As the masterminds behind the romantic comedy series Colin From Accounts — Harriet Dyer and Patrick Brammall — sat in the crowd at the world premiere of Season Two, they were nervous. After all, Season One had been an instant hit in Australia before being peddled out to audiences worldwide. So, as they sat strategically nestled in the middle of a crowd at the world premiere of the new season, fittingly in Sydney’s Inner West — where the series is filmed — they were desperately hoping that the crowd would enjoy the show they’d put so much of their heart, soul and time into. Thankfully, the premiere lived up to the hype.
But with all eyes on them, they kept their heads to the screen.
“It was more like feeling the crowd. I felt a little bit visible, like if I turned around people would see me look at them, so it was more of a dolphin-like sonar,” Harriet tells PEDESTRIAN.TV
“We were meant to sit in the front row because we were going to do a Q&A afterwards,” Patrick chimed in.
“But I asked for us to sit in the middle so that we could feel everyone around us. It was thrilling but honestly, I was shaking a bit.”
Colin From Accounts is a romantic comedy created and written by IRL married couple Harriet and Patrick. And, almost as if to show off, they star in the show, too.
The series follows the story of a brewery owner named Gordon and a doctor-in-training named Ashley who come into each other’s lives when Ashley flashes her tit at Gordon while she’s crossing a road, and he’s so distracted he hits a dog with his car. The pair are suddenly left having to sort out this dog’s vet bills, and along the way, get to know each other.
It’s the beginning of a hilarious yet sometimes cringe-inducing ‘will they, won’t they’ love story. And if you’re wondering who on earth Colin is? He’s the dog!!!!
Now, the beloved series is back for Season Two and Ashley and Gordon have scrapped the ‘will they, won’t they’ antics. This time, they’re very much together, dealing with a whole new slate of issues — including getting their dog back after haphazardly giving him away and changing their mind an hour later.
Despite the full-blown tremors taking over Patrick’s hand, he confirmed that the premiere was a hit.
“We’ve watched that show eight million times so the story is just not fresh for us. But to be with 300 people who were feeling it fresh and frothing, some of the responses were amazing,” he says.
“It was such a relief honestly.”
Although the series has now been a worldwide hit, making it to streaming services in 100 territories around the world, the (genuinely hot) couple say that it hasn’t gone to their head. The only thing that’s really changed is how busy they are — especially with their young daughter Joni.
“Did you see the Rolls Royce out front?” Harriet jokes.
“I don’t think it’s changed. The main change is that we’re really busy,” Patrick said.
But since being in the weeds writing and starring in their own series, the pair admit that they sometimes find it hard to sit back and switch off while watching TV.
“I think we have a slightly higher standard of things like scripts we read now. We’ve become a bit like dialogue nerds,” Harriet explains.
“It has had an adverse effect on our enjoyment on watching scripted television a little bit. I mean, it’s a small miracle that anything of quality gets made honestly, but I think we’ve got a very fine tune to dialogue now,” Patrick adds.
As for shows or films that have caught their eye recently?
“We just watched Saltburn on the plane and it was incredible,” they said, admitting that as parents of a toddler, they’re a tad behind. Not the movie I’d feel comfortable watching on a plane but I love this catch up session for them!!!
While Patrick and Harriet are the true masterminds behind the scenes, it would be remiss of us to ignore the star power of the titular character — a dog named Colin, played by a four-legged actor named Zak. And apparently, Zak is a seasoned professional.
“I wish he was a bit of a drama queen so it could be more fodder for stories,” Harriet said.
“It’s not like he just randomly pees or anything like that, he’s just a good dog. A straight-up good boy.
“There was this one shot at the end of episode five where Zak was standing behind us and I had to get Kirsten, his trainer, to walk around behind the camera just to make his head move because he looked fake. He just stood there so still for so long that I was like ‘Can we actually use this? He looks computer generated.”
“He is just the most professional, he’s on time, never go again for this guy,” Patrick adds.
“Maybe he’s hampered by the wheels. If he didn’t have the wheels on he’d do more, I don’t know. But even when he doesn’t have the wheels on, he’s just waiting on standby.”
Brava Zak, you bloody superstar.
So there you have it. From the chemistry between the real couple on screen to the stellar writing or even just the allure of Zak the dog, go watch Colin From Accounts. I promise you won’t be disappointed.
You can check out the trailer below.
You can stream Colin From Accounts Seasons One and Two on Binge.
The post Colin From Accounts’ Harriet Dyer & Patrick Brammall On How They’ve Levelled Up With Season 2 appeared first on PEDESTRIAN.TV .
