When an actor's decisive answer to the tired old question "What are you most proud of in your career?" is "Nothing really, most of it was total bollocks!", you get an inkling that the man sitting next to you - Patrick Lyster, a Durbanite who, according to his peers, is a thespian who has done some very good work - is surprisingly devoid of ego.
It's a refreshing start to a casual interview, over dinner, at the launch of M-Net's new "flamboyant and lusty" drama series Known Gods.
The series is bravely stepping into the Desperate Housewives prime position slot on Thursdays at 8.30pm.
As the dinner progresses, guests will be introduced to the who's who of Known Gods Cluedo-style - as each actor joins the dinner in character.
The dress code for the full-on money-seems-no-object press launch is elegant with tackies.
Rolls Royces are the order of the evening (even hacks get to ride in these iconic vehicles!) and the huge marquee, set on the doorstep of the beautiful Lourensford wine estate, sports sparkling chandeliers, crystal glassware, orchids, silver place settings - all to die for, doll.
Needless to say, the creme de la creme of the Cape's bold and beautiful set are knocking back a lot of very good wine. I'm beginning to wish I'd worn that little black number by Chanel - the one I couldn't afford.
So OK, Lyster, who plays a central character (albeit, very early in the plot, a dead one) in the much-hyped grape expectations "sizzler", may have had - as he has put it - some iffy "pay the bills" work along the way ("I came into acting late"), but in this new series it seems that he has a role with some meat on it.
Lyster's tall, tanned look is elegant ladies man (think an older Richard Gere type). The picture does not do him justice.
As Rossouw wine estate's cellar master Deetlef Koen, Lyster's character is not well-liked.
"He's a seductress, breaking hearts all over the place and I have to say when he's murdered, there are a few women who are upset and a lot of men who are only too pleased."
Getting into acting "late", means that Lyster has a CV which includes an esoteric range of jobs and lifestyle changes.
Apart from playing rugby in Italy for a year and enjoying running Safari trails at home in SA, back in 1987 Lyster was one of the Napac Singers (in the days of Geoffrey Sutherland when the Playhouse was really buzzing).
And then there's the Polish beer ads.
Lyster is relating a hilarious "life imitating art" story which seems straight out of Sofia Coppola's Lost in Translation. Coppola's Oscar-nominated film had Bill Murray playing a fading Hollywood actor who is filming a lucrative whiskey advert in Japan.
Lyster is the face of a certain Polish beer (long story... but "lots of nice international travel").
The advertisements have seen him, among other things, grappling with a wolf and an avalanche. Filming in Japan he describes his Bill Murray moment.
"I'm standing there with this beer in my hand, surrounded by short people shouting at me in a language I don't understand.
"It's surreal to say the least."
Also somewhat surreal is the behaviour of some of the Hollywood actors Lyster has filmed with (he's made around 30 movies).
South Africa being something of a cheap haven for film producers of late, the likes of Kristin Scott Thomas, Morgan Freeman, Hilary Swank, Kim Basinger (Lyster had a part in the Basinger-helmed I Dreamed Of Africa) and Martin Sheen have popped in and out almost unnoticed.
So, bad behaviour, diva-style demands, any scandals?
Lyster has seen it all - but a gentleman never tells, particularly if he wants to stay in the business. He will say that Martin Sheen was "a total and utter gentleman".
"He apologised for keeping us waiting on set and for his lack of local knowledge. They're not all like that."
As for Lyster's role in Known Gods, well, as mentioned, he dies in the first episode!
Not much of a part is it? But, things are not as they seem and like Dallas's Bobby Ewing, it's a case of you just can't keep a good dead man down - even if he is only in flashbacks.
Lyster has already been told that there are "plans" for his character, so don't write him off from episode one.
Meanwhile, if you're looking for a wine with a twist in the tale and the name - Known Gods is being filmed at Lourensford Estate and the winemakers are producing a nice little line linked to the series.
To start there's Revenge (red) and Backstabbing (white). Now, surely you know someone who deserves a bottle or two of one or the other.
And just to whet your appetite (and we're all hoping that Known Gods will not turn into another Avenues or Walk The Plank - much hype and dire content) a little info on episode one (of 26) which will be screened on Thursday at 8.30pm.
In keeping with the setting among Stellenbosch's monied wine set, Known Gods kicks off with a classical concert, held at the wine estate Rossouw, owned by German billionaire Bruno Lohmeyer (Danny Keogh).
As two characters wander off, the valley's charismatic cellar master, Deetlef Koen (our man Patrick Lyster), connoisseur of wine and women (and as a former Napac singer, probably song as well), is murdered.
We, the TV audience, know who did the deed, but that's not the core of the story. It's more the power games people play.
Directed by David Lister and Regardt van den Bergh and written by award-winning scriptwriter Johann Potgieter, Known Gods includes Sandra Prinsloo, Antoinette Kellerman and Aletta Bezuidenhout in what looks like a fine ensemble cast.