BWW Interviews: Chris Larkin of YES, PRIME MINISTER

What's it like playing one of three legends of television comedy? (Simon Williams plays Sir Humphrey Appleby, Richard McCabe plays Jim Hacker and Chris Larkin plays Bernard Woolley - the principals of BBC TV series, Yes, Minister and Yes, Prime Minister)

The funny thing is that Jonathan Lynn (the director) said on the first day that what happened before is completely irrelevant - this is a new production and I cast you. You mustn't ever worry about what Paul Eddington, Nigel Davenport and Derek Fowlds did - it's entirely down to your interpretation. The interesting thing is that we all do what we want to do and the audience immediately accept that we're not the original actors - as soon as you mention a character's name, they know that's Jim or that's Bernard or that's Sir Humphrey.

How has the show been received by today's audiences?

Incredibly well - there is an enormous amount of national fondness for the series and the three characters. The British people love the relationship that was built up between them over the years. Those who remember the television shows are older and have brought their children and it's accessible to everybody, because it's fantastic political comedy.

The play has the same writers as the television series (Anthony Jay and Jonathan Lynn) - how did they feel about revisiting something they last did twenty years ago?

They've done other things in the meantime. But, once someone suggested it, I think they came up with the idea and and wrote it. It was one of those projects that came together very quickly for them, having left it alone for twenty years. Jonathan and Anthony have aged and the characters, though the same, have become more acerbic. Political satire has become much more "in your face" over the years and this Yes, Prime Minister is a little more controversial than it used to be.

It's contemporary in the issues that it raises - it's 2011 rather than a revival?

It's brought up to date - Jim is in a coalition government, there's war in Afghanistan, Euro issues and the debt crisis. There's always room for political satire, otherwise we shouldn't be in a democracy.

Bernard's role is understated in the television series, but he often has the funniest line at the end of the scene - how do you see his character?

He's very much the servant of two masters. He's torn between his boss in the Civil Service and his boss in Downing Street. He has to try to facilitate the desires and ambitions of both of them - very often pulled in diametrically opposing directions. Bernard is left trying to juggle it and ease the way to keep his job, and to make sure everyone else stays in theirs as well. Bernard is the everyman - he has a very powerful job, but not of the stature of the other two. The audience relate to him.

The old shows were rather male preserves. The world's changed a bit since the 80s - is it still a male preserve on stage?

There is a completely new character who turns the three into a four. She's a policy adviser at Number Ten - an Alastair Campbell, if you like. She tips the balance a bit - another person is watching Jim Hacker's back. She's not elected and not part of the Civil Service, so she's great for throwing spanners in works of Sir Humphrey and Bernard.

How much research did you do for the part?

Jonathan was very good as director and writer and told us what he based the story on. He corroborated all his plots in the memoirs. It's where he got the title Yes, Minister - meaning, of course, No, Minister.

Politicians were held in higher regard in the past than they are today - how does the play address this change?

We hold politicians in low esteem, very often quite rightly. The play addresses this change by showing that, for all the good that politicians intend, there's a certain amount of self-serving and personal ambition. Politicians can be as cynical as the rest of us - the cynicism of power.

Do you see the London audience as one of political insiders to some extent?

We played Richmond recently and it was a different audience so close to London. On tour, different issues get different laughs in different parts of the country - rural issues in rural parts for example. The audience reaction is never the same around the country - perhaps a Westminster audience will get different things out of it.

Any plans to change the play for London?

No. They wrote the play two and a half years ago and they like to think that government policy stays in tune with the play. Jonathan is very pleased that David Cameron is taking direction from his writing!

Chris Larkin plays Bernard Woolley in Yes, Prime Minister at the Apollo Theatre from Wednesday July 6 until Saturday 17 September.