0:00:02 > 0:00:04So, Rob Brydon is 50? Wow, I wonder what that feels like(!)
0:00:04 > 0:00:07MUSIC: If I Only Knew by Tom Jones
0:00:07 > 0:00:11This programme contains strong language
0:00:11 > 0:00:13APPLAUSE Good evening.
0:00:13 > 0:00:15# Yeah, yeah, yeah. #
0:00:21 > 0:00:24I just think of him as a very, very funny man.
0:00:24 > 0:00:26You know, I think he really has got funny bones.
0:00:26 > 0:00:28Ooh. Very pleasurable.
0:00:28 > 0:00:31He's a showman and he has a personality...
0:00:31 > 0:00:32Zar-la! Illa-ar!
0:00:32 > 0:00:34..he's the traditional all-rounder.
0:00:34 > 0:00:41I think Rob would like to be a cross between Bing Crosby and Bob Hope.
0:00:41 > 0:00:43What an audience!
0:00:43 > 0:00:45CHEERING
0:00:45 > 0:00:48He's a brilliant comedian, brilliant writer,
0:00:48 > 0:00:50the man is really something.
0:00:50 > 0:00:52And he is a fellow Welshman.
0:00:52 > 0:00:54Now, how better than that can you get?
0:00:54 > 0:00:58# If I only knew what I should do
0:00:58 > 0:00:59# To make, make you love me... #
0:00:59 > 0:01:02Rob Brydon first came to national prominence
0:01:02 > 0:01:05as the hapless taxi driver Keith Barret
0:01:05 > 0:01:07in the BBC Two series Marion And Geoff.
0:01:07 > 0:01:11Since then, he has rarely been off our screens.
0:01:11 > 0:01:14As an award-winning comedian, an accomplished actor,
0:01:14 > 0:01:18singer and presenter, Rob is now a major A-list talent
0:01:18 > 0:01:21but his road to success was a long one
0:01:21 > 0:01:23that began in a Welsh seaside town.
0:01:23 > 0:01:26IMPRESSION: And for Rob returning to Porthcawl
0:01:26 > 0:01:29after so many years,
0:01:29 > 0:01:33couldn't help but ruminate on the passage of time.
0:01:38 > 0:01:41A visit to the Welsh Riviera is an opportunity for a catch-up
0:01:41 > 0:01:43with his parents, Howard and Joy.
0:01:43 > 0:01:45- What do you want, Rob?- A 99, please.
0:01:45 > 0:01:47A 99 for you.
0:01:47 > 0:01:49WOMAN: Hello, an ordinary ice cream.
0:01:50 > 0:01:51Is it on? Is it recording?
0:01:51 > 0:01:53- CAMERAMAN:- Yeah, yeah, we're recording.
0:01:53 > 0:01:57That's a family joke. You go, "Is it on? Is it recording?"
0:01:57 > 0:02:00It'll be lost on your viewers but, to us, it's very funny.
0:02:04 > 0:02:08Robert Brydon Jones was born in 1965,
0:02:08 > 0:02:11the eldest son of a car salesman and a school teacher.
0:02:11 > 0:02:13I was at private school in Swansea, Dumbarton,
0:02:13 > 0:02:18and then we went to Porthcawl, and I went to Porthcawl Comprehensive.
0:02:18 > 0:02:22And I was nervous of it because my idea of a comprehensive
0:02:22 > 0:02:25was Grange Hill which I thought was barbaric.
0:02:25 > 0:02:29I was quite... I've always been quite soft
0:02:29 > 0:02:32so I was a bit worried about it
0:02:32 > 0:02:33but in fact it was lovely.
0:02:38 > 0:02:41The sun, sea and sand of Porthcawl
0:02:41 > 0:02:44proved to be something of a distraction for the schoolboy.
0:02:44 > 0:02:48It was a bit like suddenly being in school in California
0:02:48 > 0:02:50because you could come at lunchtime,
0:02:50 > 0:02:52you could literally go down to the beach and...
0:02:52 > 0:02:57- And you did.- Yeah, yeah, yeah. - For an extended lunchtime.- Yes.- Yes.
0:02:57 > 0:03:00- Yes.- You didn't rush back, Rob. - But I still got five O-Levels, Mum.
0:03:00 > 0:03:03- You did!- I don't see what the fuss is!
0:03:04 > 0:03:06It was quite glamorous coming in.
0:03:06 > 0:03:09Well, Porthcawl has always had a hint of glamour, don't you think?
0:03:09 > 0:03:11Yeah, I think it has, yeah.
0:03:11 > 0:03:14He was naturally a very bright boy
0:03:14 > 0:03:17but allied with that was asserted laziness
0:03:17 > 0:03:22and lack of interest in academic life, I think.
0:03:22 > 0:03:24I'm 50 this year, I feel 12.
0:03:24 > 0:03:25PARENTS LAUGH
0:03:25 > 0:03:27Not in a good way.
0:03:29 > 0:03:32But while Rob lacked interest in academic studies,
0:03:32 > 0:03:35he discovered a passion for drama and comedy
0:03:35 > 0:03:37when he met the drama teacher, Roger Burnell.
0:03:37 > 0:03:42Roger was definitely a pivotal character, definitely because...
0:03:42 > 0:03:47I feel emotional, you know, saying it because he...
0:03:48 > 0:03:50..gave me confidence.
0:03:50 > 0:03:51I'm walking naturally.
0:03:51 > 0:03:53ROGER LAUGHS
0:03:53 > 0:03:55Unselfconsciously. How are you?
0:03:55 > 0:03:58Good. How are you? Lovely day.
0:03:58 > 0:03:59- Great to see you.- Yeah, and you.
0:03:59 > 0:04:02Well, well, well. Here we are, then.
0:04:02 > 0:04:05I've become more conservative, you've become more flamboyant.
0:04:05 > 0:04:08I mean, surely I'm the one who's embraced show business,
0:04:08 > 0:04:11I should be coming down dressed like a peacock, not you.
0:04:11 > 0:04:15- Bloody hell.- This is just for you, of course.- Thank you. Thank you.
0:04:15 > 0:04:17Now, they want us to turn that way
0:04:17 > 0:04:20but if I do that my bald patch is going to be revealed so can you...?
0:04:20 > 0:04:23- Shall I turn this way?- We'll work like that, yeah. Nice place.
0:04:23 > 0:04:26Nice place. I like it. I like what you've done with it.
0:04:26 > 0:04:28ROGER LAUGHS
0:04:28 > 0:04:29- Shall we go inside?- Yeah.
0:04:32 > 0:04:33This is, er...
0:04:34 > 0:04:38This is very strange because it's exactly the same.
0:04:38 > 0:04:41- Hasn't changed much, has it?- No. Well, not at all, no.- No.
0:04:41 > 0:04:45This is sort of where everything began and where I got a taste.
0:04:45 > 0:04:48- Really?- Yeah, for being on a stage.
0:04:50 > 0:04:54I have so many memories of here.
0:04:54 > 0:04:57- Yeah?- Oh, God.- Good ones?- So many...
0:04:57 > 0:04:58No, they're all bad.
0:04:58 > 0:04:59ROGER LAUGHS
0:04:59 > 0:05:02THEY SING
0:05:02 > 0:05:04Under Roger Burnell's leadership,
0:05:04 > 0:05:09Rob's new school put on an annual show at the Porthcawl Pavilion.
0:05:09 > 0:05:13I always remember when I went with my mum and met with the headmaster
0:05:13 > 0:05:15when we were changing schools and he said...
0:05:15 > 0:05:18AS THE HEADMASTER: "Well, we have a very good drama department here."
0:05:18 > 0:05:22- Mr Ebsworth.- I think it was Mr Ebsworth. He said...
0:05:22 > 0:05:26And we're not Nelson Mandela, it sounds like it might be him.
0:05:26 > 0:05:29It was not Nelson Mandela.
0:05:29 > 0:05:34And he said, "We're putting on West Side Story this year."
0:05:34 > 0:05:36NORMALLY: And I thought, "Oh, wow!"
0:05:36 > 0:05:40And I came along and most of the parts were already gone
0:05:40 > 0:05:42which I thought was a little foolish on your part but...
0:05:42 > 0:05:45So I auditioned and I got to play one of the Jets.
0:05:45 > 0:05:49- I had one line, I think, which was, "It hurts! It hurts!"- Oh, yeah, yeah.
0:05:49 > 0:05:52- Yeah?- The Snowboy or something. - Snowboy, yeah.- Yeah, that's it.
0:05:52 > 0:05:55I'm doing West Side Story here next February strangely enough.
0:05:55 > 0:05:57- Oh, really?- Yeah. Good if you could come, if you're available.
0:05:57 > 0:05:59I would love to come
0:05:59 > 0:06:02because I would like to critique the boy playing Snowboy.
0:06:02 > 0:06:05I would like to pull him to pieces.
0:06:05 > 0:06:08"You, boy, what are you doing? What are you doing?"
0:06:08 > 0:06:13Well, I pity the boy that has to play that part in my shadow.
0:06:13 > 0:06:16Rob was not the only rising star at the school.
0:06:16 > 0:06:19Ruth Jones, who would later find fame as co-writer
0:06:19 > 0:06:23and star of Gavin And Stacey, was a contemporary of Rob's.
0:06:23 > 0:06:26- I remember thinking, "Oh, he's very good at acting."- Really?- I did!
0:06:26 > 0:06:30- Just by saying, "It hurts! It hurts!"?- Yeah.- Good Lord.- I did.
0:06:30 > 0:06:34And you said, "In 25 years,
0:06:34 > 0:06:41- "I will cast him in my award-winning, cultural phenomenal sitcom."- Yes.
0:06:41 > 0:06:44- You thought that then. - Those exact words, I thought.
0:06:44 > 0:06:46I'm glad you did.
0:06:46 > 0:06:48How's the arrangements coming along?
0:06:48 > 0:06:50It's got to the point now where I'm inviting people
0:06:50 > 0:06:53- I know for a fact she doesn't even like.- Not Jean.
0:06:55 > 0:06:57Oh, Bryn.
0:06:57 > 0:07:00'The next year was Sweet Charity and I got the lead role in it.'
0:07:00 > 0:07:02Mwah-mwah!
0:07:02 > 0:07:05And the year after that was Guys And Dolls,
0:07:05 > 0:07:08I got the lead role in that. Mm-hm!
