Thread by @thesundaytimes

In a rare interview, British producer @benwinston explains how the long-awaited #FriendsReunion came together. thetimes.co.uk/article/meet-b…

The idea of a Friends reunion had been mooted for years but was usually dismissed as impractical (the six cast members have only once all been in the same room together over the 17 years since the show ended).

Besides, nobody had come up with an idea that made the creators and cast want to commit.

Then Winston made his pitch.

Ben Winston may not be a household name but he's quietly established himself as one of the most powerful people in television. The son of Lord Winston, the IVF pioneer and Labour peer, he's won nine Emmys since arriving in Los Angeles.

His idea was to combine several storytelling techniques: a documentary/talk show/variety show, bringing in celebrities and fans from around the world. 📺

He wanted to recreate famous scenes from the show and surprise the cast with unseen footage that had been buried in warehouses for decades.

Today he describes it as “a love letter to the medium of television”.

So how did he secure the reunion?

First he talked to David Schwimmer, who had also directed several Friends episodes. Winston says there is “no leader [among the cast] — but I would say that Schwimmer definitely has been the most involved creatively in the show.”

“He was the one I had to win over first. He heard my ideas and then vouched for me.”

Jennifer Aniston was the last on board. She says that she met Winston and was instantly impressed.

“He’s like a creative unicorn. The work he put into the pitch, and how he got all of us so excited and inspired to say yes, showed us that he knows Friends better than all of us.”

The young British director, who was only 12 years old when the first episode of Friends aired in September 1994, had pulled it off: the long-awaited reunion was in the bag.

“I’ve never seen a bond like these six have,” says Winston.

Read more: thetimes.co.uk/article/meet-b…