Actor never saw Friends before musical parody role

An actor who plays Joey on stage in a musical parody of Friends had never seen the hit sitcom before he landed the role.

Growing up in Luton, Ronnie Burden, now 28, was often told by his family that he reminded them of Matt LeBlanc's character, and they would echo Joey's famous catchphrase at him.

The actor recalled: "My granddad Alan always used to look at me and go 'hey, how you doin'?'

"I auditioned, and it took about three months to actually get the role. And when I got it, I watched Friends, and I watched Joey, and I went: 'Okay, I get it now'."

He added: "It had been on in the background maybe a couple times, but I'd never watched it myself, so I didn't know much about the actual role of Joey."

The actor now realises that, like Joey, he is also an actor chasing auditions and a "class clown".

Despite now living in Kempston, Bedfordshire, Joey's Italian-American accent was not an enormous leap either.

Not only did he get experience when he took part in productions of Bugsy Malone, but his Greek heritage meant directors often cast him in Italian American roles.

He said: "So from a kid I was always doing Italian American accents... That accent just falls naturally to me, and it's a fun accent."

The show is currently on a 5-day run at Milton Keynes Theatre, where Burden is excited to bring the character to life in front of his family for the very first time.

Having worked professionally as an actor since 2020, Burden admits he initially felt the weight of expectation when joining a production built around such iconic and beloved characters.

When the original TV sitcom ended, Joey was such a popular character that he got his own short-lived spin-off series in 2004.

He said: "There's so many fans out there of Friends, like you can't hide from it... Friends meant so much to these people, it meant more than anything."

At the stage door, after performances, he comes face to face with excited fans keen to share their love of their favourite characters.

The mania extends online too; Burden said a video of the cast dancing during the shows curtain call "exploded on TikTok" after it was filmed by an audience member.

He added: "We couldn't believe how...the positive feedback we've got 'cause I think you've got to be careful with a show like Friends where it's so iconic.

"They want to watch Friends. They want to reminisce about the show that they grew up on.

"I've grown to love it, you know- I've grown to love learning the characters and learning about Joey."

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