Ghosts star Ben Willbond has discussed the sexuality of The Captain in the hit BBC1 comedy.
The Captain is one of the ghosts who terrorize poor Alison (Charlotte Ritchie) and Mike (Kiell Smith-Bynoe), with the soldier seeing himself as the leader of the spooky gang.
Throughout the show, it's been hinted that The Captain is gay, but it's not something The Captain himself has talked about and Ben, who plays the loveable character, believes that fits in with his character.
Asked if the captain was troubled by his concealed sexuality, Ben, 49, replied: "Yes. When the whole sexuality element came in, it suddenly felt like the right way to play it. It was like, 'Oh, yes of course.' He's had to bury his sexuality so far down, in the same way that he's had to bury pretty much everything, so that he can try to look as if he’s in control."
Ben, who's back for Ghosts season 4 this Friday on BBC One, said The Captain is based on “all the terrible school teachers” he had.
"I went to a very military school. Friday afternoons were CCF. These awful teachers would come out in their uniforms and say, ‘Right, stop messing about. Come over here.' You'd just be thinking, 'God, you have no authority and you really would rather be doing anything else. You're just ridiculous.' And so, I do channel that as The Captain."
Ghosts is the BBC's biggest comedy hit in recent times and Ben believes part of its appeal is that it's suitable for all ages.
"Most of the feedback I get is that people love it because families can watch it together. There's something for everyone. Lots of people my age come up to me and go, 'Oh, it's the only show I watch with my teenagers.' That makes me so happy. Yes, yes! That's exactly what it should do because that reminds me of when I was growing up. We just used to watch The Comedy. It wasn't an issue. Nobody was bracketing comedy or saying, 'This is a teen comedy, or this is a comedy for grown-ups.' It was just a comedy that people watched. There was no judging."
He continued that fans enjoy the fun the cast is clearly having. "That's the key for us. If we're not having fun — and I think this is true of any comedians making comedy — audiences can see that, and then it ceases to be a comedy. It's either taking itself too seriously, or it's not doing what it should do. No matter what has happened in the writing process, we always try to get it to that point where as soon as you step on set, you’re going to have fun."
Ghosts is so big it even now has a US version and there's talk that that will come to the BBC at some point. For now, fans can enjoy Ghosts when it returns to BBC One on Friday at 8.50 pm (see our TV Guide for full listings).
