James Bolam denies feud with late Likely Lads co-star Rodney Bewes

British actor James Bolam has denied he fell out with the late Rodney Bewes, his co-star in beloved British comedy The Likely Lads.
The actors lost touch after the follow-up sitcom Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads? ended in 1974, and reports of their feud resurfaced in the wake of Bewes’ death aged 79 on Wednesday (22Nov17).
In Bewes’ 2005 memoir he claimed they had a bitter falling out after he revealed Bolam’s wife’s pregnancy in a 1976 newspaper interview, but the veteran star has denied he was furious with his co-star.
“There was no fallout at all, as far as I was concerned,” Bolam told BBC Radio Sussex. “We worked together very happily and very well, enjoyed each other’s company and when we finished, we finished.
“This is what happens in acting. You work with people, you get to know them, you like them, we have a great time and the job finishes and you go off and it all starts again with other people and you can’t keep contact with everybody that you know.”
Bolam played Terry Collier in the sitcom, which focused on the close friendship between Terry and Bob Ferris, played by Bewes.
The 82-year-old actor did admit that his co-star wanted to film more episodes of the show, but that he had decided against it as original writers Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais were not involved.
Recalling working with Bewes he added, “I just remember him with great warmth and with great happiness and the time we had when we actually did the shows, that’s the greatest memory of all.”
The Likely Lads ran from 1964 to 1966, and it returned as Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads? from 1973 to 1974.