It’s one of those rare TV moments that actually feels real. You know the one. David Bowie, the Thin White Duke himself, sits down at a piano in a crowded VIP bar and starts relentlessly mocking a "chubby little loser." That loser, of course, was Andy Millman—the fictionalized, desperate version of Ricky Gervais in the sitcom Extras.
But honestly? The story of Ricky Gervais on David Bowie is way weirder and more touching than just a funny cameo. It’s a tale of a working-class kid from a Reading council estate who grew up with Bowie posters on his wall and ended up becoming the legend’s actual, real-life pen pal.
The Day the Spaceboy Met the Middle Manager
The first time they met, it wasn't exactly a meeting of minds. It was 2002. Gervais was at the BBC’s Maida Vale studios for a tiny, exclusive Bowie gig. At this point, The Office had made Gervais a star in the UK, but he was still just a guy who liked "Life on Mars."
Greg Dyke, the big boss of the BBC at the time, saw Gervais hanging around the green room and asked if he wanted to meet his hero.
"I went, 'Um, okay,'" Gervais recalled years later.
They marched toward the dressing room. Along the way, they picked up novelist Salman Rushdie, because that's just how the BBC worked in the early 2000s. When the door opened, Bowie was just sitting there eating. He looked at Rushdie and said, "Hello Salman." Then he looked at the "fat little bloke" next to him and had absolutely no clue who he was.
It was a total non-event. Or so it seemed.
"I Watched. I Laughed. What Do I Do Now?"
A few weeks later, Gervais got an email. It was from Bowie.
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Apparently, someone had handed him a DVD of The Office. Bowie's message was short, cryptic, and perfect: "I watched. I laughed. What do I do now?" That was the spark. They started emailing. They became digital pen pals long before that was a normal thing for celebrities to do. Gervais, never one to be shy, eventually sent Bowie an email for his 57th birthday.
"57???? Isn't it about time that you got a proper job? Ricky Gervais, 42, comedian."
Bowie shot back immediately:
"I have a proper job. David Bowie, 57, Rock God."
That "Insulting" Request for Extras
When Gervais was writing the second series of Extras, he knew he wanted Bowie for an episode. The premise was brutal: Andy Millman meets his idol, hoping for some sage advice on how to handle fame, and instead, the idol improvises a song about how much Andy has sold out.
Gervais sent Bowie the lyrics. Lines like "See his pug-nosed face," and "He’s banal and facile, he’s a fat waste of space." He called Bowie to check if he’d received them.
"Did you get the lyrics?" Gervais asked.
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"Yeah, yeah," Bowie replied.
Then Gervais did something he later realized was incredibly cheeky. He told the man who wrote Ziggy Stardust and Hunky Dory to make the song sound "retro," like "Life on Mars."
Bowie’s response was peak Bowie: "Oh yeah, I'll knock off a quick f***ing 'Life on Mars' for you."
Gervais admitted later that he felt like a total idiot the second the words left his mouth. You don't ask David Bowie to "knock off" an opus for your little sitcom. But Bowie did it anyway. He showed up, sat at the piano, and delivered "Little Fat Man" with the same gravitas he’d give a stadium anthem.
The Last Live Performance
One of the most poignant details about Ricky Gervais on David Bowie is something that often gets lost in the trivia. In 2007, Bowie invited Gervais to perform at the High Line Festival in New York.
Gervais was terrified. It was his first-ever New York gig, and it was at Madison Square Garden.
Bowie didn't just book him; he introduced him. He walked out on stage with a harmonica, played a few notes, and sang "Chubby Little Loser" to the screaming crowd.
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That was it. That was David Bowie’s final live appearance on a stage.
Think about that for a second. The man who defined 20th-century music, the alien who fell to earth, spent his final moments on a concert stage singing a joke song about a British comedian’s "pug-nosed face." It’s ridiculous. It’s also incredibly sweet.
Why Their Connection Mattered
If you look back at Gervais's early career, the Bowie influence is everywhere. Before he was a comedian, he was in a New Wave band called Seona Dancing. He had the big hair, the dramatic makeup, and he was clearly trying to be the next Bowie.
He failed, obviously.
But that failure is what gave him the perspective to write The Office and Extras. He understood the desperation of wanting to be something more than you are. When he finally befriended Bowie, it wasn't just a "celebrity friendship." It was a full-circle moment for a kid who used music to escape a grey reality.
They stayed in touch right until the end. Gervais has mentioned they were emailing just two weeks before Bowie passed away in 2016. When the news broke, Gervais had just finished hosting the Golden Globes. He simply tweeted: "I just lost a hero. RIP David Bowie."
How to Explore This History Further
If you want to see the evolution of their relationship, there are a few specific places to look beyond the viral clips:
- Watch "Golden Years": This is a 1998 sketch where Gervais plays a Bowie-obsessed manager named Clive Meadows. It’s the blueprint for David Brent and shows just how deep his fandom went.
- Listen to the "Stick to Football" Podcast: Gervais recently went on this show (with Roy Keane and Gary Neville) and gave one of the most candid accounts of his time with Bowie.
- Check out Seona Dancing: Look up the music video for "Bitter Heart" on YouTube. It’s 100% pure 80s Bowie-cloning, and it makes the Extras scene even funnier when you see what Gervais was actually trying to do as a young man.
- The Madison Square Garden Intro: Find the fan-shot footage of Bowie introducing Gervais in 2007. It’s the last time he ever performed for a live audience.
Knowing the history makes the comedy better. It wasn't just a cameo; it was a Rock God letting a fan into the inner circle for a laugh.