By the way?

Is it?

Well, actually, yes, we did.

They didn't really feel you without into it.

So why do you say?

Well, they just felt you hadn't really turned up.

Can you please let them know?

I'm really interested in your script is brilliant.

Sorry.

They felt that.

Let me do it again.

I can't believe this.

You don't accept any responsibility whatsoever for your brother's death, do you?

If you're so good at asking questions, ask Martine.

You'll get more out of him than me.

Yet every actor that came out of drama school was either on the bill or casualties or both.

And it was kind of like it was extended drama school for people.

It was my first time in front of a camera, and I think it probably shows I had that slight deer in the headlights thing.

I think a little bit.

Yeah, Spring.

A small time crook.

I used to go out for a lot of small time crooks before I became lovable Boy next door.

I think the guys that play that's the play got for weirdos and scumbags.

But I've been out of drama school for one year at that time.

I filmed it in 1996 and I'd come out of drama school in 1995 and I was in the midst of doing a lot of theater going up for the occasional bit of TV.

No, you can't do this Nice.

Oh, yeah, All that stuff as well.

Let the little stuff yet just like to control any other body missile.

But now yeah, yeah, yeah.

I'd met Ricky Gervase on a sketch show called Bruiser for the BBC that he wrote for it was six of us containing some fantastic British comedy talent have gone on toe much bigger and better things, including Olivia Colman.

So I did a lot of sketches with Olivia Colman, and even then she was very good.

I was then called in to do this audition for the office.

I first auditioned for Gareth Keenan, who was then played by Mackenzie Crook afterwards, but I read for Gareth and then I was on the way out.

Neither Steve Merchant or Asher Tala, the producer, said, I think we should get Martin to read for Tim because I read the whole script.

I thought the script was really, really good.

So I came back red for Tim and there was a bit that might work better.

So fact, Yeah, thank God that stopped me from leaving the room.

I probably wouldn't have got Gareth gives.

Mackenzie is much better.

Casting is Gareth, Ricky and Steve.

Let me have a couple of, I guess, a couple of episodes before rough cuts of upset.

I'm showing it to a couple of people who I cared about and they were impressed, obviously, is not the first mock documentary thing ever.

Of course it's not.

But it was, I think, one of the best executed off that kind and sending in 2001 before had come out there was there wasn't really anything like that on television at the time.

A toll on again Spinal Tap is still the best, but but we were in their shadow and trying to obey the things that they had learned and done well.

I was very excited by killed.

Yeah, my first film as my first movie analogy had a kind of a television life in the U.

K.

But it was very popular is on Channel four and everyone used to talk about this character was amazing.

And who is this guy?

Apparently, he's some guy.

Went to Cambridge, Really?

So a little bit more kind of was leaking about.

Who?

Sasha Baron Cohen.

Waas.

I just finished shooting the office, and then I was doing Allie G.

And it was very exciting.

I felt vaguely successful on Ricky.

See Allergies?

Best Mate.

It was ludicrous.

Very silly.

There was a tiny bit of improv.

There were improv moments, definitely improved moment in the scene ended up in a scene in the film where Cut wasn't called on me and Sasha just did a lot of wrapping and beat boxing in a car.

I received the gate of the wife.

That's what keeps.

See Rick and say, This is easy.

I'm gonna be late for my class.

To be fair, it's a good scene.

Did I get co writing credit?

Did I Did I know?

I found enjoyed it.

Sasha on Dan Meza, who was like his co creator, exposing his sort of spirit animal were, you know, really funny blokes and clever guys.

I like them a lot.

Probably worst costume I've ever had.

I think your lurid some would say very, very lurid colors.

I wasn't gonna with any best dressed awards for that.

Could you take the top off this time?

Lighting and camera.

Needs to know when we're gonna see the nipples on Domino.

Yes.

Okay.

It's nice and warm.

Yeah, it's always the case is up standing in for Brad Pitt once on seven years in Tibet?

Yes, you bloody freezing.

Sorry, guys.

Time's pretty tight.

And we have to get the actors in.

I got attached to love, actually, because on the back of the office, Richard Curtis wrote me a very nice and flattering letter that contained a piece of chocolate in it.

Like was wrapped.

It wasn't even just dropped it.

It was like a wrapped chocolate, but presented to me saying, I love the office.

I love what you did in the office.

It was amazing.

That's such a I just realized how conceited that sounded.

I'm just telling you how much Richard Curtis loved me once more.

I'm just I'm just passing on facts, you know, I think he's very good at writing people flattering letters when he's a fan of someone and he was a big fan of that show is a big fan of the office.

So he wanted me to come along and play.

And so we did a table read for love, actually, with a lot of people who didn't end up being in it.

Just a good comedy.

People later on down the line, it was cast properly on dhe.

Unfortunately, I was still in the casts.

Yes.

So I guess most of the people who come to these parties are drunken idiots.

What?

These people are idiots.

I went up to read for Arthur Dent for Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy on a houseboat in London.

That was the business belongs to the business off.

