‘I always think that you’re better off learning your lessons in the dark’
Creator of Stath Lets Flats, Jamie Demetriou, talks to Danielle de Wolfe about the new series
Chaotic wheeler-dealer letting agents don’t get much more incompetent than Stath.
The bumbling brainchild of Bafta Award-winning writer and comedian Jamie Demetriou, the endearingly earnest “gangster agent” of Stath Lets Flats is finally ready to “take himself seriously” – or so claims the show’s creator.
The was concept born out of a Channel 4’s Comedy Blaps, which aims to uncover emerging comic talent, and the journey of Stath Lets Flats to our screens was anything but straightforward.
A decade-long battle involving five years of script development and a repetitive process of churning out drafts “took its toll”, the comic recounts.
Yet this saw Demetriou become “incrementally better” as a writer, he says. Now he thinks that had series one of Stath Lets Flats been picked up earlier, his lack of experience in script writing would have led to an “uneven” series.
As he carries the show kicking and screaming into a highly anticipated third series, Demetriou’s character – incompetent Greekcypriot estate agent Stath – continues to exhibit delusions of grandeur. But with fatherhood now upon him, the realities of adult life are set to hit the wannabe property mogul.
“I definitely think there are some similarities there with my upbringing,” says Demetriou of Stath’s approach to fatherhood. “My dad was, and still is, undeniably loving and loves me to the hilt, but… I think it’s quite a Euro thing to decide you love [a child] before they’re born.”
Describing an automated thought pattern of “I know that I love him, so I don’t have to do anything,” Demetriou explains how this principle applies to his onscreen character – a man who has done “no research into what takes place during fatherhood” and hasn’t wrapped his head around the basic concept of “earning money”.
Also starring sibling and fellow comic Natasia Demetriou (What We Do In The Shadows) as Jamie’s onscreen sibling – a character set to deal with the fallout of confessing her love for Stath’s best friend – series three will feature a number of guest stars including Julia Davis (Nighty Night), David Avery (We Are Lady Parts) and Charlie Cooper (This Country).
At university he became “really frustrated” at the underwhelming reception his material received, but now Demetriou is glad of the experience.
“I always think that you’re better off learning your lessons in the dark, so that when the light turns on and people can see you, you’re prepped.”
Demetriou has now had roles in the Will Ferrellfronted Eurovision: The Story Of Fire Saga, Fleabag and the forthcoming Chris Miller penned murder mystery The Afterparty but stand-up is his first love.
“I don’t ever want to be financially reliant upon stand-up because it’s so pure, and it’s something that I can do without worrying about whether or not getting gigs is going to allow me to pay the rent.”
● Stath Lets Flats returns to Channel 4 today at 10pm. All episodes are on All 4