INBETWEENERS star James Buckley has revealed the hilarious reaction he had to his Scots wife’s conversation with fellow countrymen Peter Capaldi and Robbie Coltrane.
The 36-year-old is famous for his depiction of compulsive liar Jay Cartwright in the E4 teen sitcom, known for his foul-mouthed catchphrases and ridiculous boasts.
Speaking in his latest In Sickness and in Health podcast episode alongside wife Clair Meek yesterday though, Buckley explained that his reputation hadn’t reached late Harry Potter actor Robbie Coltrane, who had no idea who he was.
Instead, Coltrane – and fellow acting Scotsman Peter Capaldi – conversed with his wife, who is from Irvine, North Ayrshire, leaving Buckley bamboozled by their fast-paced dialects.
Video from the podcast shows Buckley sitting alongside his partner as he recalls: “I remember we bumped into Peter Capaldi years ago.”
The camera cuts to Meek who laughs as she jokingly pleads: “No, don’t tell this.”
However, Buckley continues: “We were both up for the same award. He said something, you started talking and he said, ’Where are you fae?’
Meek, holding a bottle of beer, laughs at her husband’s Scottish impression as Buckley explains that the conversation that followed was lost on him.
He says: “And then that was it. You were both off about 100 miles an hour. Couldn’t understand the pair of you. Didn’t know what was going on.”
The clip cuts to Meek who recalls a similar experience: “I remember another time, we were at another awards thing, and we met Robbie Coltrane.
“You had done The Comic Strip with him.”
Buckley replies softly: “I had yeah. I’d worked with him.”
He listens intently to Meek who continues: “So, you two were talking and he went, ‘Is this your missus?”
Buckley then responds with his own impression of Coltrane’s Scottish accent: “I think he was like, ‘Is this your lovely lady?’”
Meek hilariously then reveals Coltrane’s cheeky response as she continues: “And you went, ‘Yeah. This is Clair.’
“The first thing he said to me was, ‘You can do a lot better than him’.
“When I started talking, then it was the same thing. [He said] ’Oh. Where are you fae? Is that Glasgow?’”
Buckley then grins as he explains how Coltrane appeared to not recognise his fellow actor, reintroducing himself despite the two having worked together.
Buckley says: “He did not know who I was at all, whatsoever.”
“He was like, ‘Lovely to meet you’ and stuff like that to me. I was like, ‘We- what?’”
The husband-and-wife duo took to social media yesterday to share the hilarious memory, writing: “Once a Scot, always a Scot.”
The post received over 8,150 likes and dozens of comments from fans left tickled by the story.
One user wrote: “Always the same when you meet another Scottish person.”
Another said: “So true. I live in Sunderland now – originally Perth – and my ears prick up when I hear a Scottish accent.”
A third commented: “Scottish people meeting outside Scotland instantly become pals.”
A fourth added: “I remember when I was in Florida in a random store and next thing I hear is, ‘I know that accent. Where ye fae?’ I was equally happy.”
