists and to pre-order on Amazon.