Big Boys creator and writer Jack Rooke has revealed that he is starting to miss the popular Channel 4 series, which concluded last year after three series. The semi-autobiographical comedy-drama, following a university student navigating his father's death while exploring his sexuality, was a hit with audiences.
Jack Rooke's Emotional Confession on Sunday Brunch
Appearing on Channel 4's Sunday Brunch, Rooke admitted that he initially felt relieved when the show ended but has since grown nostalgic. He said: "I've started to miss it, and I didn't, because it came out maybe February last year, so for the year afterwards, I was like, 'Oh, I'm glad that's done.' And then the last few weeks, I'm like, 'Oh, it's sad that we're not filming another scene.' Because we filmed every summer for like three years in a row. So I'm sad about it."
Cast and Crew: A Genuine Bond
Rooke praised the cast, including Dylan Llewellyn as Jack and Jon Pointing as Danny, saying: "I loved them all." He added playfully: "I just terrorise them all all the time. They can't really get away from me... They're great." He told hosts Tim Lovejoy and Simon Rimmer: "We are kind of that sickly thing of we actually all do just genuinely love each other, which is so horrible when you hear actors or people being like, 'We're like a family.' I'm like, 'Yeah, all right. Three of you hate each other. Two of you are slagging each other off in the WhatsApp, in another WhatsApp group you don't know about'."
Good Grief: A Personal Stage Production
Rooke also discussed his stage production Good Grief, which he created in his twenties following the loss of his father during his teenage years. He explained: "I wrote that show with my nan. It was when I was at uni, and I stole loads of equipment from my uni to spend a day filming with her. So the whole show is sort of about me losing a parent at 15 and her losing a child at 80." He added: "And there will be lots of people watching today for whom Father's Day is a tricky one. I'm firmly in the Dead Dad Club, and I believe that the more you can sort of find community in that, the less sort of scary and hard it is. And humour is the best way to do that."
Sunday Brunch airs on Channel 4 on Sundays at 10am.
