Queer Eye’s Tan France credits the late Barbara Windsor for his accent in new acting role
Tan France is featuring in the new Hulu/Disney+ series, Deli Boys. (Araya Doheny/Getty Images)
Queer Eye’s Tan France is swapping out reality TV for a new acting role in the comedy series Deli Boys, and has credited the late Barbara Windsor for helping him to perfect his accent.
France, who previously weighed in on his former co-star Bobby Berk’s departure from the Netflix makeover show, is marking his first-ever scripted role on the Disney+ series.
He plays Zubair, who is dubbed as “a British Pakistani gang leader who is smart, intimidating and dressed to kill”. His character is set to be a far-cry from his welcoming, inclusive fashion expert persona in the Fab Five, that’s for sure.
With his new role also comes a new accent, with France swapping out his Doncaster-born accent for a Cockney accent – which the star has the late EastEnders icon to thank.
“I was an EastEnders kid. I’ve lived in EastEnders my entire life, sometimes even now I watch EastEnders in the US on a VPN,” he told Metro.
“I loved it, and I used to take the p**s out of Barbara Windsor, Babs’ accent,” he continued. Of course, the late icon was known for her long-standing role as Peggy Mitchell (and her iconic line, “Get out of my pub!”).
“I used to put the accent on,” France added. “That’s why I did an okay job with the accent in Deli Boys because I’ve been doing it for so long in my private life.”
He previously turned down roles due to producers only wanting the budding actor to portray a caricature of himself. However, France couldn’t resist and joined the cast of the comedy series due to its “profound” script, which has been hailed for its progressive representation of the Pakistani community.
“Deli Boys is a story about brown people, South Asian people, but told in a way I’ve never seen before,” he told the outlet. “They are fully formed characters. Brown people are funny, we are entertainers. It’s also violent,dramatic and layered. I just thought it was so beautifully done.”
The logline for Deli Boys reads: “When their convenience store-magnate father suddenly dies, a pair of pampered Pakistani American brothers lose everything and are forced to reckon with their Baba’s secret life of crime as they attempt to take up his mantle in the underworld.”
Leading the cast are actors Asif Ali and Saagar Shaikh as brothers Mir and Raj, respectively, alongside Poorna Jagannathan, Alfie Fuller and Brian George.
Deli Boys is set to be released on 6 March on Hulu and Disney+.
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