‘I am Here!’
John Challis is a leading British actor known for a variety of acclaimed roles on television and stage, including Doctor Who, Open All Hours and more recently Benidorm. However, to you and I, he will always be Terrance Aubrey “Boycie” Boyce, Peckham’s finest second hand car dealer, who’s been firing more blanks than the territorials!
Recently I was lucky enough to catch up with John, to find out a little bit more about the man behind one of the nation’s best loved comedy characters, including what it was like to star in the show and what we can look forward to seeing in the future.
Me: John, on behalf of the fans, thank you for allowing me to conduct this short interview with you. We’ll start off with your role in Only Fools and Horses.
Me: How exactly did that come about?
John: I played a dodgy copper in John Sullivan’s first comedy Citizen Smith and he came up to me after we’d finished filming and said, ‘I like what you did with that. I’ll use that again one day.’ I thought no more about it and a year later, the phone rang!
Me: Are there any tales you can remember from behind the scenes?
John: Lots, but I couldn’t possibly tell you! Suffice to say that we had more fun filming some scenes than others and it was hard to concentrate when the rest of the cast was sitting around trying to put you off your words.
Me: What is your favourite episode and why?
John: My favourite episode has to be Jolly Boy’s Outing because all the lads were together and it was like going on a real jolly down to the seaside with your mates. We had such a happy time and the music was great!
Me: Why do you think the show is so very popular with all ages?
John: It’s a classic for all ages and people like it that you can sit all the family down in front of the box and not have to worry about being embarrassed or shocked in front of Granny. We’ve all grown older together and it’s like welcoming friends into your home each day. It makes people happy and that’s what counts.
Me: Why do you think Marlene and Boycie are still together?
John: There is a deep mutual respect between Boycie and Marlene. She appreciates him for the way he has grafted to bring them a certain lifestyle and he likes her feistiness. They may bicker and insult each other but deep down there is a kind of love. After all they are both fans of the Mighty Quo.For Gawd’s sake, who else would put up with them? Better the Devil you know.
Me: Where did the iconic laugh come from?
John: Boycie’s laugh was born out of a woman’s mad cackle in my local. She sounded like a machine gun and we were all fascinated by the noise. I put that together with the mannerisms of a guy called Gordon who frequented another hostelry, who spoke in a nasal and pedantic sort of way and liked to pretend he was a man of mystery!
Me: Do you still keep in touch with any of the actors?
John: I’m afraid we don’t live in each other’s pockets and we don’t see each other very often. I know most people would love it if we all got together on a Friday night in the Nag’s Head but we lead very busy and separate lives. David and Nick are understandably very private, but the rest of us do meet up once a year at the Only Fools Convention and it’s as if we’ve never been apart. Sadly a few of the gang have dropped off the perch and I miss them tremendously.
Me: If you could be cast as a different character from the show, which would that be and why?
John: I love the character of Mickey Pearce as played by Patrick Murray. John Sullivan always loved ‘Mickey’, but I’m too old to be Rodney’s mate, so I guess it would have to be ‘SLATER’!
Me: Do you have any memorabilia from the show as keepsakes?
John: I’ve given ’em all to you! No, I’ve got a black puffa jacket that I wear a lot because it’s warm, but I always think it’s a bit ostentatious to walk about proclaiming ‘Cast and Crew. Only Fools and Horses 1996 .Same with an enormous green and yellow umbrella that has OFAH in big letters. I think the biggest collection of memorabilia has to be with Perry who runs the Fan Club. He has nearly every item you can think of!
Me: What can we look forward to seeing in the future from you?
John: It is a fact universally acknowledged that the older an actor gets the fewer the parts up for grabs. I would love to do cameo roles in my all-time favourite US crime shows CSI, NCIS and Law and Order. SVU; I’d love to play The Doctor, and I’d love to be cast in great dramas like Downton, Musketeers, Happy Valley or Wolf Hall, but the trouble is that Directors are so young these days that they have only ever known me as Boycie! I am happy that writer Derren Litten gave me the chance to bring a different character to life in Benidorm and with Monty a new catchphrase, ‘Rice AND chips’. I’m too old to go out on tour with plays, I prefer my home comforts, but a nice little telly job now and then would keep me happy. In the meantime I’ll carry on writing my Reggie novels and taking my one man show round the country. I’ve been a lucky man so far, that’s for sure.
By Jordan Gale,
With thanks to John Challis.
Twitter: @JordanGale94
