Stath Lets Flats creator Jamie Demetriou can do no wrong – not least when it comes to comedy. His latest brilliance comes in the form of a Netflix special titled A Whole Lifetime With Jamie Demetriou which, through the medium of catchy songs and oddball characters, takes audiences on a hilarious journey through life’s pivotal stages.
It was an idea that came to the 35-year-old as he pondered which subject would “sustain an audience’s attention for an hour with sketches” – especially given that consumption is often now short-form or whilst scrolling through your phone.
“I was like, what is an arc that is familiar enough that people can settle in and get comfy, and they know where the end goal is?” he says.
“Well, life is a pretty familiar story, and it lent itself to a variety of characters and an opportunity for me to express some comedic ideas and observations that I have.
“It felt like a fertile bit of soil that wasn’t so specific that it was cutting me off from using things, but wasn’t so unspecific that it just felt like a random selection of stuff for an hour.”
Certain to have audiences rolling in their seats, the one-off sketch show takes viewers right through from the womb to awkward adulthood, and the not-so-golden years, unpacking the most embarrassing, heartening and, ultimately, futile phases of a life lived in the anxious modern day.
Each stage is articulated through a different character played by Demetriou, who is in turn joined by comedy favourites, including his Stath Lets Flats co-stars Ellie White, Kiell Smith-Bynoe and Katy Wix.
“My dream is to be able to work with everyone from that cast in one way or another for as long as I have breath in my lungs,” he says.
“It’s an honour that they would be up for coming back and doing more stuff, but at the same time, in Stath, I struggled to get everyone that I love into it. So, this was a good opportunity to get people like Sian Clifford, Jon Pointing and Johnny Sweet involved.
“Everyone’s a kind of amalgamation of a person who represents a fear, a stance or a feeling I’ve had before.
“It’s about being at peace and accepting that some people behave weirdly, and some people don’t, and yet ultimately life just keeps rolling on. That, to me, feels like an optimistic standpoint. That nothing is the end of the world.”
A Whole Lifetime With Jamie Demetriou, Netflix
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