It might be just over a decade since The Inbetweeners first aired, but star James Buckley – who played foul-mouthed Jay – thinks reaction to the show would be very different if it launched in 2018.

Buckley told Digital Spy that "it seems to be cool at the moment to be offended", and that a fear of causing offence is "killing comedy".

"I think that when The Inbetweeners was around, everyone understood the context – that they were kids," he suggested. "There used to be a sympathy, where you could almost forgive them, because you can't really have a go at someone for being stupid – that's not really their fault.

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Related: James Buckley says Zapped might not have survived on another channel, as it returns to Dave for series 3

"Nowadays, it feels very black and white with comedy. There's no in-between, it's just, 'This person said this on television – isn't that terrible?' and it's killing comedy, because you're not allowed to joke about anything, it seems. There seems to be a joke police, nowadays."

He continued: "It seems to be cool at the moment to be offended by stuff, and that's a shame. It seems to be in vogue at the moment, and I'm hoping it will pass, because I do think that possibly people would maybe be more offended by The Inbetweeners if it was to be made today. Which is really weird, because it's only 10 years. It's only four years since we finished."

The hugely popular E4 sitcom, which ran from 2008-2010 and also spawned two hit feature films, followed four teenage boys (played by Buckley, Simon Bird, Joe Thomas and Blake Harrison) who struggled with self-confidence, speaking to girls and getting served in the local pub.

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Buckley's character Jay became a particular fan favourite for his outrageous boasts – all lies, of course – and colourful language. "I like playing characters like Jay," Buckley said. "It's a way I wouldn't want to behave, but it's sort of freeing in a way. There's an abandonment where you can play an obnoxious little shit bag, and have people say, 'We really like you because you did that'.

"I guess the extreme would be if you were allowed to murder someone, and for there to be no consequences – like that movie, The Purge. Jay was my Purge for a while. Because anyone that does meet me will see that I'm a little, twitchy, nervous wreck shuffling his way through life, and too scared to talk to people. So it was nice to pretend to be that [other] person for a while."

James Buckley stars in Zapped, returning to Dave for its third series on Wednesday (October 17) at 10pm.

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