BadJoe

Prison Officer Dominic McAllister
JOE SHAW
Dominic is the youngest and freshest prison officer. Because he's good looking many of the women try it on with him. He doesn't mind the odd bum pinch but sometimes the banter can go too far! Dominic likes the women prisoners. He takes the time to sit and chat with them. Dominic is popular with colleagues too - Helen particularly as he often takes her side against Jim and Sylvia. Secretly he's got the hots for Helen.
Joe Shaw thinks that his character might have picked the wrong job. "Dominic is one of the newest officers. I don't think this is what he set out to do in life - but he wants to help people and now that he is there he wants to make a good job of it. But most people in Larkhall think completely differently to Dominic and he starts to become disillusioned with the whole thing."

Joe isn't even sure that the attention Dominic gets from the women is even a good thing for him. "The inmates use sex to embarrass the young officers and to get a rise out of them. Dominic tries to keep a frunt up to show it doesn't bother him, but it does embarrass him."

This is Joe's first long-running series - his last television performance playing opposite his father, Martin, in the BBC drama Rhodes. He has enjoyed filming the series but didn't enjoy the research. "It's nice to do a series, but I'd never been in a prison before I went to do the research for this and that was much worse than I thought it was going to be.

"It's the atmosphere inside a prison that is the hardest thing to describe. I thought I'd see shocking things, but I didn't. It was just that it felt like that at any second it could go off and trouble would start. There was a feeling of nervousness throughout the whole place.

Previous credits
Joe Shaw has starred in the BBC drama series Rhodes and Junk.

Asked about his character Joe says: "He has now made a decision to stay in the Prison Service and that decision has made him a stronger person.
"He wants to work his way up through the ranks and make it work for him. This series Dominic isn't so naive about what is going on in the prison and although he hasn't hardened up inside, he has now developed a stronger exterior to cope with situations on the Wing.

"He is quite a compassionate officer and does get involved with the inmates' lives on a personal level - but sometimes he gets too involved."

Asked what one of Dominic's biggest problems was Joe replies: "the trouble is he is a Junior Officer and he has a constant struggel to get some of the other officers to see that the inmates are human beings. He does get one with all of his work colleagues, but sometimes his loyalties can be torn when he is forced to choose one colleague over another.

"In some sense he's quite a loner, but as a Prison Officer the shift work and hours that he puts in don't promote a very active social life on the outside for him.

"Dominic is very different to me. He's a lot more reserved and quiet. Mind you, he's off to Greece on holiday at the end of this series - and I went on holiday to Cyprus so maybe they're writing him more like me!"

Background info
JOE SHAW lives in North London in a big house with four other actors. Both his brother and sisters are actors, as are his parents - his father is Martin Shaw.
Joe has a passion for photography, and with his writing partner has just finished the first draft of a two-part television drama.

He is interested in all aspects of film making and, when the time is right, would like to do some directing.