The story of the Spooks star, the "secret police" and a £ 150,000 tax bill

Actor Robert Glenister said that he would be forced to sell or remortgage his home after losing a battle with the tax collector on the requirements of the National Insurance.

Lawyers representing a company managed by Glenister, 59, to "provide services to clients," complained about HM Revenue and Customs' request for national insurance contributions.

The tax authorities said that agreements had been reached between Big Bad Wolff Ltd, Glenister – who had starred in BBC films "Hustle and Spooks", and that customers had imposed on Big Bad Wolff the obligation to pay contributions to national insurance.

The actor said he was facing a bill of £ 147,000, plus interest, and told the Mail Sunday: "I have two options: to sell my house or remortgage my house.

"I do not want to sell it because I'm 60 next year and the only other solution is to take out a large mortgage around my neck until I'm over 70"

He also criticized the HMRC, saying to the newspaper: "It acts as an anonymous secret police force … They treat you like a criminal. I do not think you can do that in a civilized society. "

Glenister said it was unfair for the tax collector to make back-dated payments until 2004, the year in which revenue did not contact him before 2010.

In 2017, a judge ruled against Big Bad Wolff after a court hearing and the company has now lost its appeal.

Appellate judges Henry Carr and Justice Jonathan Richards dismissed Big Bad Wolff's challenge in a written decision issued after a court hearing in London in March.