NOW FLETCH’S GRANDSON’S DOING PORRIDGE

When actor and comedian Kevin Bishop was first approached by the BBC and asked if he’d like to step into the shoes of the late, great Ronnie Barker in a remake of Porridge, he wanted to run a mile.

But when they explained it would be set in a contemporary prison, that Kevin would play Nigel Fletcher, the grandson of Ronnie Barker’s Norman Stanley Fletcher, and that the brand new script would be written by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais, the original Porridge scriptwriters, he couldn’t say no. ‘I’m not against remakes per se – but a remake of Porridge? I didn’t think it was a good idea. How can you try to redo something so beloved by so many people? Also, Ronnie Barker was iconic in the role. He had exceptional comic timing, but he was able to portray great melancholy too. But I read the script and I was amazed. Clement and La Frenais are still incredibly sharp and so good at their craft. There are old rhythms there, old beats of comedy that we just don’t see any more. It’s very funny but also, and I think this is crucial, very touching. Clement and La Frenais told me that in every episode of Porridge they deliberately had a serious moment too, to show what an empty place prison is.’

In the new show, part of the BBC’s special season, Nigel Fletcher’s been banged up for cyber crimes – much to the disgust of his father, Norman Stanley’s son. ‘Nigel’s father was straight but we learn that the criminal gene has skipped a generation,’ says

Kevin. Is Nigel like his grandfather? ‘Physically, no,’ he says. ‘But in some ways he’s a chip off the old block.’

The new show has other echoes of the original Porridge. There’s a Scottish prison officer, played by the excellent Mark Bonnar from Catastrophe, just as the 70s series had Mr Mackay; and there’s an old lag-new inmate dynamic to match that of Norman Stanley and young cellmate Lennie Godber (played by Richard Beckinsale) – only this time it’s the Fletcher character who’s the newcomer, to veteran prisoner Joe Lotterby, played by former EastEnders actor Dave Hill. As for the plot, it revolves around Nigel’s relationship with the prison bad boy, Richie Weeks (Ralph Ineson from The Office). Can the young Fletcher manage to outwit him?

At its peak Porridge, which ran for three series, had 15 million viewers. Can the new one emulate that? ‘Comedy is constantly changing, but essentially the same,’ says Kevin. ‘If it makes people laugh, Fletch and Godber in the original then it’s serving its purpose. Our job is to entertain viewers and move them too – it’s as simple as that.’

Porridge, tomorrow, 9.30pm, BBC1.

Young Fletch (right) with old lag Joe