In a rare and candid reflection, comedy titan Ricky Gervais has opened up about the unique dynamic of his legendary partnership with Stephen Merchant, the co-creator of the iconic British sitcom The Office. His comments, describing a 'chalk and cheese' relationship, came just days before Merchant himself revealed the pair now have little contact.
The 'Chalk and Cheese' Dynamic Revealed
The 64-year-old star of After Life discussed his working relationship with the 51-year-old Merchant during an interview on BBC Radio 4's This Cultural Life. When questioned on whether their partnership had a 'Laurel and Hardy aspect', Gervais agreed, noting they naturally fell into contrasting roles. 'Well, only that you fall into your roles and I guess you play a chalk and cheese, obviously - nothing conscious,' he stated.
Gervais elaborated by drawing direct parallels with the classic comedy duo, Oliver Hardy and Stan Laurel. He highlighted how their humour stemmed from constant conflict between a pompous, 'erudite' figure and a hapless innocent. 'It was the pretentious one that ended up in the duck pond,' Gervais quipped, underscoring the comedic value of deserved misfortune.
A Partnership That Changed Comedy, But Now Rarely Speaks
This insight into their creative bond arrived just before Stephen Merchant offered his own perspective in an interview with The Times. 'We're not in touch a great deal these days,' Merchant revealed, explaining that even at the height of their collaboration, they led separate lives. He recalled Gervais joking about their age gap: 'Ricky used to joke that he was 13 or 14 years older than me, just as I was discovering my favourite nightclub, he was discovering his favourite comfortable chair.'
The pair first met in 1997 when Merchant applied to be Gervais's assistant at XFM radio. Their partnership would later produce The Office, released in 2001, a mockumentary about the employees of the fictional Wernham Hogg paper company that is frequently hailed as the greatest British comedy of all time. Gervais starred as the unforgettable David Brent, with Merchant making a cameo as 'The Oggmonster'.
Legacy, Conflict, and No Revival in Sight
Speaking on the show's enduring global success, which spawned multiple international adaptations, Merchant compared it to a hit song. 'Lots of people are doing covers of Wonderwall but Noel Gallagher isn't listening to them all, is he?' he remarked. Despite their monumental success with The Office, Extras, Life's Too Short, and An Idiot Abroad, Merchant has firmly ruled out a revival. 'After we ended The Office, Ricky and I realised that we couldn't compete with it and so we had to do something completely different... we wouldn't revive The Office,' he stated.
Gervais, in his radio interview, credited Laurel and Hardy with teaching him the essential role of conflict in comedy. 'I think [they] taught me about conflict because even though they both thought they wanted the same thing, they didn't agree on anything,' he said. This principle of clashing personalities clearly fuelled the engine of his own historic partnership with Merchant, a 'chalk and cheese' combination that forever altered the landscape of British television comedy, even as the collaborators themselves have drifted apart.
