Film and TV

Ricky Gervais in new film Cemetery Junction, which is set in Reading

Oh brother! Bob Gervais praises Cemetery Junction

By Linda Fort
April 15, 2010

A Wokingham painter and decorator has special cause to celebrate the opening of new film Cemetery Junction – his younger brother is the movie’s director and star Ricky Gervais.

Bob Gervais, of Waterloo Road, is looking forward to seeing his “goody goody” sibling’s latest work, which opened at cinemas yesterday.

The 59-year-old said he had talked to his brother about the film but was not keen to share the conversation with the press.

“That is private between him and me,” he said.

But he was pleased to chat about the idea for a film.

He said: “I think it is a great idea. After all it is what he knows about. He wouldn’t make a film about Swindon would he?”

Brought up in the family home in Whitley in Reading, Mr Gervais went to EP Collier School. Ricky, 48, went to Ashmead School.

He said of his brother: “He was the same when he as young as he is now. Very intelligent.”

The family always knew Ricky would be successful and were delighted with his success.

“I think it’s brilliant,” he said. “He was always a very good actor and very funny.

“It was a funny family. Our dad – until he died – was always having a laugh.”

Mr Gervais described his brother as “a bit of a goody goody” who left Whitley at 18 to go to university “before he could get into any trouble.”

He said he was “definitely” planning to go to see the new film.

The film, written and directed by Gervais and Stephen Merchant, follows two 20-somethings who work as building society clerks. The original title of ‘The Man from the Pru’ had to be changed after an objection from Reading’s best know insurance company.

According to Gervais, his film is a cross between The Office and Mad Men.

It stars Ralph Fiennes as Mr Kendrick, also the name of one of Reading’s schools.

But the real star of the movie will be The Wokingham Times’ sister paper the Reading Post.

Producers of Gervais’ new movie, set in Reading in the 1970s, came to the Post and Times’ offices to research the town of 30 years ago.

They used old copies of former incarnation the Reading Evening Post.

Wokingham has previously provided inspiration for Gervais’ other projects, with the town getting a mention in his hit television show Extras as the hometown for lead character Andy Millman.

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