Tossed salads and plonkers? Only Fools and Horses star Nicholas Lyndhurst joins Dr Frasier Crane for the character’s third act.
Updated 20/01/23: Kelsey Grammer describes his new co-star as “… one of the funniest people I’ve ever worked with”
Now we’ve recovered from the surprise casting of British sitcom legend Nicholas Lyndhurst in the latest installment of Frasier Crane’s life, it’s good to hear Kelsey Grammer talking about the positive reasons behind that choice.
Describing Lyndhurst as “magnificent”, the US star has explained how this seemingly rather left-field pairing occurred; they met while starring together in ‘Man of La Mancha’ at the London Coliseum in 2019. Talking on BBC Bristol, Grammer explained:
“I fell in love. I adore him and he’s one of the funniest people I’ve ever worked with, and I accuse him of being a bit of a sandbagger because you don’t see him coming and all of a sudden he’s getting all the laughs.”
He also explains the idea behind the creation of Lyndhurst’s character Alan Cornwall:
“It suddenly occurred to me when we were putting the show together, we’ve never really seen Frasier in a relationship where he has a great friend. He had Niles, of course, but he was his brother and there was a competition underscoring everything they did, and a family connection that got them through some difficulties. But this real friendship thing is something we’ve not seen Frasier in… So we’re discovering a man who is still discovering himself, and that is what I find interesting to play.”
The actor also reveals that rehearsals for the Frasier revival start in a couple of weeks, with the show potentially on air as soon as July. You can catch the interview here, via BBC Sounds.
Original article from 16/01/23 continues…
Frasier revival casts British sitcom legend Nicholas Lyndhurst
News dropped over the weekend, first in Variety and then frankly everywhere, that a member of British sitcom royalty has been cast alongside the veteran US star Kelsey Grammer for the revival of Frasier. Nicholas Lyndhurst will play Frasier’s old friend Alan Cornwall.
Lyndhurst is famous for his enduring role as Rodney in Only Fools and Horses, opposite Sir David Jason’s Del Boy; the pair starred in seven series plus 16 Christmas Specials. In the 90s, he also played Goodnight Sweetheart‘s amiable time-travelling bigamist Gary Sparrow for six series too.
The new Frasier show, commissioned straight to series with streamer Paramount+, will follow Frasier as he begins again in a new city.
Lyndhurst’s character Alan is described as “Frasier’s old college buddy turned university professor. British, boozy and larger than life, Alan has an intellect on par with Frasier’s—if only he ever felt like using it.”
Apparently Alan has a mischievous streak, so Frasier can be a calming influence. At the same time, the spirited Brit might just shake up Frasier’s routine.
While the spectre of Rodney keeps him eternally young, Nicholas Lyndhurst is 61 – only six years younger than Kelsey Grammer. Are we about to see a new iteration of The Odd Couple – or perhaps “Men-on-the-cusp-of-retirement Behaving Badly”?
Freddy
In addition to the casting of Lyndhurst, Deadline have dropped the news that Jack Cutmore-Scott (Kingsman: The Secret Service, Deception) will be playing the adult version of Frasier Crane’s son Freddy.
We’ll keep you posted on the Frasier revival. In the meantime, if you want to relive it, the whole of Frasier is lurking on All 4.