Why Playing Molly Meldrum Is 'The Holy Grail' Of Acting

Leading up to the release of two-part TV event Molly, based on Aussie music critic Molly Meldrum, actor Samuel Johnson has praised Meldrum who he portrays in the show. 

Johnson, who was Meldrum's first pick to star in the show said, "To be honest, this is the holy grail, both creatively and personally."

"Molly is a character. As an actor this is the best role you could ever hope to find. You spend your whole career dreaming of a role like this. I was terrified, but the panic was convincingly overshadowed by my excitement about the opportunity."

The Victorian-born actor also spoke out his fear of recreating some of Molly's biggest TV moments including his Countdown highlights and the infamous interview with Prince Charles in 1977. 

"Some of those moments are folklore in Australian TV history," Johnson said.

"There’s an obligation for us to honour that. It's bizarre when you rock up to work and John and Yoko are flying through, Olivia Newton-John is there and Freddie Mercury is taking me on a ticker tape parade. It was about us re-creating moments in history, so it was about a lot more than us. All of the actors were really keen to serve the history."

A number of local talent also feature in the show which includes Jacinta Stapleton who portrays US pop star Madonna and Connor Crawford who plays John Paul Young.

Molly will air on the Seven Network next month.