0:07:08 > 0:07:11'And the year after that was Carousel, I was the lead in that
0:07:11 > 0:07:13'and I loved it.'
0:07:13 > 0:07:16# And I never knew how to get money
0:07:16 > 0:07:20# But I'll try, by God, I'll try! #
0:07:20 > 0:07:23I remember standing here singing the Soliloquy and that huge note
0:07:23 > 0:07:28at the end and wanting to hold that note as long as I could.
0:07:28 > 0:07:33# Or die! #
0:07:33 > 0:07:39And then you go, "Yeah!" And then you'd walk off there, light-headed
0:07:39 > 0:07:42because I'd held the note so long but you didn't want to let it go
0:07:42 > 0:07:46but I vividly remember that, about the walking off,
0:07:46 > 0:07:51feeling like Elvis and being light-headed.
0:07:52 > 0:07:55# You can't deny me... #
0:07:55 > 0:07:58As an early fan of Rob's singing,
0:07:58 > 0:08:01Ruth Jones made regular use of Rob's enthusiasm,
0:08:01 > 0:08:03giving Uncle Bryn plenty of opportunities
0:08:03 > 0:08:05to get up and belt out a song.
0:08:05 > 0:08:08That singing voice, well, it still is brilliant,
0:08:08 > 0:08:12even back then you were like, "How on earth does he do it?"
0:08:12 > 0:08:17# I wonder what he'll think of me... #
0:08:17 > 0:08:21The one thing I do remember is playing lead roles here
0:08:21 > 0:08:23and then auditioning for the National Youth Theatre of Wales,
0:08:23 > 0:08:26got into the National Youth Theatre of Wales
0:08:26 > 0:08:28and that was a bit of a rude awakening
0:08:28 > 0:08:32because I played tiny, tiny roles,
0:08:32 > 0:08:34you know, which I wasn't happy about.
0:08:34 > 0:08:36- Not appreciated? - Not appreciated.- No.
0:08:36 > 0:08:39And then there were other people playing the meaty roles
0:08:39 > 0:08:41and I was thinking, "Well, that should be me." And that...
0:08:41 > 0:08:43But that's, in a way, you know,
0:08:43 > 0:08:48- is good preparation for the realities of life in the business.- Absolutely.
0:08:49 > 0:08:52At the National Youth Theatre of Wales,
0:08:52 > 0:08:55Rob formed a life long friendship with actor Steve Speirs.
0:08:55 > 0:08:58It was really interesting, the Youth Theatre, because we were,
0:08:58 > 0:08:59I suppose, sort of, more...
0:08:59 > 0:09:03I don't know if we were sort of emotionally or sexually more stunted
0:09:03 > 0:09:05than the other young 16 or 17-year-olds
0:09:05 > 0:09:08but when they were all, sort of, going out with girls
0:09:08 > 0:09:09and spent their times in dormitories,
0:09:09 > 0:09:11sort of, playing the guitar,
0:09:11 > 0:09:14Rob and I were going off to see, like, Star Trek films
0:09:14 > 0:09:17and looking through his catalogue of Sylvester Stallone
0:09:17 > 0:09:19so we must've come across as a couple of weirdos, actually.
0:09:24 > 0:09:27See, now when I was a boy, I didn't drink alcohol.
0:09:27 > 0:09:29I didn't drink alcohol until I was 35
0:09:29 > 0:09:31and I came to your birthday party in Merthyr.
0:09:31 > 0:09:34- Which one was it? - I was 18.- Your 18th.
0:09:34 > 0:09:37I'd never drunk in my life and somebody, that night...
0:09:37 > 0:09:41- Oh, yeah, I forgot about this! - ..spiked my drink.
0:09:41 > 0:09:43"I'll have a Coke!" You used to say, always, "I'll have a Coke."
0:09:43 > 0:09:46So I decided it would be quite good to put a load of vodka in it
0:09:46 > 0:09:49and the night was getting better and better for you, wasn't it?
0:09:49 > 0:09:52I do remember singing in the streets going back to your house.
0:09:52 > 0:09:55- Yeah, it was fantastic. Yeah, you came to stay at my mother's.- Yeah.
0:09:55 > 0:09:56We had everybody there at my mother's,
0:09:56 > 0:09:59people lying on tea towels, anything at all. "Have that, go to sleep."
0:09:59 > 0:10:02- And... Yeah, were you ill that night?- Yes!
0:10:02 > 0:10:05Of course I was ill! I'd never drunk before.
0:10:05 > 0:10:07AS STEVE SPEIRS: "Were you ill that night? Were you ill?"
0:10:07 > 0:10:10- NORMALLY: Yes!- It might have something to do with
0:10:10 > 0:10:12that half a bottle of vodka I'd snuck in his Coke.
0:10:12 > 0:10:15But I do remember you saying, "I'm having a great night!"
0:10:18 > 0:10:20At the age of 19,
0:10:20 > 0:10:23Rob went on to win a place at the Welsh College of Music & Drama.
0:10:26 > 0:10:30It was in 1984, I came here
0:10:30 > 0:10:34and I was only coming from Baglan, which is only about...
0:10:34 > 0:10:37I'm going to say 30 miles, it's something like that
0:10:37 > 0:10:40so that's not far, you know,
0:10:40 > 0:10:44but it was... I felt it was a big deal coming to Cardiff.
0:10:48 > 0:10:51Rob has been invited back to the college
0:10:51 > 0:10:53to talk to the current students.
0:10:53 > 0:10:57APPLAUSE AND CHEERING
0:10:57 > 0:10:59Thank you very much. Thank you.
0:11:01 > 0:11:02Thank you. Please, that's...
0:11:05 > 0:11:08No, that's very generous.
0:11:09 > 0:11:12I think it'll be about 20 minutes before you realise
0:11:12 > 0:11:15quite how generous it was.
0:11:15 > 0:11:20I auditioned for Rada, Central and the Welsh College of Music & Drama.
0:11:20 > 0:11:23Rada and Central were in London, the Welsh College is in Cardiff
0:11:23 > 0:11:27and I didn't get into Rada and I didn't get into Central
0:11:27 > 0:11:30but I got into Cardiff. And when I auditioned for Cardiff
0:11:30 > 0:11:32I felt far more at home there, you know.
0:11:32 > 0:11:34Who has a question?
0:11:36 > 0:11:37Yes, you.
0:11:37 > 0:11:40Is there a piece of advice that you've received that's been helpful
0:11:40 > 0:11:42for you to go back to over the course of your career?
0:11:42 > 0:11:44Take a leaf from the Americans.
0:11:44 > 0:11:47I mean, I've just been in America and those actors, my God,
0:11:47 > 0:11:50they take it seriously. They're so professional.
0:11:50 > 0:11:52IN AMERICAN ACCENT: If they're going for a casting,
0:11:52 > 0:11:55they've learned it, you know.
0:11:55 > 0:11:58NORMALLY: And we tend to go in, "You don't mind if I read, do you?
0:11:59 > 0:12:02"No, I tell you again, Roger,
0:12:02 > 0:12:05"he's been having an affair with your wife and you don't know it.
0:12:08 > 0:12:11"Well, you may well feel that, Roger, but I..."
0:12:11 > 0:12:12"Sorry.
0:12:12 > 0:12:15"You may well feel that, Roger..." You know, the Americans -
0:12:15 > 0:12:18IN AMERICAN ACCENT: "I don't care, Roger, he's having an affair
0:12:18 > 0:12:20"with your wife and I'm telling it to you right now. Oh, really?!"
0:12:20 > 0:12:23NORMALLY: And they'll dress like the part and they'll do it.
0:12:23 > 0:12:27Get a little bit of that going on, make it easier for the people.
0:12:27 > 0:12:32Having said that, I've never got a single thing I've auditioned for.
0:12:32 > 0:12:34So I'm maybe not the man to ask.
0:12:34 > 0:12:38APPLAUSE
0:12:39 > 0:12:42- RUTH JONES:- I always sort of thought of Rob as the person
0:12:42 > 0:12:43that was going to make it
0:12:43 > 0:12:46and he was going to actually become professional
0:12:46 > 0:12:48and, of course, that is what happened
0:12:48 > 0:12:50because he went to drama school
0:12:50 > 0:12:55and then whilst he was at drama school, he got a job at the BBC.
0:12:57 > 0:13:01It's 7.30 on a cold, damp night here in Usk.
0:13:01 > 0:13:04We're at Cliff Richard's second home, Savva's nightclub,
0:13:04 > 0:13:08where, tonight, it's the final of the karaoke championships.
0:13:08 > 0:13:10Already inside the club they're limbering up,
0:13:10 > 0:13:12flexing those vocal cords.
0:13:12 > 0:13:14Let's go inside and get a piece of the action.
0:13:14 > 0:13:20# Spend a little time with me! #
0:13:20 > 0:13:23We may find tonight a new Rick Astley or Samantha Fox.
0:13:23 > 0:13:25What a frightening thought.
0:13:25 > 0:13:29Of course I was then, like, so in awe of this,
0:13:29 > 0:13:33that Rob had got a job at BBC Wales, it was like, "Oh, my God!"
0:13:33 > 0:13:35I remember going back to the college with a leather jacket
0:13:35 > 0:13:39that I'd bought and I remember one of the tutors there looking at me
0:13:39 > 0:13:42and saying in a not entirely approving way,
0:13:42 > 0:13:45"Yes, you look very successful."
0:13:45 > 0:13:47And I thought, "Ooh."
0:13:47 > 0:13:52And I also remember my last ever tutorial at the Welsh college,
0:13:52 > 0:13:56they said, "We worry you're drifting towards light entertainment."
0:13:58 > 0:14:00How right they were.
0:14:00 > 0:14:03INVASION THEME PLAYS
0:14:05 > 0:14:07Over the course of six years,
0:14:07 > 0:14:12Rob would present a variety of TV and radio shows for BBC Wales.
0:14:12 > 0:14:13Good evening and welcome.
0:14:13 > 0:14:16My name's Rob Jones, welcome to the only game show
0:14:16 > 0:14:19on television in which we ask you to invade your country.
0:14:19 > 0:14:21APPLAUSE
0:14:21 > 0:14:24During this period, Rob discovered another Rob Jones
0:14:24 > 0:14:29already making his way in showbiz and changed his name to Rob Brydon.
