Danny Dyer's new comedy Mr Bigstuff sees him play a prescription-drug-addicted alpha male who ruins his brother’s life.
EastEnders star Danny is teaming up with Plebs star Ryan Sampson, who also wrote the series, to play estranged brothers Lee (Dyer) and Glen (Sampson) in a show about "broken families, fragile masculinity and carpet sales".
Danny Dyer reveals: “Following my nutty exit from EastEnders I feel like it’s time to recalibrate and try something a bit new,” r. “When I read the role of Lee, I was honored to be asked to develop an exciting character and explore his dysfunctional f*****-up family relationships. I fell in love with Ryan Sampson while working with him on Plebs. I can’t wait to get involved with his incredible writing.”
Ryan Sampson adds: “As a particularly short gay dude, I’m fascinated by masculinity; by all the ways that we’re trying and failing to do it right. Maybe it’s because of some unresolved short-man issues. Maybe it’s because of that one time in PE when Mr Walker told me to 'stop crying and start being a man, Sampson'. I probably should have gotten therapy, but instead, I’ve written a show about it,” says Ryan. “It’s about fragile masculinity - about men and how f***** up we are. Also, about families, and how f***** up they are too. I can’t believe how lucky I am in having Danny Dyer himself joining me for the ride.”
Here’s everything we know about Sky Max comedy Mr Bigstuff...
Mr Bigstuff release date
Mr Bigstuff is a six-part series that begins on Sky Max and Sky Showcase with a double bill at 9pm and 9.30pm on Wednesday July 17 2024. All episodes are available as a box set too through NOW. This date was also announced by Danny Dyer on his Instagram (see above). We’ll update with the US and international release date and channel.
Is there a trailer for Mr Bigstuff?
Yes a Mr Bigstuff trailer has been released by Sky. 'Have you seen this geezer?!' says Danny Dyer's rather menacing character Lee! The comedy does look great fun! Take a look below...
Mr Bigstuff plot
Mr Bigstuff follows two estranged brothers. Weedy Glen (Ryan Sampson) is a carpet sales manager, who wants to live a mundane life in the Essex’s suburbs. He's also a nervous perfectionist who’s suffering from crippling erectile dysfunction. His brother Lee (Danny Dyer) is addicted to prescription drugs and carries his dead father’s ashes around in a biscuit tin. Lee is on the run from his past and suddenly crashes into Glen’s perfectly ordinary suburban life which he enjoys with his shoplifting fiancé Kirsty. And as the mismatched trio are forced to live together in a quiet cul de sac in Essex, their lives soon start to unravel.
Mr Bigstuff cast — Danny Dyer on playing Lee
Danny Dyer says playing Lee in Mr Bigstuff is a joy: "Lee has a good heart but no filter. He doesn’t conform to the way society expects is running away from some very dangerous people. He needs his brother for many different reasons."
* Danny Dyer had a long-running role as Mick Carter in EastEnders, which he left in 2022. He played Tommy Johnson in the 2004 film The Football Factory, having already starred in Prime Suspect as a teenager. He later starred in Skins, Plebs (with Mr Bigstuff co-star Ryan Smapson), The Hooligan Factory and Dead Man Running. He hosted the reality show Scared of the Dark plus Cheat and The Wall. He's currently filming Jilly Cooper's Rivals.
Danny Dyer teases hilarious dance routines in his new TV comedy Mr Bigstuff
Ryan Sampson on playing Glen
Ryan Sampson reveals more about playing Lee's brother: "Glen lives a nice suburban life with his fiancée Kirsty and wants everything to be cute and perfect. He’s saving up for his wedding day then Lee arrives and churns everything up."
* Actor and writer Ryan Sampson is probably best known for playing Grumio in the hit ITV comedy series Plebs set in Ancient Rome. He has also starred in Brassic, Waiting, After You’ve Gone, The Frankenstein Chronicles, The Crown and Holby City. He wrote the series Waiting and Glitchy.
Who else is starring in Mr Bigstuff?
Mr Bigstuff also has a host of familiar faces including Adrian Scarborough as Glen’s boss, and former EastEnders star Nitin Ganatra and comedian Fatiha El-Ghorrie who play Carpet World colleagues.
Harriet Webb, Ned Dennehy, Victoria Alcock, Geoff Bell and Judi Love also rock up and look out for former EastEnders star Shobu Kapoor who plays Sheila, the wife of Glen’s boss, Ian, and another EastEnder Cheryl Fergison as Julie, a vendor who runs a mobile food van.
Behind the scenes and more on Mr Bigstuff
Mr Bigstuff is a six-part comedy, co-produced by Sky Studios and Water & Power Productions. Executive Producers are Anil Gupta and Jon Mountague for Sky Studios, Tom Miller and Sam Myer for Water & Power Productions, with Hayley Sterling from Sky Studios producing.
