Jack Rooke on wrapping Big Boys, Cheryl-mania and his ‘best Tinder date result’ (EXCLUSIVE)
It’s hard to accept that Big Boys, Channel 4’s gorgeous queer sitcom is coming to a close after three hilarious and heartwarming series.
Since the show’s premiere in 2022, it has endeared itself to audiences with its explorations of everything from grief to losing your virginity to the complexities of male friendship. It’s always managed to deliver original, insightful takes on heavy topics by punctuating every moment with spot on pop culture references from the era its set in, spanning roughly 2013 to 2016 – a time when The X Factor still reigned supreme and Cheryl (then Fernandez-Versini) was the nation’s sweetheart.
The series is the brainchild of writer and comedian Jack Rooke, based on his personal experiences at university, beginning its life as a stage show he performed at Edinburgh Fringe in 2015. Ahead of the final season dropping, we had the chance to catch up with him about how he went about wrapping things up, what’s next for him, and his own uni memories.
How does it feel to be ending a project that is so close to your heart?
It’s terrifying because the show is like 10, 11 years in the making. I did my first Edinburgh show August 2015, that was the formative base for Big Boys. It’s really lovely to actually be able to give it a proper send off and do it on our terms while people still love the show and still want to watch and engage with it. I’ve known Olisa [Odele, who plays Yemi] since 2017, he never had to audition for his part. We’ve been speaking about these characters for the best part of 10 years. We’re now old. I have grey hairs, there’s a pension being set up for me. In many ways, it’s time to stop writing about being a university student!
Was it difficult to conclude a story which is based on real life events, when you know what happened after?
I think each series of Big Boys is slightly molded to me knowing what’s truthful and what’s a complete work of fiction, or what is a collaboration with the cast. I really rely on the cast to feed in to their characters, whether that’s choices in the moment or even chatting about it beforehand. That’s happened with Olisa. That’s happened with Izuka who plays Corinne. It’s happened with John playing Danny. It’s happened with Katie playing Jules. So there’s a distance that I can personally have from it sometimes, which is really useful and healthy, but the emotional drive behind a scene or storyline is really rooted in truth. We use me as the guideline but so much of it becomes fictional that I stopped obsessing over what’s autobiographical. This final series really does just go off into places that feel right for the show’s ending, rather than what actually happened to me. It has become its own story, but was driven by something truthful
And actually the very ending, the two parter finale, I had those ideas when I wrote the pilot, so I always knew where it was going. There’s lines that are set up in series one episode one that directly pay off in the final episode, and that I’m quite proud of. It’s a whole story. It tells a chapter, a pocket of time, and to give it a proper send off is really, really great.
What’s next for you? Are you working on anything new?
I have got a couple of things I’m writing and developing. I want to go back to being a live comedian. Big Boys came out of three Edinburgh live shows and I miss being on stage performing. I’ve also recently done the odd special show with Self Esteem for 6 Music, I’d love to do some more radio stuff, hopefully some of that might come soon.
The one thing I’m not going to do is write another six part sitcom because I feel like I’ve done it and I’ve loved it, and I don’t want to write anything that’s ever going to comparatively feel similar to it. But what I would love to write is a show that has all the same cast as Big Boys but doing completely different things, playing completely different roles, playing against type. Dylan as like a real nasty, blood thirsty, evil type. Olisa as a straight macho, because I don’t think that’s much of a stretch!
You could create your very own Jack Rooke cinematic universe!
It’s like what Mike Lee does, and loads of directors just work with the same actors. I would like to have that relationship. We all like each other enough.
The show is such a celebration of the British university experience, I was hoping you could cast your mind back to your own uni days for a moment – I’m curious to know which songs conjure memories from that time in your life?
We were big fans of the debut album by the iconic British artist Cheryl. When we were in the gay club in Gordy’s, I got to DJ and it was a lot of 2014 Cheryl. When I hear those beginning chords of ‘Call My Name’, Calvin Harris and Cheryl, I feel like I’m walking into the SU and someone’s going to offer me a shot of strawberries and cream Corky’s. Very basic gay of us. But I also think there’s a lot of crossover songs that I can remember wanting to populate Big Boys with. Solid pop songs but also those kind of indie, off kilter, alternative tracks. There’s a lot of Santigold, Hot Chip, songs from people who I think have been real allies to the community as well. The whole show is very celebratory of that period of time, 2013 to 2016, such a weird era. It was post the London Olympics, we were all really proud to be British. And then Brexit came right at the end of it. I think it was a bit of a weird bubble in pop culture where The X Factor was still riding high. Everything’s very much changed since.
Staple uni drink?
I would fill up those cheap bottles of two quid White Lightning cider, and I’d fill it up with Tesco own brand Ribina. I was disgusting.
The show is all about family, both biological and chosen. Is there anyone from your own chosen family that you might like to shout out?
Olisa! Me and Olisa, we met on a Tinder date and we became best of pals ever since. We thought we should be collaborating and working together and enriching each other’s lives without having to go through the awful gay dating rigmarole. This is the best Tinder date result I’ve ever had – a work collaboration and someone I infinitely trust.
The final season of Big Boys is available to stream in full now on Channel 4.
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