0:14:29 > 0:14:30Isn't it a nice house, eh?
0:14:30 > 0:14:33It's like one of those ones you see in the magazines.
0:14:34 > 0:14:36'Great to see you.'
0:14:36 > 0:14:39Shortly after, he was teamed up with Alan Thompson
0:14:39 > 0:14:42to present the late-night radio show, Rave.
0:14:42 > 0:14:44'The Love Minute here on Rave.
0:14:44 > 0:14:46'If you've had a personal tragedy in your life
0:14:46 > 0:14:51'or parted from a loved one recently, then I'd love to hear about it.'
0:14:51 > 0:14:53Look at those two good-looking guys there,
0:14:53 > 0:14:56they look like a sort of version of Haircut 100 meets Wham!
0:14:56 > 0:15:00So that's what we look like in 1991.
0:15:00 > 0:15:03We had about 3,000 of these printed up, the BBC did,
0:15:03 > 0:15:06which we used to sign because the show was very popular
0:15:06 > 0:15:09and send them out. But when it came back from the printers,
0:15:09 > 0:15:13if you notice, my name is actually above Rob Brydon's name.
0:15:13 > 0:15:16Rob wasn't happy about this, he won't mind me saying this,
0:15:16 > 0:15:18he wasn't amused and, in fact, the line,
0:15:18 > 0:15:22"I'm not having anything to do with THOSE" springs to mind.
0:15:23 > 0:15:26Rob used the late-night show to explore a range
0:15:26 > 0:15:30of improvised comic characters, quickly winning a cult following.
0:15:30 > 0:15:32The Rave stuff, I didn't realise it
0:15:32 > 0:15:34but it was sort of breeding ground or testing ground for stuff
0:15:34 > 0:15:37because just thinking that a particular voice was funny like...
0:15:37 > 0:15:40AS JEREMIAH FANNY: ..Jeremiah Fanny talking like that,
0:15:40 > 0:15:42I just thought that in itself was funny.
0:15:42 > 0:15:43Nothing more than that, just, you know,
0:15:43 > 0:15:46and then him being in the Fine Fanny Four.
0:15:46 > 0:15:48NORMALLY: Well, fanny is a funny word.
0:15:50 > 0:15:52'Because, of course, you toured with Marley, didn't you?'
0:15:52 > 0:15:55AS JEREMIAH FANNY: 'I toured with Ron Marley, that's right.
0:15:55 > 0:15:58'No, he wasn't a singer, he had a performing dog act.
0:15:58 > 0:16:01'Ron Marley and his Poodles and they were very big at the festivals,
0:16:01 > 0:16:04'the Bristol Kite Festival, very big...'
0:16:04 > 0:16:07After two years, Rave came to an abrupt end,
0:16:07 > 0:16:11obliging Rob to leave BBC Wales and make his move to London,
0:16:11 > 0:16:13in search of fame and fortune.
0:16:13 > 0:16:17MUSIC: Everybody's Talkin' by Harry Nilsson
0:16:21 > 0:16:25# Everybody's talkin' at me
0:16:25 > 0:16:29# I don't hear a word they're saying... #
0:16:29 > 0:16:33London was always where I wanted to be so it was always a question,
0:16:33 > 0:16:36"Well, how do I get there?" And I was helped on my way
0:16:36 > 0:16:40by being let go of by Radio Wales at the BBC there.
0:16:40 > 0:16:43Erm...
0:16:43 > 0:16:47And I slowly, sort of, started to pick up TV presenting jobs up here
0:16:47 > 0:16:51on The Shopping Channel, which was never a great goal of mine.
0:16:51 > 0:16:54- Rob.- Yes.- You know the Satellite Shop?- Yeah.
0:16:54 > 0:16:57- Well, you know they sell all those different products?- Yeah.
0:16:57 > 0:17:00Well, how many of those wonderful products can you remember?
0:17:00 > 0:17:04Well, there's cycle rowers, diamond rings, washer/dryers...
0:17:04 > 0:17:06While Rob was looking for his big acting break,
0:17:06 > 0:17:10his financial fortunes seemed to turn when he and Steve Speirs
0:17:10 > 0:17:14were cast in a series of commercials for a chocolate bar.
0:17:14 > 0:17:17We got cast in a Toffee Crisp commercial.
0:17:17 > 0:17:20And we were a double act sort of thing in it
0:17:20 > 0:17:22and we were really excited, we filmed in Pinewood.
0:17:22 > 0:17:24Well, filmed at Pinewood, that was a thrill
0:17:24 > 0:17:27- because the Bond movies are made there.- Yep.
0:17:27 > 0:17:29Hellooo.
0:17:29 > 0:17:32- I've taken over your mind.- Oh!
0:17:32 > 0:17:35- We fish are superior beings.- Oh!
0:17:35 > 0:17:38You must give me your Toffee Crisp.
0:17:38 > 0:17:39Oh!
0:17:39 > 0:17:42Executives later binned the campaign
0:17:42 > 0:17:45and these adverts never made it onto TV...
0:17:45 > 0:17:47..until now.
0:17:47 > 0:17:51I've warned you before about that goldfish.
0:17:51 > 0:17:54'These adverts were going to change our lives financially.'
0:17:54 > 0:17:57'Yeah, and we were going to get paid a lot of money for it.'
0:17:57 > 0:17:59You took out a loan on the strength of it, didn't you?
0:17:59 > 0:18:01I went into the bank in Treharris, South Wales and I went
0:18:01 > 0:18:04and said to the bloke, I just said, "Any chance of five grand?
0:18:04 > 0:18:07"I've just had a big commercial." And he went, "Yeah, course, mate.
0:18:07 > 0:18:09"No problem whatsoever." I've never recovered from it.
0:18:09 > 0:18:12- And then we did the ads and then it all went very quiet.- And I blame you.
0:18:12 > 0:18:16- Why?- Well, I think, you know, why didn't they come out?
0:18:16 > 0:18:18One of us must've been no good.
0:18:18 > 0:18:20And I thought I was pretty good.
0:18:20 > 0:18:23Although struggling to get credible acting roles,
0:18:23 > 0:18:27Rob found he was able to use his vocal talents to support himself
0:18:27 > 0:18:31and his growing family with plenty of well-paid voiceover work.
0:18:31 > 0:18:34Soho, where we are now, is where all the voiceovers happen
0:18:34 > 0:18:35and I always thought,
0:18:35 > 0:18:39"Well, I can do stuff with my voice, this is where it's all happening."
0:18:39 > 0:18:43And for a few years, this, all around here,
0:18:43 > 0:18:45was like a golden square mile
0:18:45 > 0:18:50because you would literally go from one voiceover to another,
0:18:50 > 0:18:52sometimes four or five a day.
0:18:52 > 0:18:57For a while, it really sated my creative desires, you know,
0:18:57 > 0:19:01cos I couldn't get acting work, nothing of any note, you know.
0:19:01 > 0:19:05I think when you're trying to get ahead,
0:19:05 > 0:19:09- I think you have a very strange idea of how it might happen.- Yeah.
0:19:09 > 0:19:12I wrote to Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves
0:19:12 > 0:19:16when I heard they were casting that Kevin Costner movie, with my CV.
0:19:16 > 0:19:19I was a shopping channel presenter at the time.
0:19:19 > 0:19:22I mean, in what alternate universe are the makers
0:19:22 > 0:19:26of Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves going to cast a man who's...?
0:19:26 > 0:19:29"Right, hang on, never mind about those CVs,
0:19:29 > 0:19:30"I know he's done lots of films.
0:19:30 > 0:19:33"What about this guy from the shopping channel? Can we...?
0:19:33 > 0:19:36- "Put him at the top of the list." - But I sent it off, you know...
0:19:36 > 0:19:39And you did, you got a thing in, well after that though, wasn't it?
0:19:39 > 0:19:42- I ended up in a film called First Knight with Richard Gere.- That's it.
0:19:42 > 0:19:44'I remember that and how excited you were about that.'
0:19:44 > 0:19:47- We went to the cinema to see it together.- Exactly, we went together.
0:19:47 > 0:19:50And we sat down, we went with our partners, it was exciting.
0:19:50 > 0:19:53Richard Gere, Sean Connery - they weren't our partners.
0:19:53 > 0:19:57We went with our partners and we sat there and I remember it coming on
0:19:57 > 0:20:00and my scene is at the very beginning and I was thinking, "This is it.
0:20:00 > 0:20:03"This is the beginning of my Hollywood career."
0:20:03 > 0:20:04Go on. Yes!
0:20:06 > 0:20:08I stank the place out and I kind of went...
0:20:08 > 0:20:10oh... And I couldn't wait to leave.
0:20:10 > 0:20:15I made a big fuss about being there and once I saw his work
0:20:15 > 0:20:17I moved a few aisles along.
0:20:17 > 0:20:21I said, "It's a fucking embarrassment, quite frankly."
0:20:22 > 0:20:25I was terrible. It was terrible, and I don't think I was in another film
0:20:25 > 0:20:27after that for a long time.
0:20:27 > 0:20:30But that was the main thing, there was so much impetus,
0:20:30 > 0:20:32there was so much...
0:20:32 > 0:20:36desire to get somewhere cos I was heading to 35 -
0:20:36 > 0:20:39I was heading to my mid-30s and I hadn't made it.
0:20:39 > 0:20:41You know, I...
0:20:41 > 0:20:43And I thought that I would have done.
0:20:43 > 0:20:46And people said always said I was good, they always encouraged me.
0:20:46 > 0:20:49I thought, "Why is it not happening?" You know, so...
0:20:49 > 0:20:52I was...
0:20:52 > 0:20:54"Let me show you what I can do."
0:20:55 > 0:21:00Rob sent me this videotape, a showreel. I watched it
0:21:00 > 0:21:02and there was some bits that were OK
0:21:02 > 0:21:05and then there some bits that were very, very good.
0:21:05 > 0:21:08And one of the bits that was very good
0:21:08 > 0:21:13was him being this taxi driver, talking directly to the camera.
0:21:14 > 0:21:17Mrs Thompson.
0:21:17 > 0:21:20Going to see her boy, Alan. He's a cabbie. Got admitted last night.
0:21:21 > 0:21:24Assaulted by two blokes he picked up.
