Three New Episodes of ‘I Gotta Be Me' Coming in February

New episodes of I Gotta Me Me will premiere in February.

In February, Nine Productions will be releasing the next three episodes of I Gotta Be Me, a hit “gonzo mockumentary” about celebrity and the nature of success, starring Phaldut Sharma (Eastenders). Sharma plays Paul Shah, an ambitious actor fed up of playing cab drivers and terrorists on TV. Desperate to showcase his talents for song and dance, Shah travels to Cyprus to perform in a Rat Pack tribute show as his hero Sammy Davis Junior - but the community of ex-pat performers he works with just want to have some swinging fun in the sunshine.

Steven Bloomer and Phaldut Sharma started work on I Gotta Be Me in 2012, capturing over 200 hours of footage that became the bedrock for the show. Throughout the series characters, situations and storylines blur the boundaries between fiction and reality. Paul Shah is a fictionalised version of Sharma, but the world of tribute artists and shows, ex-pats and holidaymakers he interacts with is painfully real. Shah’s co-stars include an Elton John impersonator, an ex-copper, a five-foot tall private security guard, and a former Stars in Their Eyes contestant - the chaotically charismatic Andrea Morrelli. Narration is provided, in classic documentary style, by Eastenders legend and Sharma’s ex-co-star Steve McFadden.

Nine Productions have released the first three episodes of I Gotta Be Me already, with over 10,000 views across Facebook and Youtube, and will be releasing all 10 episodes for free online, complemented by a world of short clips and extra content. On February 11th, the next 3 episodes will be screened in London, and a Kickstarter campaign will be launched to raise funds for licensing stills and videos of the Rat Pack necessary to complete the series.

I Gotta Be Me is a satire and a celebration of success at all levels of the entertainment industry. Paul Shah embarks on a Rat Pack inspired journey across Cyprus as he tries to work out how to “make it” – and what “making it” even means.