It’s a series that is Middlesbrough to its very core - and the premiere of new BBC Comedy Smoggie Queens was a real “pinch me moment” for stars on the pink carpet.
Cast and creators of the loud and proud show took over Middlesbrough Town Hall yesterday (Wednesday, November 28) for a glitzy launch in the heart of the town.
And while the show is “big, bold, and funny” - with parmo chatter, ‘doyles’, and a well-known flooring store’s jingle getting a nod - it’s also a “full circle” moment for members of the cast, who were overwhelmed by its support so far.
Last night, the show’s stars, including Middlesbrough native Mark Benton, Coronation Street actress Alexandra Mardell, creator and writer Phil Dunning, Elijah Young and Pasty Lowe strutted down the pink carpet in true style.
The Northern Echo's Alex O’Leary was positioned on the pink carpet to catch all the action from the evening, speaking to the stars about the unique show and what it means to them.
Mark Benton, who is known for his roles in Waterloo Road, Early Doors, and Northern Lights and plays drag queen 'Mam' in Smoggie Queens, said he was “so proud” to be from Teesside.
He said: “It’s amazing. “I am an old codger now and I never thought we would get to the point where we would do something in Middlesbrough, set in Middlesbrough, written by somebody from Middlesbrough.
“And get to say things like ‘you doyle’ and ‘where’s the parmo’ and ‘I’m going to go to Manjaros’, things like that. It was a real pinch me moment.
“I am so proud to be here and from the Boro.”
Mark promised that fellow Teessiders will have their wishes granted in the programme, which is sprinkled with Easter eggs that those from the area will be able to quickly spot.
He added: “I think 95 per cent of people in this are from Middlesbrough. It’s not in Newcastle - not that I have got anything against Newcastle - but it is very particularly Boro.”
Mark also said it didn’t take long for him to sign on the dotted line, adding: “Chris, the producer, and Phil, who wrote it, sent me the script and I think I read about three pages and literally just went, I’ve got to do this. Then we went out for a big posh meal in Soho!”
‘Full circle’
The premiere was particularly special for Elijah Young, also a fellow Teessider who went to school at Macmillan Academy, on Stockton Road in Middlesbrough.
Elijah, who plays newcomer Stewart said: “This is where we used to do the awards [for Macmillan Academy]. It feels very full circle.
“And when I did that awards ceremony, it was Steph McGovern hosting it, and she’s now in the show! So it is just wild for me.
“For the longest time, it felt like it was just ours, and only we knew about it. And now that more people know, it is like, what!”
Patsy Lowe, who stars as awkward Sal, said it was “phenomenal” to see the support for the show, with the duo joking that there was “more than a couple” nights out amongst the cast while filming got underway in summer.
She joked: “We spent the summer having a right laugh together and making a bit of TV and now we’re like, oh, do we have to show it now? We’ve got to put it out there now!”
Patsy “ It is important to people in Middlesbrough that they are represented in a positive light and we are hoping that we do that - and that everybody loves it as much as we do.”
Carpets, parmos, and Sapphires
“I love love love the parmo. My favourite is a hotshot, I’m a spicy girl.”
This was the verdict on the iconic Teesside delicacy from Coronation Street star Alexandra Mardell on the pink carpet, who plays Lucinda in the show.
Writer and creator Phil Dunning, who also stars as Dickie, said he took Alexandra, along with the other casts, to some of his old haunts - with Alexandra joking it was purely for “research purposes”.
He said: “We went to Empire, which we filmed in, we went to Sapphires, the gay bar, and loved it there, and then we lived in Yarm for the series so we went to all the pubs in Yarm.”
Speaking about the “overwhelming but lovely” premiere, Phil added: “I am buzzing about it. I just don't believe it - I feel like I will just wake up tomorrow and be like oh yeah, those two years were a dream."
Alexandra Mardell, whose experience filming in Middlesbrough was her first time visiting the town, added: "You can see that everyone is so excited, just by the turnout. It is lovely. This was my first experience in Middlesbrough and it was a really good one!”
And when it came to quintessentially ‘Boro’ phrases, the show of course couldn’t forget Frank’s The Flooring Store’s special radio jingle, ‘I love carpets, me’.
And the honour fell to Ted Lasso and Coronation Street actor Bill Fellows to interpret Frank with his character Keith, who owns Keith’s Carpets.
Bill told The Echo: “Phil grew up on Teesside and would hear this advert which he loved - and then he wrote a character, not knowing that I played that advert’s voice.
“Years and years later, lo and behold, he has asked me to play the charter, and he is called Keith now! I’ll be in episode five.”
Recommended reading:
- Smoggie Queens: Pictures from Middlesbrough premiere
- Smoggie Queens: Stars line pink carpet for glitzy premiere
- £2.5m pledge for Darlington College pre-16 education site
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Bill - who is also from Middlesbrough - said the show was great for the town, which “needs more finance” for projects like this.
He said: “What we need is people like Phil, and writers, to write something about the area and then actually [have] the BBC and Hat Trick Productions support it.
“It is all to do with the writer. There are loads of actors from Middlesbrough but we don’t write. So we need someone like Phil to write something from the area and then you’ll get support.”
The first of six episodes of the programme airs on BBC3 at 8.10pm tonight (Thursday, November 28) and the whole series is available on BBC iPlayer.
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