James Corden talks to TV Times magazine about his new thriller-sitcom The Wrong Mans (BBC2, Tuesday) an explosive tale of kidnap and espionage…
While filming your new six-part comedy The Wrong Mans, you found yourself teetering on the edge of a 25ft bridge about to throw yourself on to a moving train!
"We always thought it would be stunt doubles when we wrote it. But our director really wanted it to be us, that the way to make it 'Wow!' is if it’s absolutely us doing it. So we did and it was good."
Your co-star is Mathew Baynton, who you co-wrote the series with…
"We wanted to make a sitcom where the plot and the stakes are as high as they would be in a thriller – but then put jokes in."
Dawn French plays your mum Linda in the show, too...
"We wrote the part of my mum for Dawn and then I bumped into her at Venice airport at the baggage reclaim. My first ever TV job was on the Vicar of Dibley. I had one line, I was boy on a bike, but the line got cut and it was awful because I had told all my friends at school. It was one of the worse nights I’ve ever had!"
A whole raft of top actors, including Dougray Scott, Nick Moran and Rebecca Front, are also in the show...
"We tried to make each part a gift, so the actor would think, 'I would hate it if someone else did this.' We feel incredibly lucky to have such a brilliant group of actors."
You've had a very hectic couple of years, and we'll soon be seeing you starring as Britain’s Got Talent winner Paul Potts in comedy biopic One Chance. Are you looking forward to finally having a break after filming finishes?
"I just found it the weirdest thing when we had our son [Max, two, with wife Julia Carey]. On the one hand thinking it just puts everything into perspective and then in the same breathe I really want to work as hard as I can because I really want to give him the best start possible. It’s balancing those two and making sure you don’t run yourself into the ground. That’s why I’m taking a break next and going to have a lie down."
