Walking The Dog with Emily Dean - Alasdair Beckett-King (Part One)

Episode Date: March 31, 2026

This week Emily and Ray take a Regent’s Park stroll with the brilliant comedian, writer and filmmaker Alasdair Beckett-King.You’ll likely know Alasdair from TV favourites like Would I Lie to You?, Mock the Week and 8 Out of 10 Cats, as well as his hugely inventive online comedy. He chats to Emily about his childhood in the North East (and why he doesn’t sound Geordie), an unforgettable school nativity mishap, and the unexpected romantic twist involving the girl who played Mary.They also talk about his early ambitions to become a serious filmmaker, how that shaped his comedy when he started creating his own viral videos, and his work as a children’s author. His Montgomery Bonbon mystery series has been described as Knives Out meets Poirot for kids, and his latest book Scandal on the Stage is out this July and available to pre-order now.Alasdair is currently touring the UK with his show King of Crumbs, so don’t miss your chance to see him live. Tickets are available at https://www.abeckettking.com/ It’s a warm, funny and fascinating walk, with plenty of laughs along the way, and even a touch of hair envy from Ray.Follow Emily:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emilyrebeccadeanX: https://twitter.com/divine_miss_emWalking The Dog is produced by Will NicholsMusic: Rich JarmanArtwork: Alice LudlamPhotography: Karla Gowlett Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

People assume I know a lot more about Game of Thrones than I do know. I've never read one of the books. I've never seen the show. But people, people just say, oh, are the white walkers? I'm like, yeah, yeah, great. This week on Walking the Dog, Greer and I went for a stroll with the brilliant comedian, Alastair Beckett King in London's Regents Park. You've probably seen Alistair pop up on shows like Would I Lie to You, mock the week, and eight out of ten cats. And he's also a hugely talented stand-up.

So I really recommend seeing him live. And the good news is he's currently touring across the show. the UK with his show King of Frums, so do book your tickets now via Mick Perrin.com. Ray and I had the loveliest chat with Alistair talking about his childhood growing up in the North East. Interestingly, he doesn't have a jollie accent, and there is a reason for this, which we discussed. We also talked about one of his earliest roles playing Joseph in the school nativity play. There was a bit of a wardrobe malfunction, just FYI, and how the little girl who played Mary ended up becoming his future life partner.

Alistair also told me about how he was originally set on becoming a serious filmmaker and ended up going to film school and why that gave him a pretty useful skill set when comedy started moving online and he was able to make his own really original comedy videos, a lot of which have gone viral and they're well worth checking out on his YouTube channel. He's also a celebrated children's author and his Montgomery Bon Bon Bonne mystery novels have been described as Knives Out meets Poirot for kids. His latest book, Scandal on the Stage, is out in July, and it's available to pre-order now. Ray and I had such a lovely walk with Alistair.

He's an incredibly smart, funny, fascinating person to chat to. And frankly, he's the first person I've ever had on this podcast who's left Ray with serious hair envy. Really hope you enjoy our chat. I'll hand over to the man himself. Here's Alistair and Ray Ray. Come on, Raymond, follow Alisa. For the benefit of the listener, Raymond doesn't seem to like... me at all. He does and I'm getting very negative vibes from Raymond. He's just got distracted by

three dogs. One of whom looks a bit like him. Oh, careful my sweet. Maybe get his lead. Elson directed at you. Very nice people but sometimes it was ever I just said I should have leapt into action there. No when I said maybe get his lead that sounded like a passive aggressive remark to you it wasn't it was to the owners no if I because they sort of just allowed the giant husky to come charging towards Raymond with his lead dragging on the floor I've never seen a dog walk backwards before but Raymond is a master of walking backwards I didn't know they could do that biologically but he can oh look Alistair I think I can tell he likes you by the way he's walking oh that's nice do you like Alistair so my girlfriend is very jealous my

Rachel, my lover and confidante, said, you get to see a dog. You won't like the dog as much as I would like the dog. You shouldn't be allowed to see a dog. So she's a dog fan? I like dogs, but she loves dogs. And maybe more of a cat person, however shih Tzu's are the cats of dogs. Oh, I just spilt coffee on Raymond's fur. I just spilt hot coffee.

He looks so placid. What shall I do, Alistair? I mean, he seems okay with it. It's probably very good for the co. Do you think it's all right? He doesn't seem upset by it. He is such a low-key dog. He is very low-maintenance, isn't he?

He's so calm, he hasn't barked once. No, he doesn't ever make a sound, to be honest. And I was always determined that when I did get a dog, I was going to get a low-maintenance dog. Do the listeners believe that Roman's real? If he never makes a noise, how do they know? Have you ever done an episode without him? I could do this, couldn't I, with no dog?

