by Gill Pringle in LA
When Aussie husband-and-wife duo Patrick Brammall and Harriet Dyer partner on their hit show Colin from Accounts, often the funniest scenarios are plucked from their own lives.
We fell in love with this adorable couple and their quirky romcom ever since its debut four years ago, rejoicing in all the awkward moments that followed their first meet-cute, bonding over a scruffy injured dog whom they improbably named Colin from Accounts.
Now in its third and final season, the couple still take cues from real life, particularly in one unforgettable scene where Dyer’s Ashley – now a qualified doctor – is consulted in her clinic by Brammall’s Gordon following a three-year estrangement.
The encounter is made all the more uneasy when Ashley’s over-zealous intern asks Gordon a series of intimate questions about his sexual preferences.
“So, this list of ‘insertive penile’ or ‘insertive vaginal’ was a genuine list I was given in a questionnaire before I had surgery,” says Dyer, 37, recalling her initial disbelief.
“I sat in this room – and I said to Paddy: ‘What do we have? Is it insertive vaginal or is it insertive penile?’ I was googling all sorts of stuff. ‘Is it receptive penile or receptive vaginal?’
“We have very normal sex the two of us, if I may. So, I didn’t know which box to tick and thought: We’ve got to put this in Colin because it’s the funniest questionnaire I’ve ever seen,” she laughs, referring to her husband as “Paddy’ while he affectionately calls her “Harry”.
The couple first met 11 years ago co-starring on comedy series No Activity, Patrick proposing in 2021 while on vacation in Florida – tying the knot only five days later in Tampa.
Within months, their lives would change again with the arrival of their first daughter, Joni, in September 2021, later joined by little sister, Mabel, now 18 months old.
Relocating to Los Angeles for work, Brammall currently stars in Apple TV drama series Last Seen, while also featuring in The Devil Wears Prada 2 and TV shows Evil and Sunny Nights. Meanwhile, Dyer is in TV series DMV, American Auto and Summer Love, talking freely about the complicated emotions that come with balancing motherhood and her career as a working actress who also loves to write.
“Aussies are just really funny,” she says. “Every time we go to the doctor and they ask how many standard drinks you have a week, it’s like: mmmm, we might say three or four. The truth is more like 20. Like we’re all alcoholics, and it’s a problem. But I know every Australian goes: ‘Yeah, I don’t really drink that much,’” she laughs.
Dog lovers in real life, they’re always thinking of funny situations in which to place their canine co-star Colin.
In fact, when we chat, the couple have just returned from Australia to their Los Angeles home, apologising if they’re a bit groggy on account of their dog Walter suffering from jet lag. “He woke up at 1am and tried to play with us and we’re like, ‘This is so funny. We have a jet lagged dog!’” laughs Dyer.
Using their own pooch as inspiration, another gag ripped from real life sees Colin visiting the dentist. “You know all that stuff where they ask: ‘Are you happy with your smile?’” asks Dyer.
“We wanted to put in a thing about Colin needing a canine dentist,” adds Patrick, 50. “We took our dog to a vet, and they said, ‘Oh, he needs a tooth removed,’ and we said: ‘Can you do that?’ And the vet said: ‘Do I look like a dog dentist?’ And we were like: ‘Oh, sorry.’”
“Because in Australia, the vets take the teeth, like there’s no dog dentists. There’s vets. So, we got told off – the vet was not happy with the question,” adds Dyer.
In many ways, it’s their ability to turn the everyday frustrations and absurdities of relationships into comedy, that makes Colin From Accounts feel so relatable.
In fact, both Gordon and Ashley have new partners in this third season – presenting even more obstacles to their getting together.
Ashley is dating David, a good-looking and loving man but with little ambition or wit.
“He’s stable and he’s beautiful looking. He’s kind and he’s so into her,” says Dyer. “And I thought, isn’t that so funny that you could technically get everything you want and they’re still not sparking that flame.
“And so I think that was what was fun about David, is that maybe he’s not the brightest crayon in the box, but he’s beautiful and lovable. He’s a Labrador. That’s how we wrote him. Like, he’s just so excited,” she says of Thomas Cocquerel’s sweet but useless David.
“That’s right. Because on paper, he’s the perfect guy,” adds Brammall whose Gordon is now dating a Type A woman called Chelsea.
“He needed someone who was going to be in charge,” says Dyer.
“Yeah, when we meet Gordon in season 3, he’s sort of a passenger in his own life. And Chelsea is there running everything and, in a way, that’s where a lot of the comedy comes from with Chelsea. And that’s why you see they’re a bad match,” says Brammall, talking about his domineering new girlfriend played by Nikki Shiels.
“But Gordon doesn’t realise that he doesn’t need that. He needs to be in the driver’s seat himself. But he’s very content to let Chelsea run everything,” he surmises.
“Like, if they hadn’t run into each other, they probably would have both married those people, you know? David had the ring coming, so they were good matches,” offers Dyer.
“And I know people where I’m like, ‘Why are you married? Is this gonna last?’ So, I would say these couples exist out there,” she adds.
The process of creating Colin From Accounts is not without its stresses, the couple spending virtually every waking hour together – as creators/writers/Executive Producers and stars – Dyer even joking that each new season results in at least one major argument between them.
Together they are that rare showbiz couple whose real-life relationship seems just as entertaining as the characters they create.
However, all good things must come to an end – as this season bids a final farewell to Gordon and Ashley.
“We have big feelings about finishing,” says Brammall.
Dyer agrees: “I think when we plotted Season 3, we were thinking about leaving the door open, but as the writing was wrapping up and then into 3, we realised it doesn’t help anyone to leave a question mark here. I think we needed to be clear about it,” she says.
And the couple never underestimate their audience. “I think an audience can sniff out when you’re leaving the door open for something, and it’s like you go, ‘Okay, we expect it.’ But we are so committed to this world and these characters in this story. And the shows that we love, like Catastrophe or The Office in the UK … they went, this is the end of it. And I really respect that,” says Brammall.
“But also, there’s a practical component. You know, we do everything on this show. Obviously, it’s a collaborative effort and it’s an incredible team around us. We don’t direct, but we write the whole thing. We act in it, obviously, we produce it. We showrun, and we sit in the edit for 11 weeks,” he says.
“And we have two little kids,” adds Dyer. “So, it’s a bit too much. And that’s not to say that your favourite food, the people who make it, don’t like to make it. You know, you don’t want to ruin it for anyone by making it sound hard because it isn’t. It’s a joy.
“And we miss it already, but it felt right and also, just to leave on a high.
View this post on Instagram
“We made this video for Binge because they wanted to announce that it was the last season. And even though we were saying it’s the last season, my favourite comment was probably the language.
“Like, we got cancelled because people swear too much and it was probably because of the language. And I wanted to get in there and be like, ‘What!?’ But never mind, leave it,” she laughs. “But yeah, if some people want to think we got cancelled, it’s okay, but we’re grateful that we didn’t and we got to go out on our own ideas,” she concludes.
Ultimately, the couple’s greatest creative advantage may simply be that they genuinely like making each other laugh, turning that shared sense of humour into a marriage, a family and a successful career.
Colin From Accounts is streaming now on Binge
