Spike: Nuffield Theatre, Southampton Feb 1-March 3

RICHARD Briers as a dirty old slimebag? It sounds about as likely as Thora Hird playing an axe-wielding multiple murderer, but it's true - and you'll be able to witness it for yourselves right here in Southampton from next month.

Briers, forever fixed in the public imagination as the environmentally-friendly Tom Good in the still-popular Seventies sitcom The Good Life, takes this unexpected turn for the nasty in Spike, the first of the Nuffield Theatre's main house shows of 2001.

"I play a fascist car dealer who sells cars to the Arabs," explains Briers, highly visible on TV screens at the moment thanks to Good Life re-runs and a new series of the BBC Sunday evening favourite Monarch of the Glens.

"He's a nasty piece of work and the whole thing is pretty strong meat for my older fans.

"I'm glad we're not doing any matinees so the old dears will not be shocked by seeing me, Mr Squeaky Clean, playing such an unscrupulous character."

Besides the fascination of seeing the lovely Richard Briers giving us a flash of his dark side, the play will also be of interest to anyone who's ever speculated about the actor's home life - thanks to its inclusion of his wife, Ann Davies, and daughter, Lucy Briers, as fellow cast members.

At the moment, though, Briers is relishing his role as Hector, the "adorably flawed" central character in Monarch of the Glen.

"Viewers genuinely warm to these characters. This series stands out because people can't find a family show like this any more."

Which leads us naturally onto the state of television today - a favourite subject for most seasoned TV performers.

"Because of the insidious process of dumbing down and the proliferation of new channels, it's hard to find programmes of such high quality these days," he says.

"Monarch of the Glens may not be cutting-edge TV, but we're producing something for all the family, which is very rare nowadays.

"What once would have been seen as old-fashioned is now viewed as revolutionary because nobody else is doing it any more."

* Spike is at The Nuffield Theatre, Southampton from February 1 to March 3. For tickets and information, call the box office on 023 8067 1771.