0:21:24 > 0:21:27At a vegetarian restaurant.
0:21:27 > 0:21:29I went in to the BBC
0:21:29 > 0:21:33with my, you know, heavyweight credentials...
0:21:33 > 0:21:36and banged my fists on the table
0:21:36 > 0:21:41and said, "You need to give this guy a series." And they, uh...
0:21:41 > 0:21:43They went for it.
0:21:43 > 0:21:45OK, where am I going to?
0:21:45 > 0:21:49Marion and Geoff told the tale of naive but optimistic Keith Barret
0:21:49 > 0:21:52whose wife, Marion, left him for her lover, Geoff,
0:21:52 > 0:21:55taking their two children with her.
0:21:55 > 0:21:57What a month.
0:21:57 > 0:22:01Doctors, lawyers, divorce.
0:22:01 > 0:22:04Then I get a call at the house from the DSS.
0:22:04 > 0:22:08"We want to see you." I troop down there. They say,
0:22:08 > 0:22:09"Mr Barret,
0:22:09 > 0:22:12"you've been working, you've been doing a job, earning a wage."
0:22:12 > 0:22:14I said, "I've been TRYING to earn a wage.
0:22:14 > 0:22:17"But I haven't had a single fare."
0:22:17 > 0:22:21They didn't believe - what's going on here? - they didn't believe me.
0:22:21 > 0:22:25So I took them down to the cab office.
0:22:25 > 0:22:27They nearly jumped out of their skin.
0:22:27 > 0:22:30They didn't know what had happened to me, they'd been trying to contact me.
0:22:30 > 0:22:32I had the radio on the wrong channel.
0:22:32 > 0:22:36I loved it because it was funny and poignant and moving.
0:22:36 > 0:22:39And I was a little bit envious of it because the stuff I'd been doing
0:22:39 > 0:22:44up to that point had been funny but not really moving.
0:22:44 > 0:22:47It's not that the kids think of Geoff as their father, because they don't.
0:22:47 > 0:22:50They think of him... as an uncle.
0:22:50 > 0:22:52Special uncle. A new uncle.
0:22:52 > 0:22:56I like him. If you like someone, you like him, you can't help it.
0:22:56 > 0:23:02I mean, I actually said to him, "I don't feel like I've lost a wife,
0:23:02 > 0:23:05"I feel like I've gained a friend."
0:23:05 > 0:23:08I would never have met Geoff if Marion hadn't left me.
0:23:08 > 0:23:11Not a chance of it. We're in different worlds.
0:23:11 > 0:23:13He's in pharmaceuticals, I'm in cars.
0:23:13 > 0:23:15Literally, I'm in the car.
0:23:15 > 0:23:18I bear you no ill, sir.
0:23:18 > 0:23:20I bear you no ill.
0:23:20 > 0:23:23I first really was totally hypnotised by Rob
0:23:23 > 0:23:28in Marion And Geoff and I thought that was really
0:23:28 > 0:23:30a deep, deep performance.
0:23:30 > 0:23:33Wonderfully apparently throw-away
0:23:33 > 0:23:38but it was...really an incredibly impressive piece of work, I thought.
0:23:38 > 0:23:43And I was worried that it might be too much - that it was too violent.
0:23:45 > 0:23:47But like his mother says, you know,
0:23:47 > 0:23:50"He's a very violent child."
0:23:50 > 0:23:54It wasn't only Marion And Geoff that was receiving critical acclaim.
0:23:54 > 0:23:57After years of slow and stilted progress,
0:23:57 > 0:24:00Rob suddenly found his career was gathering momentum.
0:24:00 > 0:24:04I had a 15 or 16 week run of me being on the television.
0:24:04 > 0:24:07Because Marion And Geoff were ten episodes, ten minutes each.
0:24:07 > 0:24:12And then before that I had finished, Human Remains started.
0:24:12 > 0:24:16The darkly comic series documented the relationships
0:24:16 > 0:24:20of six different couples, all played by Rob and Julia Davis.
0:24:20 > 0:24:25She was mowed down three nights before her birthday.
0:24:25 > 0:24:27We've a hunch it was a neighbour. Bob Crawfis.
0:24:27 > 0:24:30Ginger hair, dressed like a cat, but...
0:24:30 > 0:24:35- he denies it.- Claims he was stationary. Says that Val ran at him.
0:24:35 > 0:24:38Says it was a suicide attempt.
0:24:38 > 0:24:41- She was thrown 20 feet. - He says she was in training.
0:24:41 > 0:24:44I mean, some people do plan their suicides very meticulously.
0:24:47 > 0:24:50Still, we get a carers allowance for her, so...
0:24:50 > 0:24:53We do, it's a nice touch and we think it's what Val would want...
0:24:53 > 0:24:55If she were able to speak...
0:24:55 > 0:24:59..we go out once a month for a film and a meal.
0:24:59 > 0:25:02We used to actually bring little titbits back for her,
0:25:02 > 0:25:05little doggy bag back from the restaurant.
0:25:05 > 0:25:07But there's only so much you can administer intravenously
0:25:07 > 0:25:10- from a typical trattoria menu. - Mm. It's a shame.
0:25:10 > 0:25:13There's some smashing dishes out there.
0:25:15 > 0:25:17She seems happy, though.
0:25:19 > 0:25:22And we all like a lie-in.
0:25:22 > 0:25:25With Human Remains I remember these characters just poured out
0:25:25 > 0:25:30cos I had 30-something years of wanting an opportunity like this.
0:25:30 > 0:25:35I want it white, right? I want this to be up higher and tighter,
0:25:35 > 0:25:37so we're seeing the top of her legs, like that, right?
0:25:37 > 0:25:39It's a short dress he wants.
0:25:39 > 0:25:44Here, now, right - top of the tit visible right? Here...
0:25:44 > 0:25:47- long hat over the front of the face. - The veil?- Long hat.
0:25:47 > 0:25:51'I loved the process of creating'
0:25:51 > 0:25:53these characters.
0:25:53 > 0:25:57And I do sort of feel that I kind of used up all my archetypes in there.
0:25:57 > 0:26:00There were six characters in Human remains.
0:26:01 > 0:26:04And nowadays when I try to come up with something it tends to start
0:26:04 > 0:26:08a bit like one of the Human Remains characters cos there's only so many
0:26:08 > 0:26:11you can come up, or so many attitudes you can come up with.
0:26:11 > 0:26:15And they were very varied, the Human Remains, you know, there was
0:26:15 > 0:26:17some very different types in there.
0:26:18 > 0:26:21Sadly, Vicar David cannot be with us this evening.
0:26:21 > 0:26:24- However he does send his very special prayers.- Amen.
0:26:24 > 0:26:28Particularly to Joyce whose husband, Brian,
0:26:28 > 0:26:32lost his short battle to cancer this weekend,
0:26:32 > 0:26:35- when he was snatched by Satan's claws.- Satan won.
0:26:35 > 0:26:36Satan won.
0:26:36 > 0:26:39Satan 1-0 Brian. There'll be no rematch, take it from me.
0:26:39 > 0:26:45He has a capacity to reveal a darker side...
0:26:45 > 0:26:48a perfectly normal one, we all have it, it's just he seems to have
0:26:48 > 0:26:50an access to it that, again,
0:26:50 > 0:26:53I think's part of the dark Welsh part of him.
0:26:53 > 0:26:56My first marriage was...
0:26:56 > 0:26:57It was...
0:26:57 > 0:27:00in a bad place and was...
0:27:00 > 0:27:05was ending. On the one hand I was going to the British Comedy Awards,
0:27:05 > 0:27:09the South Bank Show Awards, all these things - winning awards -
0:27:09 > 0:27:13everything was wonderful but at the other side it was awful.
0:27:13 > 0:27:16So it was upsetting, really.
0:27:16 > 0:27:20With moments of, you know...
0:27:20 > 0:27:21egotistical happiness.
0:27:24 > 0:27:28With two critically acclaimed series to his name, doors were now opening.
0:27:28 > 0:27:31When he was cast in the comedy drama Cruise Of The Gods,
0:27:31 > 0:27:33Rob found himself among people who were
0:27:33 > 0:27:37all on the verge of becoming household names.
0:27:37 > 0:27:40We were filming on this cruise ship
0:27:40 > 0:27:45and the cruise ship actually hit the ground coming out of port,
0:27:45 > 0:27:48and a big hole appeared in the hull.
0:27:48 > 0:27:52Which meant we had to get off that boat and on to another boat
0:27:52 > 0:27:55and there weren't enough rooms to go round.
0:27:55 > 0:27:58And me and Rob elected to share a room.
0:27:58 > 0:28:04And so we got to know each other very, very well, very, very quickly.
0:28:04 > 0:28:09We were both going through some things in our personal lives
0:28:09 > 0:28:12and we were both sort of shoulders to cry on for each other,
0:28:12 > 0:28:16but also, we just laughed a lot together.
0:28:16 > 0:28:18And...he used to do funny things like,
0:28:18 > 0:28:23if he'd get up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom
0:28:23 > 0:28:24and I heard him,
0:28:24 > 0:28:30I would just start going, "Oh, my, Rob! Oh, my, Rob!"
0:28:30 > 0:28:32just to make him laugh.
0:28:32 > 0:28:35And so it was a very, very intimate friendship
0:28:35 > 0:28:39based a lot on making each other laugh.
0:28:39 > 0:28:42And he is one of the funniest people you could ever meet.
0:28:42 > 0:28:45Britain, Britain, Britain.
0:28:45 > 0:28:49Shortly after Cruise Of The Gods, David Walliams called upon Rob
0:28:49 > 0:28:54to advise as script editor on the massive hit Little Britain.
0:28:54 > 0:28:58The first series had, you know, become this really big success
0:28:58 > 0:29:00and you're really in danger of...
0:29:02 > 0:29:04..well, not listening to people any more.
0:29:04 > 0:29:08So, someone like Rob, he's very sensible, he's a little bit older -
0:29:08 > 0:29:12he is, in fact, 50 years old - and he'd be very, very honest with us.
0:29:12 > 0:29:16And he does it in such a way that you'd never, ever be offended
0:29:16 > 0:29:18if he said he didn't find something funny.
0:29:18 > 0:29:20At Hill Grange Health Spa,
0:29:20 > 0:29:24former Miss Botswana Desiree DeVere is relaxing
0:29:24 > 0:29:27after her fried onion foot scrub.
