Fans will queue in 40 degrees to be an extra. There’s a guy who has every character tattooed on him... I am on his ribs
TV SHERRIE’S BENIDORM PARTY MAYHEM
The cast of TV comedy Benidorm hardly need an excuse for a party as the hit show gets set to celebrate its 10th birthday, says star Sherrie Hewson.
They have such a great time making the sitcom that Sherrie has had to call time on the partying as it was taking too much of a toll on her health.
Sherrie, 67, says: “We are drinking ourselves to death. I’ve never been on a girls’ holiday because my mother was a very strong, dominant woman, so I always had to go with her.
“So when I first started Benidorm, I thought this is what it must be like. I was out every night, it nearly killed me. It had to stop. ”
Filmed on location at the Sol Pelicanos in Spain’s Costa Blanca, the cast and crew take over half the hotel and are only divided from holidaymakers by a plastic hedge.
And as the show has grown in popularity over the past decade, a steady trickle has become a flood of fans who treat a trip to Benidorm like a religious pilgrimage.
Former Coronation Street and Emmerdale favourite Sherrie says: “It’s incredible. We’re making Benidorm in Benidorm and it’s like the Beatles in Liverpool.
“Fans queue in 40 degrees for hours to be extras. There’s a guy who has every character tattooed on him. I was relieved that my picture is by his ribs.”
Sherrie recalls filming a scene with guest stars Hale and Pace in the upcoming series when two fans were heard whispering through the hedge: ‘Is that Sherrie Hewson? That’s Sherrie Hewson, isn’t it!’
She says: “Hale and Pace nearly fell off their sunbeds laughing. But Dame Joan Collins has been my favourite guest star. She’s so much fun.”
Sherrie has played Solana hotel manageress Joyce Temple-Savage since series five in 2012.
As Benidorm marks the 10th anniversary with a new series and special this month, she admits that there are plenty of similarities between her and Joyce.
She says: “A lot of her is me, in the sense that I’m silly and camp and outrageous, and I’m a frustrated old bag.
“I’ve been on my own for a very long time. Joyce is like that.”
Mum of one and grandmother of two Sherrie spends five months of the year filming in Benidorm. The show pulled her back into acting during a 15-year stint as a presenter on Loose Women. She says: “A part like this rarely comes along and I was very lucky that I met the writer Derren Litten who decided I fitted the bill. This role is the joy of my life. “It’s such an incredible family. I think the show’s longevity is down to the most wonderful British humour, like
the Carry On genre.” Despite working 14-hour days, Sherrie admits the cast are infamous for their big nights out at karaoke bars in the Spanish town. She says: “I am the only person in the cast who can’t sing.
“One year I’d had a few gin and tonics and started to sing Kung Fu Fighting. The bar owner said, ‘Come on, love, can you get off the stage?’ I was so rubbish he asked me to leave the bar.”
Sherrie reveals her favourite scene was when Joyce knocked out Kenneth’s front teeth in a fight by the pool.
But she’s quite happy that she’s the only cast member who doesn’t have to wear a swimsuit.
She says: “I’m always suited and booted. I’ve not worn a bikini since I was 12, I’m not going to start now.” Next week in tribute show Benidorm: 10 Years on Holiday, the show’s creator and writer Derren Litten will guide viewers around Benidorm, revealing filming secrets.
The cast past and present, including Steve Pemberton, Siobhan Finneran and Sheila Reid, talk about their roles.
Sherrie says: “It has been successful for 10 years because it’s the quintessential British humour.
“When you look back over the years at all the characters, you just warm to the show immediately.”
She adds: “The characters are so solid. We’re out there for such a long time and we’re very strong as a family together.
“For me, I’ve had such a good time over the last few years. I’ll never forget Joyce Temple-Savage. She’s everything I could have wished for in my career, to play this character.”
And she reveals: “Watch out for Benidorm Live in September. It will be me, Tony who plays Kenneth, Jake who plays Mateo, Adam who plays Liam, Shelley who plays Sam and Janine who plays Jacqueline. It’s like a musical!”
Sherrie gave up drinking as part of a “Lose the booze” pledge for January.
She says: “When I was young and very unhappy I would do crazy things like hide alcohol in cereal boxes. I didn’t necessarily drink it, I hid it, which psychologically is a very strange thing to come to terms with.
“It was about having a secret... I do feel that giving up alcohol must be good for you. I could give it up for good.”
But then, laughing, Sherrie says: “I do like what we call ‘day wine’ in Benidorm, which is rosé – because we all know that rosé doesn’t have any alcohol in it, so you can drink as much as you want!”
Benidorm: 10 Years on Holiday is on Tuesday, February 20 on ITV at 9pm and Benidorm, Series 10, starts on ITV at the end of February.
I always compare being in Benidorm to a family Christmas, but with a family that you like. While we are there, we plan loads of things. Sometimes certain lines are crossed with the fans though. I get it, we are like Minnie and Mickey Mouse in Disneyland. “They come to see us. They mean no malice, but sometimes fans will just sit down next to you while you’re eating dinner and it’s a bit awkward. Jake Canuso (Mateo)
The best guest stars for me were Madness, who were amazing in Neptune’s Bar last year. Just being there was like being at a concert. It was a show for us, and they really had a ball. One of my favourite scenes to watch and to be in was in series five. It was during the summer Olympics and we all jumped into the pool and there were huge fireworks. Just to be part of that moment – we were all in the pool and had just one take. It felt a bit like live TV, it was magical. Shelley Longworth (Sam)