drinks outside.
Many Fleabag fans will recognise Demetriou from his scene-stealing turn as “Bus Rodent” in the first series
of Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s Bafta-winning hit, when he wore such ridiculous fake teeth that, three years on,
people still approach him in the street and demand he opens his mouth. However, Demetriou is “reluctant
to talk about the teeth thing”, recalling a recent interview headline that focused on his denticles.
When Demetriou talks about his older sister Natasia, star of What We Do in the Shadows and sketch pilot of
Ellie & Natasia, it’s as if he’s speaking about his soulmate. She also appears in Stath Lets Flats as his sister,
Sophie, and having that sibling telepathy on set is clearly a game-changer. “That shorthand is really
important,” he says. “There aren’t many people who I can say to in the middle of a scene, ‘It’s the
expression that cousin Tony gave us when he told us that dad’s car got trapped in the sand. That’s what I’m
looking for.’ But Tash is like, ‘I get it.’”
Stath can’t understand why hipsters like the things that they like ... like why they think old cupboards are
nicer than new cupboards
It’s difficult not to compare the Demetriou siblings to This Country’s creators and stars Daisy May and
Charlie Cooper, who Demetriou says are “the funniest people I’ve ever met in my life”. And like The
Coopers, the Demetrious include family cameos in their material – although sometimes that’s easier said
than done.
“My dad is in series one of Stath Lets Flats, very briefly,” laughs Demetriou. “He doesn’t have a line. Well,
he had a line, but he couldn’t nail it.” When Demetriou asked him to pretend to be asleep instead, he kept
opening his eyes. “So we just put some sunglasses on him,” says Demetriou. “So his cameo is effectively
him just sitting, looking dead, with sunglasses on.”
The scene in question was shared with the actor Alex Beckett, who died by suicide just after season one
wrapped filming. Demetriou has not decided whether to address the absence of his character Marcus.
“There may be a subtle reference but it’s a difficult area,” says the actor, looking down at his feet. “It feels
like any angle you take would be doing a disservice to the truth. Alex was just objectively a perfect person.
On set, if ever I felt stressed, I would always know he was a point of calm in the room to talk to. We will
miss him and it won’t feel the same without him.”
Demetriou is by far most comfortable and animated when speaking about his family. He describes his
father, whom the show’s patriarch Vasos is loosely based on, as “an eccentric ball of idiosyncrasies and love
- and surprises”.
Tall tales: Stath nailing another flat viewing