Bobby Brazier reveals 'mixed feelings' as EastEnders favourite exits show

EastEnders star Bobby Brazier recently sat down to chat with Metro.co.uk about his new series, Curfew, and the recent departure of his on-screen best mate Bobby Beale (Clay Milner Russell) in the BBC soap.

Bobby first hit our screens as Freddie Slater in 2022, a character that he has been playing ever since.

However, he is now set to appear in new drama Curfew which will see him take on a different type of role as bolshy troublemaker James.

‘I’ve only ever played one character and that’s Freddie Slater,’ Bobby told us. ‘James is definitely different. James was someone to think about a little bit further outside of myself and Freddie.

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‘My take is that James is a young teenage boy who doesn’t really have his own legs to stand on so the legs that he poses from is one that he’s moulded together from certain influences he deems to be “cool,” or saying the right thing.

‘So really I don’t think it’s very authentic at all, it’s just someone who’s trying to copy that which sounds good and cool, and in James’s mind that’s someone who seems to be powerful and seems to have a really strong sense of himself and seems to know and understand how the world should work and how it’s working at the moment and why that’s wrong.

‘James is a typical example of a young man who doesn’t know himself particularly well but puts on a bit of a façade that’s put together by the wrong influences, as they usually are when you’re young. I think he’s easily influenced and manipulated by those who seem powerful and cool. It was cool to think about. I like to think about how our minds are moulded from our influences, and stuff like that.’

The new series has an interesting premise, which sees a woman murdered during the night, while all men are under lockdown. However, Detective Inspector Pamela Green (Sarah Parish) is certain that the murder was the handiwork of a man.

‘The premise is there’s a lockdown, again, but it’s just for men,’ Bobby further explained. ‘The government are doing some sort of crackdown or experiment to stop men from doing what bad men do, basically.

‘I think we see that some people are enforceable and other people like James, my character, feel really hard done by. We can see how certain figures or certain spokespersons influence the minds and opinions of certain individuals.’

Filming a drama was a very different experience to filming EastEnders, Bobby revealed, reflecting on the fast-paced environment of soap.

‘I wouldn’t say [Curfew] was slow-paced but we weren’t banging out 10 scenes a day, that’s for sure. The way it was filmed was different. I can’t quite put into words the differences, it’s very subtle.

‘It was nice to experience a whole different place. I did notice that where it’s a series and it hasn’t been going on for 40 years and won’t be going on for another 40 years, things don’t move so quickly but they feel like they do because you know that you’re there and you’ve got a job to do.

‘You feel like that at EastEnders anyway but there was a subtle difference in like “I’m not going to be here forever, no one’s going to be here forever.” We’re kind of in and we’re out, you know?’

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Speaking of EastEnders, we were keen to find out Bobby’s thoughts on the recent departure of Bobby Beale, played by good friend Clay Milner Russell.

‘It was mixed feelings because I’m so happy he’s going and exploring other things and doing what he wants to do. But also some of the memories that boy has given me over the last two years have been so much fun,’ Bobby recalled.

‘I definitely wouldn’t want him to stay longer than he felt was right or good for him, so I’m glad that he’s gone and done what he wants to do and made that choice. But at the same time I’ve absolutely loved the two years that we spent together and will remember them as long as my career.’

All episodes of Curfew will be available to watch from 10th October 2024, exclusively on Paramount+.

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