Freddy Syborn interview
Freddy Syborn has written various shows with Jack Whitehall. Their latest is Bounty Hunters.
What was the inspiration behind the series?
Rather than do another sitcom, we wanted to be more ambitious, more cinematic and to tell more of a story. Jack had worked with Rosie Perez on the Bad Education pilot in America and thought she was brilliant and I had grown up watching her films so am a big fan of hers. We had this idea that they would be a double act.
The antiquities theme came about because I went to Syria a couple of times when I was younger and filmed in places like Palmyra, which have since been pretty much completely destroyed. I rediscovered the video tapes and found them very moving.
I love history and Jack found it interesting because, before he dropped out of university, he did history of art. He's a fantastic artist, too. Not that he would ever let on.
How do the two of you go about writing?
This time it was slightly different. Jack wasn't around for two months so I wrote two of the episodes by myself. I don't like writing by myself as much as I like writing with him. Usually we write everything sitting on the sofa side by side. Between Bad Education, the film and this, we've spent days just sitting on a sofa together. We run out of things to say so we talk about food a lot. We talk about what we are going to have for lunch and then we analyse the lunch. That's all we've got left. It's great fun though and I think we complement each other. I have known him since I was 13 or 14, so for a long time.
Do you ever disagree on things?
Not really. Because Bounty Hunters has a thriller-style plot, we were constantly reaching crossroads. As writing partners, you have to agree what route to go down, what you want the show to be and how you want to define your characters. There are obviously moments when I want to go left and Jack wants to go right but generally never to the point of an argument. It's tediously harmonious. There are very few fireworks - we need to spice up our relationship with some good fights.
You or Jack - who would win in a fight?
He's the only person I have ever had a fight with. We had a fight at school. He is also the only person I have ever punched. I think neither of us won that fight. I don't think either of us walked away with much dignity.
Why did you punch him?
I think he threw an orange at me or something. So lame. It was a fruit throwing fight. Chucking citrus fruits at each other is quite a bourgeois fight. It wasn't particularly impressive or exciting.
Do you ever have days when you just don't feel funny?
I think it's only every so often that we have days when we feel funny. I also think the jokes come last. With Bounty Hunters, we really wanted to write a plot that works as a story and a thriller. Jokes are obviously really important but we had jokes we thought were great that we didn't include because they would break the rhythm of the story. I think jokes come from the characters' situations.
What makes Bounty Hunters entertaining?
I hope people find the plot propulsive and interesting. I hope that our characters are on a journey and aren't just reacting to their crazy situation but are making their own choices or bad decisions.
The show is also about family, in particular British families and the way there are often things that go completely unspoken. You bottle up how you feel and part of Bounty Hunters is about the bad consequences of that. The secrecy where British reserve ends and secret lives begin. I think family is very important to Barnaby and people's families are always weird. I think audiences really relate to that.
Do you have a favourite line or scene from Bounty Hunters?
I love Barnaby's little car. I think it was probably one of the cheapest things in the production but it makes me laugh every time I see it. I know I should be saying it's something to do with Jack's performance but, mostly, it's the little car.
Tell us about Barnaby and Nina...
I love their relationship, the way they talk to each other and come to rely on each other. When we were writing the script we were picturing Nina as a fast-talking smart alec, but Rosie took the role and gave it such an extra depth. Working with her was a joy and she has some amazingly funny stories.
I did a lot of research about Puerto Rico so we didn't present her with something insultingly one-dimensional. For me, watching my friend get better and better as a performer alongside someone I grew up thinking was so cool was a great feeling.
Did you do much other research?
Yes, I spoke to a lot of different people including curators, dealers, police or people working in the Middle East. The show isn't weighed down with detail but this was an effort to make the world feel a little more real. You are never laughing at blood antiquities. Instead it's one of the moral questions of the series. It is not something to be taken lightly, so I felt I had to be pretty diligent.
You appeared briefly in Bad Education. Would you like to act more?
I was a porn baron. I played a man who had a nervous breakdown and sold self-published fantasy pornography from a barrow in a market. That's probably the height of my acting career. I wouldn't want to be an actor. I think I am a bit awkward. I pick my nose in the first scene of Bounty Hunters but that's about it. I am a good extra: I take up a lot of space on the screen.
Is there any character that you would really like to write for Jack to play?
If he's up for it, I am very happy to write him anything. He's got fantastic charisma and I think he works very hard. I would write him any part he wants.
Did you ever have a career plan B?
I do lots of writing without Jack. I wrote a lot of theatre when I was young. I made a film about six months ago. I was trying to work out the cheapest way of doing it so I got two cyclists and it cuts between their GoPros as they have an argument.
Honestly, I don't think I have a plan B. When Jack and I started, we wrote for fun. We loved writing together when we were 15 and I have been writing by myself since I was 13 or 14. It has never been something I have considered not doing.
Jack Reacher, Jason Bourne or James Bond?
You've asked me a question about action films so this is not going to be quickfire. It's a good question. For the films, Bourne but for the books, maybe Reacher? I like a man that orders coffee in a polystyrene cup even if he's going to sit in the café because he never knows if he might have to move. I think Bond is a really neurotic character. He's just a s**t really. My best friend loves Reacher books so I am going to say Reacher.