大象传媒

Gregor Fisher and Greg McHugh star as father and son, Ken and Richard Pritchard, in new six-part comedy series Only Child written by Bryce Hart.

We spoke to Bryce about his inspiration for Only Child and about his writing career to date. Find out more below.

Watch Only Child on 大象传媒 iPlayer from Thursday 21st November, on 大象传媒 Scotland from 10pm that evening and 大象传媒 One from 9.30pm on Friday.

Can you explain the premise of Only Child?

Richard, played by , is a kind of jobbing actor in London who returns to his hometown in the North East of Scotland to visit his dad Ken (played by ) on the first anniversary of his mum's passing. It's the first time he's been back since the funeral and once there, he realises that Ken maybe needs a little bit more full time help than he imagined.

Then through a series of events it transpires that Richard is stuck there and can't leave, so the two of them have to basically figure out how they go forward and start a new relationship with their roles slightly reversed. Richard now becoming the father and Ken, in some aspects, becoming the child.

What inspired the story? Does it have any personal resonance?

The idea came to me originally over lock down. Those initial periods when we were having zooms with our parents and trying to just make sure that they were staying in the house. They鈥檇 say they were and then five minutes later, they would tell you that they were in B&Q.

What was funny about it was it's not because that they are infirm or because they didn't get it. It's just who they are. And that鈥檚 not going to change. So, it was just learning to not get angry with them and accepting that at this point of their life, the cement is dry. The only way to have a good relationship is to accept that and go forwards.

I think that's a big theme of this show, finally seeing your parents as people. That's quite a big thing for Richard, realising that Ken isn't just dad, he's also someone who has interests and desires. It鈥檚 about making the most of the time that you have left together.

In your writing, would you say in general you draw on your own personal experience?

It's exaggerated in this show, but the basis of it is in reality. There鈥檚 a bit of both of my mum and dad in Ken, just massively turned up. And of me in Richard. There's a sort of impatience to Richard sometimes that I don't like in myself. So, we get to explore that. There's also a little bit of cowardice too because he's not been home for a year and in the back of his mind he fears what he might be going back to. There's a thing when your parents get older that feels sad to see, not because they're lesser in any way (I am mindful of not saying things about my own parents because they're absolutely still sharp and young at heart) but they change physically. They are these giants in your life and then they become a little bit smaller and there's something I thought was interesting about Richard sort of hiding from that, until basically he no longer can and has to face up to it.

So those sort of emotional things are always my starting points, it needs to feel true at its heart. After that you can turn the comedy up or down.

Why do you think that generational issues in families have been such a rich seam for comedy?

Because it happens to all of us. I'm 40 next year and already getting left behind a little bit in terms of technology. There are things now where I think 鈥淚 can鈥檛 be bothered learning to do that鈥� and it's so interesting because for my parents鈥� generation, in the last twenty years the world has just moved on so fast in that regard. For example in the series, Ken complains that you can鈥檛 even go into a bank anymore. Now we've got to have passwords for everything. I'm also conscious that the next generation is coming up behind me and I'm turning into the one that doesn't really know what's going on.

What are some of the comedy shows that you love or that have inspired you?

I think the stuff that's always interested me is the stuff where you feel like you're in the room with people. Shows that are really stripped back. So, The Royle Family, written by , was a massive show for me growing up. Shows like that make you realise that as long as you've got good characters, you don鈥檛 have to have massive high concept plots. The Office was another really important show for me. As long as you've got good characters, you鈥檒l watch them do anything.

And of course, there are the big classic sitcoms like and that I love as well, so I guess I was trying to find that kind of perfect blend between those two styles.

You've been really lucky with your cast for Only Child. Did you write the show with them in mind, or was that just lucky?

It was that thing that never happens! I wrote the pitch document and in the first line I said 鈥榊ou meet Ken and Richard Pritchard 鈥� think Gregor Fisher and Greg McHugh鈥�. And we got them, it was unbelievable! I've had things in development with Greg before so I've always wanted to work with him because I think he's brilliant. With Gregor, it was crazy to me that he wasn't in more things because I just think he's one of the best.

When did you first decide you wanted to be a writer?

From around the age of fourteen or fifteen. I loved TV comedy and the only thing that I enjoyed at school was writing short stories in English. When I first watched The Office, it was a bit of a lightbulb moment to combine those two passions. Then it was just the annoying thing of having to hang around for fifteen years and get some life experience, because at that age you've got nothing to write about. So, I went to Uni, did a history degree and then started working in TV as a runner/researcher, but was always writing in my spare time.

I was out filming one day with a producer who I knew just about well enough to ask if he would read my script. Luckily he did and really liked it. He took it to the 大象传媒 and it went into development. It didn鈥檛 get made but they passed it on to the 大象传媒 Writers team (大象传媒 Writersroom at the time) and through that I was given a place in the Comedy Room development scheme which is where everything changed for me.

Whilst on the scheme I met Audrey McFadden and Angela Galvin who worked in the 大象传媒 Writers Scottish office 鈥� they really believed in me and were basically my agent 鈥� before brokering an introduction to my actual agent (still to this day). Through them I got a work placement at a production company called the where I wrote comedy every day from 9 to 5. I managed to build up four or five credits in my time there. After that I was selected for the Scottish Comedy Writers鈥� Programme through which I met Neil Webster and Happy Tramp. I had written a spec script for the programme called Beep which Neil loved and we decided to try and make it. About a month later we delivered a finished script, got a read through and then eventually a commission. It went out on 大象传媒 Two, so all of a sudden, I had a network credit. Beep didn鈥檛 get a series, but they gave us a script commission which became Only Child.

It sounds seamless saying it now but there was a lot of waiting around in between.

Have you got any advice for other writers?

It's the thing that everyone says, be resilient, try to be patient but most importantly, keep writing. Be ready for when opportunity knocks.

Don鈥檛 turn down opportunities because they鈥檙e not exactly what you want to do. You want to show people you can do this as a job, that you can hit deadlines, take notes etc.

All you can do is try and create your own luck. In America there are clearer steps to take, you can become a writer's assistant and work your way up. Apply for everything that you can. Open calls like 大象传媒 Writers run are so rare. Having 大象传媒 Writers championing me made such a difference and put me on the pathway to meeting the people who I am now working with - and will continue to work with for the rest of my career.