Funland
Starts this autumn on 91Èȱ¬ THREE
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Kris Marshall plays Dudley Sutton
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Age: 32
Lives in: Windsor, Berkshire.
What's he been in before? My Family on 91Èȱ¬ ONE and 91Èȱ¬ THREE's My Life in Film.
Did you know? Kris was voted Best Comedy newcomer at the 2003 British Comedy Awards.
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When Kris Marshall jetted off on holiday after accepting the role of hapless Dudley, little did he know that The Maldives would provide him with the perfect inspiration for the role.
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"I met this guy, while I was on holiday, in the queue for my breakfast one morning!" laughs Kris. "He was wearing these awful sandals and long shorts and he just looked like a fish out of water.
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"He had a bad razor rash and a bit of a pot belly and so I was stood in the queue trying to copy his gait and sticking my belly out when he turned round and caught me looking at him! But the guy was absolutely perfect and I decided to model Dudley on him.
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"I was chatting to the costume designer and asked if he could get Dudley the same kind of sandals. Dudley has got no dress sense! His shorts are really badly cut and unflattering and he even tucks his shirt into his shorts. Never before have I worn shorts except on the beach, but in Funland I have spent most of the shoot in shorts!"
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Dudley has been married to his wife Lola for three years and they arrive in Blackpool for a dirty weekend to spice up their sex life. Dudley has booked the B&B as a surprise and desperately wants everything to be perfect - but when they arrive at the Shangri-La it isn't quite what they were expecting.
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"The Suttons are quite a naïve couple really and I think their first impression when they arrive at the B&B is abject horror!" explains Kris.
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"Anyone else would have taken one look at the place and said 'We're not staying here' but Dudley lacks a bit of backbone when the chips are down. He's quite spineless really.
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"So they decide to stay but that decision is the first of many bad decisions that Dudley makes that weekend. The Suttons try to make the best of things as Dudley doesn't want to let Lola down, but it doesn't end up being the weekend of fun that they had intended."
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Dudley and Lola try not to let their insalubrious surroundings get in the way of their dirty weekend and with the help of an appropriately placed bucket Dudley is able to excite his wife for the first time!
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"The bucket scene is quite comical but also a very touching scene. I think Dudley is pleased that Lola is enjoying herself but it's also about his performance and him feeling like a real man. But then he messes it up as usual!"
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The Suttons find themselves embarking on a rollercoaster journey into the dark side of Blackpool. Dudley joins a poker game with Leo Finch who runs the B&B and he quickly racks up a debt of thousands of pounds that he simply can't pay.
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When Leo offers him a way out – the use of his wife and the debt will be cleared – Dudley reluctantly agrees.
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"What starts out as some photography leads to Lola performing in a lapdancing club. When Lola starts dancing for the first time, Dudley is right behind her. Partly because he wants the debt to be paid off as quickly as possible, but also because he really enjoys watching her.
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"He sees a side of her that he never knew existed and so there's a certain amount of excitement in it for him and it really turns him on."
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Kris has been a big fan of one half of the Funland writing partnership, Jeremy Dyson, since The League of Gentlemen began - and has really enjoyed the challenge that working on Funland has provided. But his next role will take him back to the theatre.
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"I'm a bit scared, to be honest, as I haven't been on stage for about six years. I'm doing a Molière play at The Almeida Theatre in London which I'm really looking forward to.
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"TV can mean long hours but you never have to remember two hours of dialogue in one go, so it will be interesting to see whether my memory is still as good!"
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And away from both the worlds of screen and stage, there is nothing Kris likes more than heading to the coast and going surfing.
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"I'm not very good but I have been doing it for about five years now. I think you would have to do it every day to be any good. But I love the beach and I love the ocean and surfing is a really good way of keeping fit and cleaning out your system at the same time."
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