{"id":27763,"date":"2022-12-24T10:00:15","date_gmt":"2022-12-24T09:00:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radiotimes.com\/?p=1760453"},"modified":"2022-12-24T11:29:15","modified_gmt":"2022-12-24T10:29:15","slug":"shaun-williamson-on-extras-christmas-special-at-15-itll-outlive-me","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/rss_feed\/shaun-williamson-on-extras-christmas-special-at-15-itll-outlive-me\/","title":{"rendered":"Shaun Williamson on Extras Christmas special at 15: \u201cIt\u2019ll outlive me\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By David Craig\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Saturday, 24 December 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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It\u2019s been nearly 20 years since Shaun Williamson left EastEnders<\/a> and people are still calling him \u201cBarry\u201d \u2013 including, sometimes, himself. In fact, the actor is currently preparing to tour the country with Barrioke, a night of entertainment described as a \u201cfeel-good karaoke party\u201d. But while a decade in Albert Square launched his career, we shouldn\u2019t underestimate the role that Extras played in keeping \u201cBarry from EastEnders\u201d in the public consciousness. After all, it was in the season 1 finale that Williamson first belted out his rendition of Mustang Sally \u2013 proclaiming that \u201cmicrophones are for wimps\u201d \u2013 which has since become one of his signature tracks.<\/p>\n

The acclaimed sitcom hit screens in 2005, scooping up Williamson fresh from his soap opera exit, in which his character was pushed off a cliff by cold-hearted lover, Janine (Charlie Brooks). Co-creator Ricky Gervais had first contacted him about the role, phoning \u201cout of the blue\u201d in what Williamson initially thought to be a \u201cwind-up call\u201d. Not long after, he was in the comic\u2019s London office, shared with Extras co-creator Stephen Merchant, and the duo took him through their first six episodes \u2013 which included an Oscar-hungry Kate Winslet and a farcical feud between Ross Kemp and Vinnie Jones.<\/p>\n

The role painted Williamson as one of two clients belonging to utterly useless talent agent Darren Lamb (Merchant), with the other being Andy Millman (Gervais), an aspiring actor relegated to background work. Given that he had only recently left EastEnders when Extras came out, it was perhaps a bit unfair to already be ribbing his career so relentlessly. But he was more than happy to accept some jokes at his expense \u2013 especially as he wouldn\u2019t be the only one.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey said, \u2018Well, you will get the mickey taken out of you, but everyone\u2019s going to get the mickey taken out of them\u2019,\u201d Williamson told RadioTimes.com<\/a>. \u201cI thought, I\u2019ve got to be part of this. So I said yes, and it was the best decision I\u2019ve ever made in my life.\u201d<\/span><\/p>

By the time of the Extras Christmas special \u2013 the feature-length finale, which turns 15 this year \u2013 he was actively giving Gervais and Merchant \u201cammunition\u201d for their gags. For example, a line in which Darren tells Shaun to \u201ckeep your hair transplant on\u201d came directly from Williamson\u2019s tip-off that he had undergone the procedure in real-life. The barb is one of many hysterical interactions between Merchant\u2019s hapless agent and his most-loved client, albeit one whose name he consistently gets wrong \u2013 insisting on calling him \u201cBarry\u201d or \u201cBaz\u201d in every scene.<\/p>\n

Williamson explained: \u201cTheir relationship does come from a place of great affection. Barry desperately needs the work, whether it\u2019s scraping s**t off his shoes or a bit of artexing sometimes \u2013 when Darren found him, he was sleeping in his car. But also Darren needs him because, even though it\u2019s Barry from EastEnders, it\u2019s the one client that people would know. They need each other, really.\u201d<\/p>\n

That much becomes clear when Andy drops Darren as his agent, following the inexplicable success of his critically panned sitcom When the Whistle Blows. The devastating knock is the last nudge Darren needs to leave the cutthroat world of entertainment and head back to the Carphone Warehouse, taking Shaun and fellow soap alum Dean Gaffney with him. Fortunately, it works out remarkably well for the trio, who find some contentedness in pleasing customers, grooving to ringtones and chatting about the latest gossip.<\/p>\n

Events unfold less favourably for Andy himself, whose hubris drives him to cancel his sitcom and burn bridges with the BBC, expecting his hotshot new representation to land him gigs in Hollywood. As it turns out, that\u2019s little more than a fantasy. As his star begins to rapidly fade in the months that follow, Andy finds that the press, the public and his very own agent are increasingly disinterested in having anything to do with him. Williamson praises the accuracy and authenticity of the storyline, which feels only more relevant today as our obsession with celebrity persists.<\/p>\n