Inside MAN

BEN MILLER on how his top criminologist is handling being on the wrong side of the law

- STEVEN PERKINS

PROFESSOR T

NEW WEDNESDAY, 9PM, ITV1 DRAMA (BOX SET, ITVX)

With his encyclopedic knowledge and meticulous attention to detail, Professor Jasper Tempest is a leading light in criminology at the University of Cambridge, with his expertise called upon to help the police in their investigations.

However, as ITV1's cerebral drama Professor T returns for a third outing this week, the sleuthing lecturer is the one behind bars and under scrutiny...

Fans will recall that last season's finale saw the Professor (played by Ben Miller) fire a rifle inside the police station to protect his former flame, DCI Christina Brand (Juliet Aubrey), who was confronting her corrupt-cop boyfriend, Simon Lanesborough (Alastair Mackenzie).

Although nobody was hurt, the Professor was arrested for discharging an illegal firearm, and he is now on remand, awaiting trial.

It's a nightmare scenario for Professor Tempest, who is living with obsessive compulsive disorder. But as TV Times joins Ben, 58, for an exclusive interview, he tells us this experience could be the making of his character...

How is Jasper coping with prison?

It's the worst place for him. He likes his very ordered world in his ivory tower, and to be ripped out of that and thrown into a cell that he's got to share with another human being is not his favourite thing. There's shocking hygiene, terrible food - it's a real struggle. Except, of course, for the silver lining that he's fascinated by the criminals that he finds himself surrounded by!