0:29:27 > 0:29:32Oh! Hasn't that Victoria Beckham put on weight? She looks grotesque.
0:29:32 > 0:29:35Rob moved in front of the camera in the third series,
0:29:35 > 0:29:38playing Roman, Bubble DeVere's ex-husband.
0:29:38 > 0:29:43- ..Because your skin is quite sensitive.- Yeah, that's lovely.
0:29:43 > 0:29:45It's very soothing.
0:29:45 > 0:29:49They were very, very hard shoots, those Bubble sketches,
0:29:49 > 0:29:52and me and Matt both had to get up at about 3am
0:29:52 > 0:29:55and have the prosthetics put on for about four or five hours.
0:29:55 > 0:29:57Then we'd have to film for 11 or 12 hours
0:29:57 > 0:30:00and then it would take a couple of hours to get off.
0:30:00 > 0:30:02So, we were in quite low moods,
0:30:02 > 0:30:07because we were hot, we were tired and we had a lot to do.
0:30:07 > 0:30:09Do I have to pay extra for this?
0:30:09 > 0:30:14No, no. It's all part of the service.
0:30:14 > 0:30:15Ooh!
0:30:15 > 0:30:18And Rob, in the middle of it, was fantastic,
0:30:18 > 0:30:21because he just kept our spirits up the whole time
0:30:21 > 0:30:24by being hilarious, by being a brilliant actor,
0:30:24 > 0:30:26by giving us great ideas.
0:30:26 > 0:30:30So, I've always felt very, very lucky to work with him.
0:30:31 > 0:30:34- Bubby! What are you doing, bubby? - Hello, darling.
0:30:34 > 0:30:38- It's not what it looks like. - Get off him, you Jezebel.
0:30:38 > 0:30:41Now, bubby, I will go.
0:30:41 > 0:30:44Hope I haven't spoiled your honeymoon, darlings.
0:30:44 > 0:30:45SHE CACKLES
0:30:47 > 0:30:50How could you do this to me, bubby, with your ex-wife?
0:30:50 > 0:30:54- I was tricked into it. I'm completely innocent.- Is that what you want?
0:30:54 > 0:30:58- You want to get back with that harlot?- No, no, honestly.
0:30:58 > 0:30:59I-I hated every minute of it.
0:31:01 > 0:31:03SHE SPLUTTERS
0:31:05 > 0:31:06Naughty!
0:31:15 > 0:31:16After years of struggle,
0:31:16 > 0:31:20Rob Brydon was finally gaining the recognition he desired,
0:31:20 > 0:31:24but now felt a need to carefully consider the roles offered to him.
0:31:24 > 0:31:26When his old friend Ruth Jones approached him
0:31:26 > 0:31:29to play the part of Uncle Bryn in Gavin And Stacey,
0:31:29 > 0:31:30he was initially unsure.
0:31:32 > 0:31:37Ruth and James wrote it for me and I read it.
0:31:38 > 0:31:40And I thought it was really good.
0:31:40 > 0:31:44But I wasn't going to do it, because I thought,
0:31:44 > 0:31:48"Oh, you know, I'm going to be doing another Welsh character."
0:31:48 > 0:31:51Cos Bryn is not a million miles away from Keith.
0:31:51 > 0:31:55It's a different character, but it's not a million miles away, you know.
0:31:55 > 0:31:58There I was, having a bath, when the phone goes, it's Glenda.
0:31:58 > 0:32:02She says, "Gav's mum and dad have pulled up outside Gwen's."
0:32:02 > 0:32:05I said, "Don't be daft, Glenda." But lo and behold,
0:32:05 > 0:32:07she was right and there you are.
0:32:07 > 0:32:11- Here we are.- Here we are.- Wait there, I'll get dressed. I'm naked.
0:32:11 > 0:32:15This is when, you know, I was still thinking, "What will people think?"
0:32:15 > 0:32:17as opposed to just doing what I wanted to do, you know.
0:32:17 > 0:32:21I mean, you know, thank God I DID do it.
0:32:21 > 0:32:22Ooh!
0:32:26 > 0:32:28- Ever seen one of these?- What?
0:32:28 > 0:32:31No film in there. Digital.
0:32:31 > 0:32:36One of the first speeches that we wrote, before it became a script,
0:32:36 > 0:32:38when we were just kind of finding the characters,
0:32:38 > 0:32:41ended up in episode six of the first series, in the wedding,
0:32:41 > 0:32:43which was the digital camera speech.
0:32:43 > 0:32:45Oh! Digital, it is, you see?
0:32:45 > 0:32:49There's no film. Look. I take that, it's a picture of my hand.
0:32:49 > 0:32:50I don't want that, delete it.
0:32:50 > 0:32:53I've got night mode.
0:32:54 > 0:32:58Black and white. Use that later, probably, for effect.
0:32:58 > 0:33:01Sepia. "Seepia", "sepia" - I don't know how you say it.
0:33:01 > 0:33:04Got a feeling it's faulty.
0:33:04 > 0:33:06Just makes everything go brown.
0:33:06 > 0:33:10# Baby, when I met you There was peace unknown
0:33:10 > 0:33:12# I set out to get you... #
0:33:12 > 0:33:15Hailed as essential viewing and the best sitcom of its decade,
0:33:15 > 0:33:17Gavin And Stacey propelled Rob and Ruth
0:33:17 > 0:33:22firmly into the mainstream and into the nation's hearts.
0:33:22 > 0:33:25While performing a duet at a barn dance in the second series,
0:33:25 > 0:33:30little did the pair from Porthcawl realise where it would lead to.
0:33:30 > 0:33:32When it came to us a few years later
0:33:32 > 0:33:35that Comic Relief wanted to do something
0:33:35 > 0:33:37that was set in Gavin And Stacey world,
0:33:37 > 0:33:40it just seemed like the obvious choice, really.
0:33:40 > 0:33:44And...what an amazing experience.
0:33:48 > 0:33:52We basically decided to go big and said,
0:33:52 > 0:33:55"Can we go and film this in Vegas?"
0:33:55 > 0:33:58and to see if Tom Jones will do it.
0:33:58 > 0:34:00And it was that thing of reach for the stars
0:34:00 > 0:34:02and you might get the moon kind of thing.
0:34:02 > 0:34:05And, weirdly, it all worked out.
0:34:05 > 0:34:06What's occurring, pussycat?
0:34:09 > 0:34:11I will never forget...
0:34:11 > 0:34:15One of my best, best memories ever in my life and career
0:34:15 > 0:34:19is when Rob and I hear this incredible voice and we look up
0:34:19 > 0:34:25and Tom Jones is just walking towards us through the crowds.
0:34:25 > 0:34:28# Sail away with me...
0:34:28 > 0:34:30# Sail away with me
0:34:30 > 0:34:33- # Islands in the stream - Islands in the stream
0:34:33 > 0:34:35- # That is what we are - That is what we are
0:34:35 > 0:34:36# No-one in between... #
0:34:36 > 0:34:40Both of us just went completely cold,
0:34:40 > 0:34:43goose bumped and filled up, actually.
0:34:43 > 0:34:48We got quite emotional, because, you know, you think about it,
0:34:48 > 0:34:54it's like, essentially, two kids from Porthcawl Comp
0:34:54 > 0:34:56in Las Vegas,
0:34:56 > 0:35:01singing what was to become a number-one hit with Tom Jones.
0:35:01 > 0:35:03And...
0:35:03 > 0:35:08it was a really special moment, and beautiful to share it with Rob.
0:35:08 > 0:35:12Singing with Rob and Ruth on Islands In The Stream,
0:35:12 > 0:35:15singing with Ruth was wonderful.
0:35:15 > 0:35:17With Rob, ehhhh.
0:35:17 > 0:35:18I don't know.
0:35:20 > 0:35:22- Rob.- How are you doing?
0:35:22 > 0:35:25Good to see you. Have a seat. Tom Jones.
0:35:26 > 0:35:29AS ELVIS: I'm going to do one of my very early songs, Tom...
0:35:29 > 0:35:31NORMAL VOICE: Please don't laugh.
0:35:31 > 0:35:33AS ELVIS: ..when I was with Sun Records...
0:35:33 > 0:35:35- NORMAL VOICE: What about that? - Sounds like him.
0:35:35 > 0:35:37- Thank you. And the looks?- No.
0:35:37 > 0:35:40LAUGHTER AND APPLAUSE
0:35:41 > 0:35:42All right.
0:35:44 > 0:35:47- # Well, that's all right, Mama... # - Yeah.
0:35:47 > 0:35:49# That's all right for you
0:35:49 > 0:35:52# That's all right, Mama Just any way you do
0:35:52 > 0:35:54# That's all right... #
0:35:54 > 0:35:58'I've loved Tom Jones for as long as I can remember,
0:35:58 > 0:35:59'and that really is the case.
0:35:59 > 0:36:03'I mean, long before he sort of, you might say, came into fashion again.'
0:36:03 > 0:36:05# Well, Mama, she done told me
0:36:05 > 0:36:07# Papa done told me, too... #
0:36:07 > 0:36:09You know, there's that saying, don't meet your heroes,
0:36:09 > 0:36:12but singing with Tom Jones, when he came on my chat show
0:36:12 > 0:36:15and we did a thing where I played the guitar
0:36:15 > 0:36:19and my dad and my brother were in the audience, I mean, that's...
0:36:19 > 0:36:21that's brilliant.
0:36:21 > 0:36:24# ..Any way you do. #
0:36:26 > 0:36:28Sir Tom Jones.
0:36:30 > 0:36:32CHEERING
0:36:34 > 0:36:37I think Rob has got a very good voice, actually.
0:36:37 > 0:36:40He does Tom Jones very well. I mean...
0:36:40 > 0:36:42if you closed your eyes
0:36:42 > 0:36:44and put a bit of cotton wool in your ears and stuff,
0:36:44 > 0:36:46you would actually think Tom might be in the room.
0:36:46 > 0:36:51He has actually been infused with an essence of Tom Jones.
0:36:51 > 0:36:56I think part of Tom Jones' spirit lives in Rob Brydon.
0:36:56 > 0:37:00When I hear Rob do an impersonation of me, I don't believe it,
0:37:00 > 0:37:03because he coughs and I don't.