Nick Goldsmith, the producer, and Garth Jennings, the director on Guy, had a fantastic time with these two talking about the film.

They showed me some of the designs.

I think I read a bit as Arthur.

But what I was really thinking about was the fact that my missus at the time was waiting for me in a car.

And so I was feeling guilty that I should I should go because Amanda's parked and I didn't want I didn't want it to be too bored or what?

You know.

So I was kind of okay.

It's all very well.

You want me to be the lead in a film?

Great.

But I've already got to go.

So yeah, I think that's one of the things that saves me or save me.

I'm quite good thinking about something else.

So not thinking about my God after Dennett re sought after and I was hearing names in the ether about you know, who was being considered for Arthur then, you know, some of them were Hollywood stars, which I certainly was not.

So I wasn't thinking on this.

This is a big thing.

I was thinking.

Are we going to get home in time for dinner?

Yeah.

Sam Rockwell, Zoe Deschanel.

And most def as he Waas.

Oh, it was good fun.

It was really, really good fun.

Everyone looked really cool apart from me.

I had a fucking great so house coat like a big green toweling, terry toweling robes, pajamas and old man slippers.

Most looked amazing.

Zoe looked great.

Sam just look like Elvis Presley and James Brown and I and there was me.

So sometimes I got a bit of an inferiority complex about that.

I'm your best, Maren.

Because you are.

Of course, you're my best friend.

I knew as soon as I started reading it that this was unlike anything that I was seeing on television.

At that time.

Ben Cumberbatch was onboard a Sherlock, and I thought that was a very, very smart move because what I had seen him in, he was brilliant.

I went up for it twice.

I went up first time on.

Apparently I subsequently learned I've been a bit of an idiot.

I can't remember what it was.

A bit I schlepped of the place.

And I think by the time I got there, I'm quite easily grumpy.

And I think I accidentally sort of let that show a couple of weeks later.

Was you know, I actually said, Did we hear anything about Sherlock, By the way, Is a blessed Yes, we did.

They didn't really feel you without into it.

So why do you say?

Well, they just felt you hadn't really turned up.

What?

Can you please let them know?

I'm really interesting, I think is the script is brilliant.

So?

So I went back again and read with Ben.

And as soon as we started reading, it was clear that we had a chemistry in the room, sort of crackled a bit.

You could feel it, the material elevated.

That's what you always try and do.

Whatever department you're in.

I've always, never really tried to make any big delineation between television and theater.

And fit was like, Well, if I like the writing, I'll do the writing because I will go anywhere for good writing.

I haven't got Tom Cruise's film career.

It was It was like, I'm only gonna do massive lead in massive films like, Well, that wasn't what was happening anyway.

I think I've always dodged around a bit between media bench.

No, I don't imagine anyone west of Bree would have much interest in adventures.

Nasty, disturbing, uncomfortable things.

You're late for dinner, and I'm going with half of Britain.

I went on tape for it, right when I when I arrived in the casting room to go on tape rather like this, there was a note from Gamma del Toro, who at the time was slated to direct on the note was very nice, said that Martin, we want this to be used do your stuff.

But just so you know, we think this is gonna be, you know, fantastic.

So that relaxed me a lot, you know?

So I was able to do my reading and then sort of forget about it.

We were filming show We're filming the first series of Charlotte.

So I sort of had that on my mind.

Guillermo left.

The project is director, but again, he reached out and said, Just so you know, it's not gonna be me, But you are still the person we want in the frame.

You're gonna hear lots of different names again.

Big Hollywood stars, the artistic team want this to be used.

That's a massive vote of confidence, as it as it went on, because I had to say Syria's two of Sherlock.

I couldn't do Bill, but I couldn't do it.

The BBC were playing ball.

No one was interested on the shell local the BBC side of Okay, let's see how this could work out.

I remember distinctly.

I was outside the National Theatre in London.

I was about to go and see a play, and I said to my agent, Michael, I'll have to let this go one eye and he said, I'm I'm really sorry.

I think you are because that we are contracted to do Sherlock.

And then I was rehearsing a play and I got a call from Michael saying There's been a change of plan.

Peter Jackson has rearranged the schedule of the Hobbit around you so that you can start the Hobbit, then go off and do Sherlock and then finish the Hobbit again.

That was quite a phone call.

That was amazing.

Amazing thing to hear you talk about a vote of confidence.

He could've been a lot of people doing Bilbo Baggins.

And the fact that he had that much faith in me was astonishing, really.

And the fact that he could move a schedule is Titanic is that is gonna be in a production like that, which does not move quickly.

Was kind of amazing when I felt like an extremely lucky person on.

And I'll always love Peter for that.

I've always had quite a black and white feeling about No, it's it's over.

Now it's over.

Once you've made the thing, it's everything is supposed to end on Dhe.

Thank God we recorded it.

We pressed record but the last day or did get emotional because a couple of people approach me and assumes their voice started to break.

Yeah, this has been the last two and 1/2 years of my life with breaks, but that's a huge chunk of anyone's life.

And the old cliche it's We were sort of a family, you know, as you as you are when you're together for any length of time.