Actor Matthew Perry, who has reportedly been found dead at the age of 54, discusses his play, "The End of Longing," which he wrote and starred in, in 2016.
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00:00 Matthew Perry, it's lovely to see you here in this amazing theatre.
00:04 Yes.
00:04 I have to say congratulations on your playwriting debut.
00:08 Thank you.
00:09 I imagine a whole different set of nerves for you then.
00:11 It is very nerve-wracking because I wrote it and I'm in it so you kind of feel doubly naked.
00:17 Yeah, and especially on the stage as well because it's so different from TV because
00:22 you're very exposed aren't you in a way?
00:24 Yeah, well you can't make a mistake because you don't get a second take so it's different.
00:30 Well you can make mistakes but you just have to kind of roll with it.
00:32 Yeah, I guess so. If somebody makes a mistake you have to kind of go with it.
00:37 Now I know you have written before in the past, you've contributed to Friends obviously
00:41 but this is something you did completely on your own so tell me about that process and how different it was.
00:46 Well I just started writing because I wanted to see if I could write something on my own
00:50 and these monologues came out. Those were the first things that I
00:54 came out and I realised I was writing a play so I kept writing until I was finished and then I
00:59 sent it to some friends and they liked it and here we are.
01:03 Yeah, but you wrote the first draft incredibly quickly didn't you?
01:06 The first draft I wrote quickly and then I've been rewriting for about a year.
01:09 What were the areas that you were trying to hone down, that you were trying to perfect?
01:14 Well I wanted to make it funny and I also wanted to make it heartfelt and I wanted to make it
01:21 emotional and people have been laughing and crying and that's what we want to see.
01:26 Because you've had people in here watching it, you've had the first few shows haven't you?
01:29 Reviews. What's it been like, the reaction from the audience?
01:32 It's been great, we've been getting standing ovations.
01:34 Yeah.
01:34 Yeah.
01:35 Which is always so good.
01:36 Yeah.
01:37 That must just fill you with confidence. You say you've got the nerves but you must be feeling
01:40 really good about that.
01:40 No, it feels very good to get that reaction.
01:42 Yeah. Tell me a little bit about the play then and it's set in LA isn't it?
01:47 It's set in LA, it's about four people in their 30s and 40s, kind of broken people
01:53 trying to become unbroken and find love and romance basically.
01:57 And your character?
01:59 My character is a drunk who falls in love with a prostitute so it's a very adult play.
02:07 You're not going to want to bring your 13 year olds to this play.
02:11 There's a lot of swearing in it.
02:13 Okay.
02:13 Which British audiences seem to enjoy.
02:15 I tell you us Londoners love it.
02:17 Yeah, they like it.
02:19 Our show's on very early in the evening so we won't be going down that road.
02:22 No, no, no, I won't swear on the show.
02:23 We have a wicked side to us though.
02:25 Yeah, you do.
02:26 Because you must have spent quite a lot of time here in London.
02:28 When you're rehearsing.
02:29 Rehearsing and I did a play here in 2003 and the only two places I've done a play is the West End.
02:37 Yeah.
02:37 Yeah.
02:37 And what do you like about it?
02:39 I love the audiences and the reactions and how into it they are.
02:43 What do you get to do in your downtime here?
02:47 Because there's so much.
02:47 I've had no downtime.
02:48 You've had no downtime? I can't believe it.
02:49 No, this is my downtime.
02:51 Oh, and you're spending it with us?
02:52 Yeah.
02:52 I'm sorry.
02:53 That's alright.
02:54 I have to apologise for that.
02:55 I hear they bring in cheeseburgers.
02:57 Really?
02:57 Yeah.
02:58 Can I stay for that?
02:59 Yeah, sure.
03:00 Oh, thank you. That's very kind of you.
03:01 If you want cheeseburgers.
03:02 I wouldn't mind one.
03:03 It's interesting though that this is set in a bar in LA.
03:06 Yeah.
03:07 But then it's debuting here in London.
03:09 Yeah.
03:09 So there is that contrast.
03:10 Well, it's an American play.
03:12 The characters are American.
03:14 There's two British people playing Americans in the play, Boyd Owen and Christine Nicole.
03:19 Yeah.
03:19 And Jennifer Mudge plays another character and she's American.
03:24 Yeah.
03:25 So, but people seem to be responding well to it.
03:30 Yeah.
03:31 Would you like to take it to Broadway afterwards?
03:32 I think there's a little talk of that.
03:34 Okay. That looks exciting.
03:36 And back to your character again and the fact that you've written it and you did it all on your own.
03:41 Yeah.
03:41 Do you draw from your life and your experiences?
03:43 Yeah, a couple of the characters are me.
03:46 A couple of the characters are me.
03:47 Yeah.
03:47 One of the female characters is very much like me.
03:50 Really? How so?
03:51 Well, she's very neurotic and that's me.
03:56 Yes.
03:57 And my character is a drunk and I used to drink a lot and so I'm familiar with that.
04:03 Is it challenging for you playing that role as a result?
04:06 No, it's been fun.
04:07 Yeah.
04:08 Yeah.
04:08 Is it cathartic?
04:09 It's been a little bit cathartic. Yeah.
04:11 Yeah.
04:12 Yeah.
04:13 That's interesting. It's good to know.
04:14 You've got a run up until May here.
04:17 May 14th.
04:17 Haven't you? So you've got quite a few shows to get under your belt.
04:21 I hope you're going to have some downtime in all of that.
04:23 Well, there'll be downtime during the day.
04:24 That is good to know.
04:27 Now, I know we're not going to bang on about Friends because I know you do that little TV show
04:30 a few years ago, America Called Friends.
04:32 I don't know. Some people liked it, but whatever.
04:34 I know you're rehearsing here, obviously, so you couldn't make that reunion.
04:38 That was a special reunion.
04:39 I'm filming something today for it, though.
04:41 Are you?
04:42 Yeah.
04:42 Oh, are you? Can you tell us about it?
04:44 Or just a little intro to the cast.
04:47 Yeah.
04:48 Just a little thing. If there was ever, you know, we're going to do a revival,
04:51 we're going to do Friends, the 40 years, the 40-somethings, would you do it?
04:55 I would do it. Sure.