0:37:03 > 0:37:05HE COUGHS
0:37:05 > 0:37:08He was at my wedding. He did...
0:37:08 > 0:37:10Tom Jones didn't make the wedding in the end,
0:37:10 > 0:37:13so Rob Brydon decided to sing Mama Told Me Not To Come
0:37:13 > 0:37:16in Tom Jones' voice at the wedding,
0:37:16 > 0:37:19with Ronnie Wood and Paul Weller playing on stage,
0:37:19 > 0:37:20and Rob was being Tom.
0:37:20 > 0:37:23And I think he enjoyed that for the day,
0:37:23 > 0:37:26because, you know, he does like doing his Tom Jones impressions.
0:37:26 > 0:37:28A lot.
0:37:29 > 0:37:31AS TOM JONES: Oh!
0:37:31 > 0:37:36From DJing on Radio Wales to hosting prime-time comedy shows,
0:37:36 > 0:37:39the road to success may have been rocky for Rob,
0:37:39 > 0:37:41but it wasn't without its lessons.
0:37:41 > 0:37:46You've got to present confidence, otherwise the audience smell it.
0:37:47 > 0:37:50Cos, you know, you'll be on a stage
0:37:50 > 0:37:53and you'll say some things that are meant to be funny
0:37:53 > 0:37:55and they won't get anything.
0:37:55 > 0:37:58And I think if you're inexperienced, and you are me,
0:37:58 > 0:38:00you would have panicked at that.
0:38:00 > 0:38:04But nowadays, I'll just relax,
0:38:04 > 0:38:07cos your natural instinct when that happens
0:38:07 > 0:38:09is to speed up and tense up,
0:38:09 > 0:38:11and then if the audience sense that,
0:38:11 > 0:38:14they tense up and they don't have any faith in you.
0:38:16 > 0:38:21So, now I'll smile and go even slower.
0:38:21 > 0:38:25And I think that a percentage of the audience looks at you and goes,
0:38:25 > 0:38:30"Well, I don't think he's very funny, but he seems very relaxed,
0:38:30 > 0:38:32"so maybe it's me.
0:38:32 > 0:38:35"Maybe I just don't realise he's funny."
0:38:35 > 0:38:38Home birth is different, and when a child is born this way,
0:38:38 > 0:38:40the first thing to...
0:38:40 > 0:38:44# When a child is born. #
0:38:44 > 0:38:49I think you fluctuate between moments of confidence
0:38:49 > 0:38:51and moments of insecurity.
0:38:51 > 0:38:55I think that the underlying thing is insecurity.
0:38:55 > 0:38:57And I think you learn...
0:38:57 > 0:38:59You develop ways to deal with it.
0:39:00 > 0:39:03I've had times when I've been on stage
0:39:03 > 0:39:05and in my head at the back, I'm going,
0:39:05 > 0:39:08"What? What? You know, oh, my God, look at all those people."
0:39:09 > 0:39:11Confidence is everything.
0:39:11 > 0:39:14You know, if I lose my confidence, I can't pay the bills.
0:39:14 > 0:39:16You know, it's how I look at it.
0:39:16 > 0:39:20So, when I sense insecurity,
0:39:20 > 0:39:23in relation to my work, coming in,
0:39:23 > 0:39:28I get angry with it and I tell it to go away.
0:39:28 > 0:39:30I really do.
0:39:31 > 0:39:35One area in which Rob has never lacked confidence is voice work.
0:39:35 > 0:39:37From schooldays to the present day,
0:39:37 > 0:39:39he has always been able to bend his vocal cords
0:39:39 > 0:39:43around impressions, archetypes and characters.
0:39:43 > 0:39:47It is something that still provides the bedrock of his work.
0:39:47 > 0:39:53I've always been completely secure with my voice, yeah. Far more...
0:39:53 > 0:39:58You know, more than my looks or acting ability.
0:39:59 > 0:40:01A gruffalo?
0:40:03 > 0:40:04What's a gruffalo?
0:40:04 > 0:40:08Following on from his role as the Snake in the star-studded
0:40:08 > 0:40:11Gruffalo animations, Rob has been asked to voice some
0:40:11 > 0:40:15of the characters for a new film based on the popular Stick Man book.
0:40:15 > 0:40:17Stick Man? Oh, Stick Man!
0:40:17 > 0:40:19Beware of the swan!
0:40:19 > 0:40:20HE CLEARS THROAT
0:40:22 > 0:40:25Stick Man! Oh, Stick Man!
0:40:25 > 0:40:27Beware of the swan!
0:40:27 > 0:40:30The problem is that he is actually not helping Stick Man once
0:40:30 > 0:40:32Stick Man gets woven into the nest
0:40:32 > 0:40:34so it's sort of a bit like with the snail,
0:40:34 > 0:40:39"I really want to help you but I'm too late, I'm too late."
0:40:39 > 0:40:43The director, who is lovely chap, was talking about the motivation
0:40:43 > 0:40:45of these characters and you could say,
0:40:45 > 0:40:48"Well, you know, it's a story about a man who is a stick, you know,
0:40:48 > 0:40:49"don't read too much into it,"
0:40:49 > 0:40:53but I buy into that and it's part of the process.
0:40:53 > 0:40:57The second "Oh, Stick Man" he's going to be like almost jumping
0:40:57 > 0:41:00up and down so that you get that feeling of he's really trying
0:41:00 > 0:41:02to attract his attention.
0:41:02 > 0:41:07Stick Man! Oh, Stick Man! Beware of the swan.
0:41:07 > 0:41:09On the surface, all you've got to think about
0:41:09 > 0:41:12when you're voicing a character is the voice but you can often,
0:41:12 > 0:41:16you know, you'll put a physicality into it.
0:41:16 > 0:41:19HIGHER VOICE: The shape of your face, you know, can affect the...
0:41:19 > 0:41:23If you want to do that sort of voice then you want to
0:41:23 > 0:41:25change your face a little bit, a bit like that.
0:41:25 > 0:41:27RESONANT VOICE: You know, the different ways
0:41:27 > 0:41:31you...you...you can get different sounds coming from your voice,
0:41:31 > 0:41:34STUFFED UP VOICE: Or if you want to put the voice right back there,
0:41:34 > 0:41:37you could, or whatever you want to do. So you would...
0:41:37 > 0:41:39NASAL VOICE: You might want to...
0:41:39 > 0:41:42SCOUSE ACCENT: You might want to put it right up to the front, like that
0:41:42 > 0:41:45and have that sort of sound coming out of your voice. You may want to...
0:41:45 > 0:41:46DEEPER: Slightly...
0:41:46 > 0:41:49I don't know why I'm doing Paul McCartney but, you know.
0:41:49 > 0:41:51You just change your face and then...
0:41:53 > 0:41:56GRUFF VOICE: I mean, different things sort of come out, you know...
0:41:56 > 0:42:01There is a physicality to it and that will alter how you sound.
0:42:01 > 0:42:04And, you know, you may want to sort of move yourself
0:42:04 > 0:42:06as all that goes on as well.
0:42:06 > 0:42:08OWN VOICE: So...
0:42:08 > 0:42:12But, but, the face, you do that when you're doing commercials
0:42:12 > 0:42:13and stuff, you smile.
0:42:13 > 0:42:16I mean, it's sickening but, you know, if you talk with a smile,
0:42:16 > 0:42:18it does sound different.
0:42:18 > 0:42:19HE CHUCKLES
0:42:19 > 0:42:24Keen to establish a bigger presence on television, in 2009, Rob became
0:42:24 > 0:42:28the host of the long-running comedy panel show Would I Lie To You?
0:42:28 > 0:42:31I had been worried in the past about, "Well, how am I going to be
0:42:31 > 0:42:35"taken seriously as an actor if I'm also hosting a panel show?"
0:42:35 > 0:42:38But then a few years ago I thought, "No, I'm just going to be me
0:42:38 > 0:42:41"and I'm going to do what I do and all the things that I can do
0:42:41 > 0:42:43"and I'll do them to the best of my ability."
0:42:43 > 0:42:44Mr Rob Brydon!
0:42:44 > 0:42:46APPLAUSE AND CHEERING
0:43:02 > 0:43:04Good evening and welcome to Would I Lie To You?,
0:43:04 > 0:43:07The show where fabrication is the name of the game.
0:43:07 > 0:43:08BUZZER
0:43:08 > 0:43:11Oh, me. Right.
0:43:11 > 0:43:14I used to put on a different voice on the telephone
0:43:14 > 0:43:16and pretend to be my own agent.
0:43:16 > 0:43:18LAUGHTER
0:43:18 > 0:43:21- Let's have it, then.- The voice? - Imagine I've just rung up.
0:43:21 > 0:43:25Hello, I'm the people that want to book Rob Brydon, yes.
0:43:25 > 0:43:27How much would he cost?
0:43:27 > 0:43:29His name... I used to call him Richard Knight.
0:43:29 > 0:43:32ENGLISH ACCENT: And Richard used to talk like this, and he'd say,
0:43:32 > 0:43:36"Listen, I'd love to help you out but, at that price, we're really
0:43:36 > 0:43:38"not going to make much movement."
0:43:38 > 0:43:42I once did a charity gig and...
0:43:42 > 0:43:44It's a lie, he's never done a charity gig.
0:43:44 > 0:43:45LAUGHTER
0:43:45 > 0:43:48..I got money for it because Richard said,
0:43:48 > 0:43:50"Listen, Rob's an angel and if he knew I was doing this,
0:43:50 > 0:43:53"he'd never forgive me, but I've got to get a bit of money otherwise
0:43:53 > 0:43:55"I wouldn't be doing my job."
0:43:55 > 0:43:58- Did you have a real agent at the time?- No.
0:43:58 > 0:44:00So how many phone numbers...?
0:44:00 > 0:44:03Do you have a separate phone number for your fake agent?
0:44:03 > 0:44:05I used to work at the BBC in Cardiff.
0:44:05 > 0:44:08I was on the radio, used to be a DJ, and if they got through to
0:44:08 > 0:44:10the office I would then the phone back under the guise.
0:44:10 > 0:44:13When it came to important meetings, did you have to,
0:44:13 > 0:44:15like, take a disguise and sit there and go,
0:44:15 > 0:44:18"Rob's in the toilet at the moment but when he gets back...
0:44:18 > 0:44:21"I'll go and get him now."
