MATRI-MOANY

SHERRIE HEWSON AND JOHN CHALLIS TELL US WHY JOYCE AND MONTY’S WEDDING DOESN’T QUITE GO WITHOUT A HITCH…

You are cordially invited to join Ms Joyce Temple-savage and Mr Monty Staines as they celebrate their wedding on Peacock Island, off the coast of Benidorm. Please ensure that you are suitably dressed for an ocean voyage, and for… angry seagulls? That can’t be right, can it? Well, as Inside TV chats to stars Sherrie Hewson and John Challis, who play Joyce and Monty, we discover that the filming of the wedding didn’t go entirely to plan…

“We had a drone camera to film on the boat,” recalls Sherrie. “An enormous great big thing – it came right down in front of us! It’s a fascinating thing to see.”

“It’s quite disturbing, like a giant insect,” adds John. “Then it followed us on to the island as well. We were being attacked by the seagulls, who weren’t very pleased as we were tramping on their nests.”

“And when the drone came up, all the birds rose screaming at it!” shares Sherrie. “Then they took the drone away and all the birds calmed down again!”

So despite a few bird-related setbacks, the cast were able to film the scenes for this year’s opening episode – but will there be a happily ever after for the newly-weds? It seems unlikely on this show…

“Joyce is a very strong woman,” points out Sherrie. “She’s not going to take second-best, and she’s not going to take all the crap he doles out – but he knows that. He just always seems to get everything wrong, and she has no forgiving nature!”

“Why would you marry someone like that?” wonders John. “Monty must have something she likes, but I can’t imagine what it might be!”

The current run is the 10th series of Benidorm, which makes it a real milestone for the comedy. It has certainly attracted plenty of loyal fans over the years – many of whom head to Benidorm themselves when the show is filming in the hope of meeting the cast. And while the actors tell us they’re happy to chat to fans, there are occasions when they can’t hang around for long – otherwise the show would never get finished…

“The fans are amazing and lovely and kind – they’re the reason why we’ve been here for 10 years,” grins Sherrie. “And when we can, we will spend time with them – but we can’t always sign autographs for hundreds of people, because you have to get in the van to go to the next scene!”

JOYCE ISN’T GOING TO TAKE ALL THE CRAP HE DOLES OUT”

SHERRIE