THE CREATOR of The Outlaws has admitted to cutting his own parents out of the upcoming third series of the BBC comedy.
Stephen Merchant shared his guilty secret ahead of the new season airing next week.
The scriptwriter and comedian, widely known for working on the British version of The Office, previously told media outlets that The Outlaws is partially based on stories that were passed down from his mum and dad.
The series follows a gang of misfits in Bristol who have gotten on the wrong side of the law as they finish out their community service sentences and try to stay out of trouble.
Stephen himself is from Bristol, and his parents actually worked as Community Payback Supervisors.
He told the BBC: “My mother was always careful, she would say, ‘I can’t tell you about specific cases…’ as if it was sensitive information and I couldn’t be trusted.
“But here and there, not naming names, she would talk about some of the people that came through the doors. I was always intrigued because it was such a mix of people.”
Given they inspired the series, Stephen wanted to involve his parents in the most recent season.
He ended up casting them as extras – but has now revealed that he cut all of their dialogue in the final edit.
In an exclusive chat with the Sun, he shared: “My mother now, rather proudly, says that the character of Dianne is based on her.
“Considering how pedantic that character is, it’s a weird boast! But she really liked that.
“She might be the biggest Outlaw fan. My mum and dad actually feature in this series as extras in the background of a scene.
“They’re in the first episode on my computer screen. My character is doing a meeting with some clients.”
He sheepishly added: “They did have a little bit of dialogue, which
unfortunately I had to cut, I don’t think I’ve told them yet!
“Not because of their performance but because of time. My mother will be like: ‘We want to be extras, why can’t we be extras?’
“And then the day that they are, she’s absolutely terrified saying: ‘Why did you make us extras? This is so nerve-wracking!’
“She was absolutely petrified but she did a wonderful job, whereas my dad is much more gung-ho, he loves it! He’ll happily be part of it.”