Guess what? I've got baby wipes in my car. Oh, baby Raymond wipes. So I'm going to give Raymond, just so he doesn't smell of coffee. I'm so sorry about that, Raymond. You just had hot coffee on your fur and you didn't make a noise. There you go. Good boy.

There you go, Raymond. All good. Right. The great thing is he, he will just stay there. He just stands still. He's beautiful. He's so calm. He's unmoved by everything. by everything he's a constant in a shifting universe you can spill hot coffee on him and he's like that's fine accidents happen this is the problem I mean he is sort of

the dream man how could any man compare to this he doesn't speak Raymond you're making the rest of us look bad you can throw hot coffee on him and he says nothing he's got beautiful hair and he does tiny poos very I did say I think he was he was he having a little wee when those three dogs caught him When the husky charged after him, do you like that I'm already, as the protective dog owner, completely exaggerating what happened? No, no, it was absolutely, it was, it came bursting out of the underbrush towards him. Come on. Well, Alistair, I'm so thrilled to have you on this podcast, and already you're an example of someone I can tell who, you're not a dog owner. Actually, we're not, SuperVet told me we can't call them owners.

We have to call, because we don't, you can't own another living being. that I agree with that. He said you're the guardian of his soul. Okay, that's a little bit much for me. I think I'd have gone somewhere in between. Guardian of his soul seems a little strong. Well, some religious people think that dogs can't have souls. They don't go to heaven because they're only dogs. Well, I don't believe that anyone has a soul, which is even more depressing. What should we call him? I'm the guardian of his existence. Yeah, fur, at least. His coat. You've guarded his coat today already. But I was going to say, I did have a dog when I was growing up we had a couple of border collies so my mum grew up on a sheep

farm so her family come from sheep farms in Argyle and so for a for a couple of years we ended up with the border collies who were two I'm not sure what they're noisy men what men are noisy out there Raymond you make those guys look way better oh he's doing a poo-poo no you know you make those guys look fat that's what you do wrong thing although those guys probably don't poo in the street how do we know that you're right we don't we have no evidence for that he's just doing a poo-poo so do avert your eyes if you're of a sensitive disposition come

Raymond follow Alistair nice work Raymond that is a tiny poo it's very small they're very compact so go on you were saying about your mum's dogs so we we when we were kids for a little while we ended up with the dogs who were too, I want to say, mentally ill, to be working dogs because they had various sort of hang-ups and anxieties and sort of dietary. They were lovely, lovely dogs, but very sort of, you know, like comedians.

You meet a lot of comedians on this, but you know, some of them are talented and some of them are beautiful, but there's something wrong with all of them. And these dogs were... Which means they can't work in normal society? They can't really. They can't do normal. a productive job yeah so they have to just be entertaining and so so my dog as a kid

was Kate named after my mum whose name is not Kate but you know how it is when families give someone a nickname that isn't their name and and so these were as you say they're border collies border collies are they're the most intelligent famously of all dogs that's the problem when you've got that much intelligence the the space for things to creep in to the brain I think so they're just like us. Which is what comedians tell themselves all the time to make themselves feel better about being right there. I'm so intelligent. That's why I never finish reading a book or maintain eye contact or finish a conversation. Yes, we're all just too intelligent, just like those collies.

So, so yeah, so were there two of them in your house? There were. The second one that has a sad ending, so I won't talk about the second one. Okay. Well, the first one has a bit of a sad ending. Yeah. I remember, she was called Kate, and I remember we want, you know, when she died, my mom wanted to scatter her ashes in Argyle. We were living in England, so she wanted to take them back to Apin where she lives. This happens on the podcast. You get snippets of other people's conversations.

Well, that's lovely. It wouldn't it be awful if the other conversations were better, but. Well, occasionally you'll hear. Oh, I'm getting a sniff from Raymond there. Oh, he really likes you, Alice. Is there? Are we friends now? I think he likes you. Do you know why? Because I think he can tell you're not a sort of obnoxious extrovert. Oh, I'm not, no.

I can tell you or not. I'm obnoxiously introverted. Look, he never does this. He's sitting at your feet. This is good. Oh, can we take a picture about this? How attached are you to Raymond? Would you consider selling him? If the price is right.

Did you hear that, Raymond? First the coffee and now this. We take a picture of Alastair with Raymond because they're getting on so well. So yes, so the sad ending? Well, I just have a very strong memory of Kate having been cremated and we got her ashes and my mum wanted to scatter them in Argyle. And it took, it was years before they moved back there. And then we all gathered together, you know, we had to wait until all the family was all together. And to think some caking had occurred. of the ashes. So we were ready for what was supposed to be quite a cathartic experience.