0:44:21 > 0:44:24- EXAGGERATED WELSH ACCENT:- "Oh, I believe my agent said I could do it.
0:44:24 > 0:44:26"I do all the voices!
0:44:26 > 0:44:29"Ask me what it would be like if I was talking to Ronnie Corbett.
0:44:29 > 0:44:32"Ask me! Or Tom Jones. I can do it.
0:44:32 > 0:44:35"If you don't believe me, ask my agent. I'll go and get him."
0:44:36 > 0:44:40When you decided this charade had to finish, did you take yourself
0:44:40 > 0:44:43out to dinner and tell yourself you were letting yourself go?
0:44:43 > 0:44:46- KEVIN BRIDGES: - Did you sign a contract?
0:44:46 > 0:44:48Right, it's time to guess.
0:44:48 > 0:44:50First of all, Lee
0:44:50 > 0:44:52and those bastards.
0:44:53 > 0:44:55What are you going to go for?
0:44:55 > 0:44:57I would say true.
0:44:57 > 0:44:58- You think it's true?- Yeah.
0:44:58 > 0:45:00- You're saying it's true. - In the words of Rob Brydon...
0:45:00 > 0:45:02- AS ROB:- I think that's true.
0:45:02 > 0:45:06You're saying it's true. David and these arses,
0:45:06 > 0:45:08what do you say?
0:45:08 > 0:45:11- I think it's... - True.- Yeah, I think it's true.
0:45:11 > 0:45:14Well, let me buck the trend by telling you...
0:45:14 > 0:45:16it's true.
0:45:16 > 0:45:19There are some people who would not touch a panel game cos it would
0:45:19 > 0:45:21affect them...
0:45:21 > 0:45:23Or some people just can't do it, that's the real truth.
0:45:23 > 0:45:25It's not everyone's forte.
0:45:25 > 0:45:28But some people who could do it would still turn it down
0:45:28 > 0:45:33because they would feel it might present them as being too
0:45:33 > 0:45:37light for other things, like movies or serious acting roles.
0:45:37 > 0:45:40Rob seems happy to embrace that world of light entertainment
0:45:40 > 0:45:42and the more serious stuff,
0:45:42 > 0:45:44so fair play to him.
0:45:44 > 0:45:48This is the sweatshirt that my wife and I put on together
0:45:48 > 0:45:50when we are cosying up on a chilly evening.
0:45:50 > 0:45:52We call it the cuddle jumper.
0:45:52 > 0:45:53LAUGHTER
0:45:55 > 0:45:57True!
0:45:59 > 0:46:01LAUGHTER
0:46:01 > 0:46:03APPLAUSE
0:46:03 > 0:46:06When Rob got this job, if I'm going to be completely honest,
0:46:06 > 0:46:09I thought it's going to be perhaps too many voices trying to battle
0:46:09 > 0:46:14for position, and literally from day one, Rob's generosity was amazing.
0:46:14 > 0:46:17He's quite happy to play the part of the host
0:46:17 > 0:46:20rather than the butting-in comic.
0:46:20 > 0:46:24But at the same time, he comes up with some brilliant stuff,
0:46:24 > 0:46:27so he genuinely is like the perfect host for the show.
0:46:27 > 0:46:30It's very divisive to say that. I'm not going to say whether Rob Brydon
0:46:30 > 0:46:31is the best panel show host.
0:46:31 > 0:46:34He is one of the very excellent ones.
0:46:34 > 0:46:35One of the, you know...
0:46:35 > 0:46:40He's top equal with everyone else I've worked with.
0:46:40 > 0:46:43Before Nelson Mandela's 90th birthday in 2008,
0:46:43 > 0:46:45David Beckham sent this message.
0:46:45 > 0:46:46AS DAVID BECKHAM: Mr Mandela...
0:46:46 > 0:46:48I'll do it nicely.
0:46:48 > 0:46:50I'll do it as Sean Connery.
0:46:51 > 0:46:53Do it as Ronnie Corbett or Terry Wogan.
0:46:53 > 0:46:54LAUGHTER
0:46:55 > 0:46:58I'm joking. Terry Wogan.
0:46:58 > 0:46:59Do Frank Spencer.
0:46:59 > 0:47:01LAUGHTER
0:47:01 > 0:47:03The message went like this.
0:47:06 > 0:47:07Rob, I think you're probably safest,
0:47:07 > 0:47:10tell us first who it is and then we'll know...
0:47:10 > 0:47:13LAUGHTER
0:47:13 > 0:47:15I'm not going to say who it is.
0:47:15 > 0:47:19I'll just say he's a bit of a tit, OK, and then you go with it.
0:47:19 > 0:47:23AS DAVID MITCHELL: Mr Mandela, happy 90th birthday.
0:47:23 > 0:47:28Sorry I can't be with you but I'm sure you'll have an amazing day.
0:47:28 > 0:47:31'When he's doing me, I know he's doing me.
0:47:31 > 0:47:33'But it doesn't sound the same as me,'
0:47:33 > 0:47:37to me. You know, but also...
0:47:37 > 0:47:40also everyone is then laughing at me.
0:47:40 > 0:47:42"Ha-ha-ha, you're like that.
0:47:42 > 0:47:45"Like he's doing, that's what you like."
0:47:45 > 0:47:48So it's an awkward moment. But he doesn't do...
0:47:48 > 0:47:51He does to Ronnie Corbett in front of Ronnie Corbett, I've seen that.
0:47:51 > 0:47:52But there's more...
0:47:52 > 0:47:55The country has so much more warmth towards Ronnie Corbett than
0:47:55 > 0:47:59it does towards me that there's a different feeling in the room.
0:47:59 > 0:48:01You have one of the most recognisable voices,
0:48:01 > 0:48:05- I would say, in British cultural life.- Oh, my God.
0:48:05 > 0:48:08And I would say, Ron, that your voice...
0:48:08 > 0:48:12AS RONNIE CORBETT: it's maturing like a fine, old whisky.
0:48:12 > 0:48:14It's getting very deep.
0:48:14 > 0:48:17And I think your voice could make anything sound good.
0:48:17 > 0:48:20For me, the vowel sounds are quite important.
0:48:20 > 0:48:24There's that sort of very assertive upper-class Edinburgh sort of...
0:48:24 > 0:48:27Well, I think it is. So it's...
0:48:27 > 0:48:30DEEP: Oh. Oh! Oh.
0:48:30 > 0:48:34And there's a lot... It's become quite nasal.
0:48:34 > 0:48:39Ron's old now so the voice has gone very, very deep.
0:48:39 > 0:48:42He can do all those things, you know.
0:48:42 > 0:48:45One... All that stretching out.
0:48:45 > 0:48:50And then going quite quick. Very, very slow and then quite quick.
0:48:50 > 0:48:52I don't think I've ever spent time with him
0:48:52 > 0:48:55and he hasn't done Ronnie Corbett or Tom Jones.
0:48:55 > 0:48:58These are the two standards he does.
0:48:58 > 0:49:01He really can't help himself. It's almost like a kind of Tourette's.
0:49:01 > 0:49:04It's almost like a wasted opportunity if he's spent any time
0:49:04 > 0:49:06with you and not done those two impressions,
0:49:06 > 0:49:08but they are really, really entertaining.
0:49:08 > 0:49:10I've always impersonated people that I like
0:49:10 > 0:49:13so it's a sort of form of affection, I think, with me.
0:49:13 > 0:49:18So, you know, Ronnie Corbett and people make jokes, you know.
0:49:18 > 0:49:22"He's been on for ten minutes, he hasn't done his Ronnie Corbett yet."
0:49:22 > 0:49:28But I love Ronnie Corbett and I kind of enjoying doing him.
0:49:28 > 0:49:33Rob's Ronnie Corbett impression became a staple of The Trip,
0:49:33 > 0:49:36A semi-improvised series that saw Rob and Steve Coogan play
0:49:36 > 0:49:38distorted versions of themselves.
0:49:38 > 0:49:41AS RONNIE CORBETT: Not one of my repertoire.
0:49:41 > 0:49:43Wow, that was the most...
0:49:43 > 0:49:46obtuse segue into Ronnie Corbett.
0:49:46 > 0:49:48I don't put him up there with Ron.
0:49:48 > 0:49:51It's very lovely to hear it, actually,
0:49:51 > 0:49:54cos, you know, I don't need to be there for that.
0:49:54 > 0:49:56He's delivering me
0:49:56 > 0:50:00impeccably without my presence, which is lovely.
0:50:00 > 0:50:03I would adore driving around Italy...
0:50:03 > 0:50:05'It's like you being there.
0:50:05 > 0:50:06'It's so good,'
0:50:06 > 0:50:08your presence is there, you know.
0:50:08 > 0:50:12While I sit at home, there am I on The Trip.
0:50:12 > 0:50:16Ronnie wasn't the only celebrity to be mimicked in the acerbic comedy.
0:50:16 > 0:50:20- AS AL PACINO: Oh, bring it on! Pour it out!- Would you like to taste?
0:50:20 > 0:50:24Thank you, yes. My apologies for my colleague's behaviour.
0:50:24 > 0:50:26My buddy will taste.
0:50:26 > 0:50:28'We came to a gentlemen's agreement'
0:50:28 > 0:50:33that we would be allowed to make fun of each other
0:50:33 > 0:50:35and needle each other
0:50:35 > 0:50:38and we weren't to take it personally.
0:50:38 > 0:50:39Which is easier said than done.
0:50:39 > 0:50:41'I have to say Rob took to it
0:50:41 > 0:50:43'like a duck to water, he really did.'
0:50:43 > 0:50:45AS MICHAEL PARKINSON: When we think about you,
0:50:45 > 0:50:48- we think about the '90s, don't we? - Yeah. What?
0:50:48 > 0:50:49What a wonderful period that was!
0:50:49 > 0:50:51We think Oasis, Blur,
0:50:51 > 0:50:53you're smacked off your tits in a Central London hotel,
0:50:53 > 0:50:55trying to get your life together.
0:50:55 > 0:50:58But you've turned it around now. Tell us about your recovery.
0:50:58 > 0:51:00Well, I'd rather not. I'd rather talk about my new film.
0:51:00 > 0:51:03Cos you are still acting. I want that to come across for the viewers.
