Tom Hooper worked 10-hour days on "EastEnders", and learned to direct with speed. He was influenced in his early career by the cinematic style of American TV series such as "ER", "NYPD Blue" and "" and tried to work that style into his "EastEnders" episodes; one scene featuring Grant Mitchell (Ross Kemp) involved a crane shot, which Hooper believes made him infamous among the "EastEnders" production crew. In 1999, Hooper directed two episodes of Granada Television's comedy-drama television series "Cold Feet", which marked his move to bigger-budget productions. There was initially concern at Granada that Hooper might be an unsuitable director for
Paul Ross Saturday mid morning show on BBC Radio Berkshire, 8am till 11am. In November 2006, he caused controversy by announcing an upcoming "EastEnders" Christmas storyline on his LBC show, causing his mother, Martha Ross, who told him the storyline, to be sacked from her job as an extra on "EastEnders". Since then his mother has jokingly refused to speak to Paul unless, as she stated in a 2007 Radio Times interview, he presents her with some Ann Summers lingerie. Ross broadcast "Paul Ross Full Set Breakfast" from 6-10 am on talkRADIO, a new talk radio station which launched on 21 March