Will Mellor mocked by Ralf Little over hit Mr Bates role – but BBC star ends up red-faced
EXCLUSIVE: Ralf Little poked fun at co-star Will Mellor's award-winning role in Mr Bates vs The Post Office - but when they went head to head, it was Will who had the last laugh.
Ralf Little playfully suggested that starring in Mr Bates vs The Post Office could damage Will Mellor's credibility as an actor - but less than two months later, Will triumphed over his pal with the show. At the TRIC Awards, held at London's Grosvenor House Hotel on Tuesday, Ralf's show Death in Paradise was nominated for Best Drama.
The category put pals and co-stars Will and Ralf head to head in direct competition - and ultimately Mr Bates vs The Post Office was the winner. That was in spite of Ralf mischievously telling Will during their podcast show in Nottingham, which Express.co.uk attended: "You were worried Strictly would affect your credibility in the industry, but you did that Master Bates thing!"
Ralf had changed "Mister Bates" to "Master Bates" for comic effect, seemingly making a pun about masturbation. It was one of a series of sex references and innunendos, as they also invited the audience to join in with a saucy quiz called Snatchphrase - a word play based on the show Catchphrase.
Will had previously told of how he'd considered quitting acting altogether after a series of setbacks and was poised to make the call to his agent after believing he "wasn't wanted anymore" - just hours before he was invited to audition for Mr Bates. However, Ralf's jarring joke was all in good fun, as the pair have been pals for decades, since first meeting on the set of Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps way back in 2001.
They'd played their characters alongside the likes of Sheridan Smith, whose last acting venture was West End play Opening Night, and Kathryn Drysdale, who now has a role in Bridgerton as seamstress Genevieve. Ralf also mischievously probed Will about the Strictly curse, referencing his appearance on the show in 2022, and on several occasions, electrocuted his howling co-star live on stage.
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Will had donned an outfit with hidden electrodes inside it, which were in contact with his skin - and Ralf remotely activated electric shocks via a TENS device.
The shocks were harmless, but sent stupefied Will into spasms and left him cursing his pal and begging him to stop.
Meanwhile, as Express.co.uk exclusively revealed yesterday, the show also saw them poke fun at former Two Pints co-star Sheridan Smith, who turned 43 yesterday.
Sheridan, who'd played Ralf's on-screen wife Janet Keogh for years when they were younger, was left "heartbroken" when her West End play Opening Night had to be ended two months early.
Poor ticket sales and a string of negative reviews suggesting that even Sheridan couldn't save the show sealed the fate of the play.
Yet less than two weeks later, Ralf made a savage swipe mocking her career downfall.
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The pair taunted on stage: "She's not done f*** all since Two Pints - I'm worried about her, she hasn't got any work!"
Ralf mischievously added: "Maybe we should do a charity drive for her!"
Sheridan took matters more seriously in an interview with the Times, when she broke down in tears over feeling she'd let fans and the theatre company down.
Meanwhile, Ralf also took a shot at Will for "crying all the time" during his Strictly stint - but when it came to the TRIC Awards, Will stole the show, while Ralf - who announced his Death in Paradise departure earlier in the year - left with nothing.