0:51:03 > 0:51:06Yeah, I've done a lot of things. I've done some brand-new...
0:51:06 > 0:51:08Always lovely to catch up with Steve Coogan.
0:51:08 > 0:51:11Michael Buble has a new record that is about to come out.
0:51:11 > 0:51:15It's called Christmas Is A Special Time For Me And It's A Special Time For You.
0:51:15 > 0:51:17He's going to sing a track from it now
0:51:17 > 0:51:19called Holly Leaves And Christmas Trees.
0:51:19 > 0:51:23Michael Buble! Steve, please, for fuck's sake, don't talk over me.
0:51:23 > 0:51:26Of course, there is some truth in what you see in The Trip.
0:51:26 > 0:51:32We take a kernel of truth and we water it and nurture it
0:51:32 > 0:51:39so it grows into this ugly, distorted, funny tree of...comedy.
0:51:39 > 0:51:42I assume your Michael Caine would be something along the lines of...
0:51:42 > 0:51:44- AS MICHAEL CAINE: - My name's Michael Caine.
0:51:44 > 0:51:45That is where you are so wrong
0:51:45 > 0:51:47and you can look at my video for proof
0:51:47 > 0:51:50because that's the very thing I don't do.
0:51:50 > 0:51:52- I say that he used to talk like that...- Do your Michael Caine.- OK.
0:51:52 > 0:51:56AS MICHAEL CAINE: I say Michael Caine used to talk like this in the 1960s, right?
0:51:56 > 0:51:59But that has changed and I say that, over the years,
0:51:59 > 0:52:03Michael's voice has come down several octaves... Let me finish.
0:52:03 > 0:52:06And all of the cigars and the brandy... Don't, let me finish.
0:52:06 > 0:52:10- Can now be heard in... - OK.- I'm not fucking finished.
0:52:10 > 0:52:15In the back of the voice and the voice now... I'm still not finished.
0:52:15 > 0:52:18- The voice...- You're panicking. And I am about to...
0:52:18 > 0:52:21Cos you look like you're about to bloody talk! Let me finish.
0:52:21 > 0:52:25Right, so Michael Caine's voice now, in the Batman movies
0:52:25 > 0:52:29and in Harry Brown, I can't go fast
0:52:29 > 0:52:36because Michael Caine... talks...very...very...slowly.
0:52:36 > 0:52:38I was known as an impressionist 25 years ago.
0:52:38 > 0:52:41I did Spitting Image and all that stuff
0:52:41 > 0:52:45and then Rob started to do impressions as part of his act,
0:52:45 > 0:52:48but I'd always tried to get away from them
0:52:48 > 0:52:50so they'd always been a slight curse to me, a slight sore point,
0:52:50 > 0:52:54but what's funny in The Trip is when Rob starts doing impersonations.
0:52:54 > 0:52:58Even though I loathe them as being lowbrow,
0:52:58 > 0:53:03I can't resist joining in because the competitive side of me
0:53:03 > 0:53:05wants to show that I'm as good at impressions as he is
0:53:05 > 0:53:07and sometimes better.
0:53:07 > 0:53:09Right, this is how Michael Caine speaks.
0:53:09 > 0:53:12- AS MICHAEL CAINE:- Michael Caine speaks through his nose, like that.
0:53:12 > 0:53:15He gets very, very specific. It's very like that.
0:53:15 > 0:53:20When he gets LOUDLY, it gets VERY LOUD INDEED. It gets very specific.
0:53:20 > 0:53:22It's not quite nasal enough, the way you're doing it, all right?
0:53:22 > 0:53:25You're not doing it the way he speaks.
0:53:25 > 0:53:27You're not doing it with a kind of...
0:53:27 > 0:53:31And you don't do the broken voice when he gets very emotional,
0:53:31 > 0:53:34when he gets very emotional indeed. She was only 16 years old!
0:53:34 > 0:53:36She was only 16...
0:53:36 > 0:53:38You're only supposed to blow the bloody doors off!
0:53:38 > 0:53:40- IN HIS OWN VOICE: - That's Michael Caine.
0:53:40 > 0:53:43I think Rob's Michael Caine impression is good,
0:53:43 > 0:53:45particularly the way he's shown Michael's voice
0:53:45 > 0:53:49has aged over the years, but there's something just slightly disconnected
0:53:49 > 0:53:51about it that just lacks a little bit of truth,
0:53:51 > 0:53:52whereas I think when I do it,
0:53:52 > 0:53:56I really live Michael Caine for that short period that I do the voice
0:53:56 > 0:54:01and I think that's what makes mine just slightly better than his.
0:54:01 > 0:54:08I think Rob would like to be a cross between Bing Crosby and Bob Hope.
0:54:08 > 0:54:10I think if he could be both of them,
0:54:10 > 0:54:16the entire cast of those films, then he'd feel that's him.
0:54:16 > 0:54:19But then, actually, I think then he'd think,
0:54:19 > 0:54:23"Oh, I want to go and do something very, very serious and Daniel Day-Lewis-y
0:54:23 > 0:54:26"where I rip my own eyes out and win an Oscar."
0:54:26 > 0:54:30So I think he just likes, you know,
0:54:30 > 0:54:33doing stuff, doing something that's interesting and a challenge
0:54:33 > 0:54:35and that people might like.
0:54:35 > 0:54:39And in 2012, Rob won plaudits as a serious actor,
0:54:39 > 0:54:43playing a paralysed soldier in the drama The Best Of Men.
0:54:44 > 0:54:47I can manage, I'm not a bloody basket case.
0:54:47 > 0:54:49Wynne, mate, don't take it out on the nurses.
0:54:51 > 0:54:55Don't you EVER tell me what to bloody do, Lord Snooty!
0:54:55 > 0:54:57You've got it so easy. What do you know?
0:54:57 > 0:55:01It's the perfectly balanced Welshman - a chip on each shoulder.
0:55:01 > 0:55:04Well, better than being a spoilt brat who is sulking
0:55:04 > 0:55:07cos he can't accept he's just like the rest of us -
0:55:07 > 0:55:12a hopeless, helpless invalid for the rest of his life.
0:55:14 > 0:55:16It sort of happened quite late for Rob.
0:55:16 > 0:55:21Remember, he started out doing sort of shopping channel stuff,
0:55:21 > 0:55:24but I think he wants to make sure he doesn't fade away.
0:55:24 > 0:55:27He got his talons into as many things as possible
0:55:27 > 0:55:30and I totally understand that.
0:55:30 > 0:55:33One of the scariest things is to look at an old copy of the TV Times
0:55:33 > 0:55:37or the Radio Times from the '70s or '80s or even the '90s
0:55:37 > 0:55:38and go through the names.
0:55:38 > 0:55:42I go, "Oh, my God, they were huge! Where are they?"
0:55:42 > 0:55:43That's pretty terrifying!
0:55:46 > 0:55:49Rob was first drawn to the world of entertainment
0:55:49 > 0:55:53through school plays staged in the Porthcawl Pavilion.
0:55:53 > 0:55:57Now, Rob is set to draw audiences in London's West End.
0:55:57 > 0:55:59Following a successful first run in Belfast,
0:55:59 > 0:56:01Rob is returning to the stage,
0:56:01 > 0:56:05appearing at the Garrick Theatre alongside Kenneth Branagh,
0:56:05 > 0:56:08for a new comedy, The Painkiller.
0:56:09 > 0:56:12There's actually quite a bit of wing space here
0:56:12 > 0:56:13when you think of our set,
0:56:13 > 0:56:17which was a little clumpy in Belfast at the sides.
0:56:17 > 0:56:19And then it's really quite deep there
0:56:19 > 0:56:23and then this is sort of 700-770...
0:56:23 > 0:56:26- What were we in Belfast?- We were 400.
0:56:26 > 0:56:31- Oh!- Yes, so we've got a few more seats to fill.
0:56:31 > 0:56:36I don't think I'd done a play for years, since the college days,
0:56:36 > 0:56:38and there I was with you,
0:56:38 > 0:56:42- but I wasn't as nervous as I thought because of the preparation.- Yeah.
0:56:42 > 0:56:44Cos I do a lot of things on the hoof in my career.
0:56:44 > 0:56:48A lot of what I do is by the skin of the teeth, right?
0:56:48 > 0:56:50You've got nerves of steel, my friend.
0:56:50 > 0:56:52I'm always very glad that you're on stage with me
0:56:52 > 0:56:55in case it all goes pear-shaped cos you'll be able to improvise
0:56:55 > 0:56:57and I'll be able to have a moment to think.
0:56:57 > 0:56:59You've got to get yourself out there, boy.
0:56:59 > 0:57:02From acting to singing to stand-up comedy and hosting,
0:57:02 > 0:57:06Rob has utilised his many talents to secure his place
0:57:06 > 0:57:09as one of Britain's most popular entertainers -
0:57:09 > 0:57:14a deliberate strategy that stemmed from an incident early in his career.
0:57:14 > 0:57:18Ever since I was let go by Radio Wales,
0:57:18 > 0:57:21that instilled in me
0:57:21 > 0:57:25a need to have eggs in lots of baskets.
0:57:25 > 0:57:29But I love doing what I do
0:57:29 > 0:57:34and I think I can appreciate it cos it took so long and it was so hard
0:57:34 > 0:57:40that I don't think I've ever lost a feeling of, "Isn't this great?"
0:57:40 > 0:57:42# Well, that's all right, mama
0:57:42 > 0:57:44# That's all right for you
0:57:44 > 0:57:46# That's all right, mama
0:57:46 > 0:57:49# Just anyway you do
0:57:49 > 0:57:51# That's all right
0:57:51 > 0:57:53# That's all right
0:57:53 > 0:57:56# That's all right now, mama
0:57:56 > 0:58:00# Anyway you do... #
0:58:05 > 0:58:08I think this idea that I should be selling the ice creams
0:58:08 > 0:58:13before the show as well, which you put in the contract, was a shock.
0:58:13 > 0:58:15Yeah, but, you know, what I like about that,
0:58:15 > 0:58:17I feel you're very much a man of the people.
0:58:17 > 0:58:20I believe they love you, they love what you stand for
0:58:20 > 0:58:23and I think a lot of them love your ice cream as well.
0:58:23 > 0:58:25I like to APPEAR to be a man of the people
0:58:25 > 0:58:28and that's the important distinction. It's the appearance.