But it just came out like a solid grey lump of funk landed on and we had to just sort of kick it until the ashes. Can I say the producer has absolutely lost it. Will. I am bearing my soul here, Will. This is outrageous. I mean, I think we're getting an insight into Will because I've never seen him laugh so much at anything on this entire book. But it was a fitting end for a dog who bought much joy and much challenge, many challenges to our lives. So that means you're comfortable with dogs because you grew up with them. Yeah. But I think Shih Tzu's are more like cats.

Is that acceptable? Can I say that? I think you're absolutely right. Because I think you're... I mean, someone just pointed at Raymond. Yes, that happens a lot. Just such an attention-grabbing dog. Such an it-girl dog. Well, you and him are quite the dream team.

People do sometimes point at me, but it's with a different expression on their face. I imagine you get a lot of attention, though, Alistair. Oh, sorry. More fans of his, more Raymond fans. Some comedians don't like Raymond because he gets all the attention. He gets too much attention, yeah, yes, exactly. We become like the heckler who wants the show to be about us. But I imagine you're fairly used to being looked at.

Yeah, I never, I'm not particularly an attention-seeking person. No, I can tell them. But I have chosen a bad career for that. And I've got long, long red hair, if the listener hasn't seen a picture of me. So I'm quite, I'm tall, so I guess I'm quite noticeable. Got a sort of medieval look about me, which is all, none of it is for attention. I don't want people to notice, but they do. And there's nothing I can do about that.

And you've got the most beautiful hair. I can honestly say it would be a crime to cut your hair. Oh, that's kind of you. I said before the show, the white hairs are coming in. Who was it said to me, redheads don't grey? We just fade out. Someone said that to me. If that's another ginger comedian, I'm quoting, I apologise.

And people, yeah, you said people will... And you talk about this yourself, is that there are references to you looking like, wizard or there's a Lord of the Rings vibe going on. Yes, yeah. People assume I know a lot more about Game of Thrones than I do know. I've never read one of the books, I've never seen the show, but people, people just say, oh, the white walkers. I'm like, yeah, yeah, great. They'll just come up to you. Yeah, yeah, just start conversations. Yeah, just people, people just drag me into a games workshop or Warhammer shop, just trying to sell me little

figurines. I don't know anything about this. I can't walk past a Morris dancing troupe or a historical reenactment society without. then immediately putting me in a costume. So I'm assuming, just from the five minutes I've spent with you, and I haven't stopped laughing quite honestly, you were funny when you were growing up and this was something that your family and others were aware of? No, absolutely.

No, so I'm from the north of England. I don't think I am that funny, obviously. I think I've, you know, I've written some good jokes. I am proud of work I've done. But there are some comedians who are just full, funny people. I would say you're one of those. Oh, well that's kind of you, but completely inaccurate.

I'm sorry to say. I didn't know that I could be funny until I moved to London and met, because I moved to London to go to film school and the film school I went to was very international, so most of the students weren't British. And people who aren't British don't have a problem with saying, hey, you're funny. Because nobody had told me that I could be funny for my entire life until I was in my mid to late 20s. Why do you think that was?

And then I met some people from other countries and they're like, you know, you're funny actually. Why do you think no one told you that when you were growing up? Is it not a northeast thing? I think the north of England, you were in Australia? Yeah, I lived in, and then I moved to North London when I was sort of, but yeah, I grew up in, I spent a lot of time in Australia and New Zealand as a kid. Well, it was from an Australian. I first heard of the concept of Toll Poppy Syndrome where they don't like people standing out.

And if you think you're a bit good at something, they'll cut you down. And I think the north of England has that. That's interesting. It's not all bad. It's a little dog, a little girl's come over. I'm so sorry, he's just done a poo, so I don't want you to touch the poo because it's a bit dirty. We've got a little girl poo situation going on here.

It's in hand. I'm so sorry, this isn't the best time to meet him. I'm sorry, is that the poo? Yeah. It's infinitesimally tiny. I've never seen such as more poo. But we have to check no bits of leaked out. Look away everyone.

everyone. Oh no there's bigger poo on hiding here. Oh dear Raymond that's a disgusting that's one of the most disgusting poos you've ever done. Never mind. That's the can you see why I always carry baby wipes Allison? So it became entangled. Yeah. On exit. Hey, way. That's cheered me up actually because the glamour of the dog it's nice to know that behind that there is actually a tricky poo situation. It's nice to know that just like every celebrity has a another side of them.

Exactly. Raymond is no different. Nice to meet you. Bye bye. I like those. They looked to be a sort of Russian grandparents. And what I liked is that there were very, there was an honesty about that transaction where they couldn't have been less interested in us.

