Paddy Power parodies Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney’s Welcome to Wrexham
Trailer for spoof docuseries Welcome to Basildon stars ex-EastEnders stars Shaun Williamson (Barry Evans) and Dean Gaffney (Robbie Jackson).
Inspired by the acclaimed show Welcome to Wrexham, a new parody series from Paddy Power chronicles the escapades of ex-EastEnders stars Shaun Williamson and Dean Gaffney as they embark upon a mission to “diversify” their personal brands and transform Basildon Athletic into the next football sensation.
The three-part series made its debut on the gambling brand’s social media channels this week.
Advertisement
Jack Wilson, head of content and channels at Paddy Power, said: “With the new series of Welcome to Wrexham set to launch, we took our chance to create our own take with Welcome to Basildon. If I’m honest, it made the first international break of the season a bit more bearable.
“We swapped out Ryan Reynolds and Rob McEIlhenny for alternative A-listers Shaun Williamson and Dean Gaffney, created a fictional club Basildon Athletic, put in a cameo from Jamie Redknapp and ended up with this.”
Advertisement
‘Welcome to Basildon’ was written, directed and edited in-house.
Wison continued: “The reaction has been sensational. The watch times are higher than anything we’ve experienced before and the only real grumbles from followers are why it’s not on Netflix and why Paddy Power’s offering is better than what they have signed up for on Apple TV... Watch this space on the latter – hopefully!”