They gave us no eye contact. Yes. When we said thank you, bye bye bye, nice to meet you. They waved at the dog. Yes. You know, Raymond was really the broker in that situation. Fair enough. So, go on, you were saying about not being called funny,

and you think that's maybe a sort of tall poppy syndrome thing. I think it might be a tall poppy syndrome. I don't know if that's an Australian concept or I just heard it from an Australian. Yeah, Australians do talk about it a lot. But, you know, I love the North of England and I love people from the North of England. But, yeah, I don't think I,

I think a lot of comedians were probably not the funniest person in class, but like the second funniest person in class. who had to really work on the material because they didn't have the charisma or the popularity to just get away with funny noises. Yeah. That's so interesting. And were you quite a shy kid or were you outgoing?

I think a shy show-off. I think a lot of comedians are shy show-offs. I've got a joke from an old show about the introvert test being. Would you rather be in a room full of people or saying how great you are or just on your own. But I would prefer to be a room full of people or saying how great I am, but I'm not there, which my friend pointed out is awake.

But that is true. I really want people to like me, but I don't want them to tell me to my face because I get embarrassed by that. It's completely true that I really want people to be praising me constantly, but I don't want to experience it particularly. So how does it feel reading something nice about you?

That's great. reported. Yeah, when people say, oh, we were just talking about you, all nice things, I love that. I love to know that people are saying nice things about me when I'm not there. But do you find it uncomfortable, does it make you feel a bit uncomfortable when someone says, comes up to you, for example, and says, I honestly think you're brilliant, you're so funny, I love what you do. I mean, I managed to get over it, but I do find it uncomfortable, but I do manage to deal with it at the same time. Yes. I think that's quite normal. Surely when people praise you, you feel. quite British.

Yes. And I notice it's weird because I've started to realise though it's funny that sometimes when someone offers you a compliment, when you say, oh no, that's not true, I'm not funny. Or, no, I don't look nice. I've started to realise maybe that could be seen as a rejection of their generosity. Yes. And so that, I've decided that's true because that gives me an excuse to something. So yeah, I do look great.

Yes. But I think it never occurred to me that it was, it's a social faux par when someone says, you know, I like this or I like that. I was going to say I like that coat, but I'm wearing the coat from Paddington wears from Paddington, which I bought without realizing it. And then I was in Paddington station. They had a human Paddington and we were in the same coat. And I was like, oh dear.

I didn't know he did much. I think I got it from the place Paddington gets his coats from. I didn't mean to, obviously, but it just happened. So I'm seeing... But, you know, when you get a compliment that isn't about being dressed like Paddington... Oh, Ray... A little twig attached to the foot. I relate to this because my hair is always picking things up that I don't want to be carrying with me

and getting flowers and blossom in it and stuff like that. Yeah. Which maybe I'm making... kind of a bit more romantic than it is. And when you were younger, your mom, did she work in social services or something? Yeah, I don't really know what her job actually was. I don't think she was a spy.

But she did something that was a bit like being a social worker, but was never actually a social worker. So she worked for Shaw Start, which used to be a thing before the Tories shut it down in the Northeast for a good long while and did stuff like that. And my dad was a teacher. Oh, yes. I like that.

English? English teacher. Classic. I knew he'd be an English teacher. Definitely not maths. His maths are all right. My maths is terrible. So you grew up in a household where, you know, there were books presumably in lively discussions were there about culture and literature.

Yeah, we were a middle class northerner, which is to say, you know, I went to a fairly normal comprehensive school. But in that school, I was incredibly posh and everyone hated me. Everyone was like, oh, you're posse, your dad posh. So I don't know, yeah, I thought I was really middle class, and then I moved to London. And then there are middle class people here who have swimming pools

and, you know, and five skiing holidays a year. And I was like, oh, wow, the roof on middle class is higher than I thought it was. Yes. Yes, that's interesting that, isn't it? So when you came to London, did that change the idea of class to you at all? I think this is something you see people do. You see writers and comedians sort of playing working class because they're like me, they're from an ordinary lower middle class background.

Right. But if you start working in the media, you eventually hang out with real toffs, proper aristocrats and people with real family money. And you start going, maybe I am working class actually compared to everyone else at The Guardian, which I think is not true. You have to try and remember that that isn't true. And I haven't really faced to. great struggles in my life. But it's easy to sort of compare yourself to the people you're, you see at Radio 4 and go, actually I'm quite down to earth. I'm basically

a coal miner. I'm too obscure. Let's turn around, Alistair, because there's... Oh, we hit roadworks. Horny-handed sons of toil directly in front of us. Don't worry, I can talk to them. I'm working class. I think that's interesting you saying

that about just that class thing, because also, I suppose, there's that thing about networking and connections that possibly, particularly people from London in the media and in the entertainment world, that's part of it as well, isn't it? Yes, yeah. The assumption that you'll sort of have, oh well, daddy all know a journalist somewhere. Yeah, exactly. A lot of people start is that, well, my dad's neighbour is an agent, and so she gave me a, and it's like, when I grew up here in the North East, the TV TV, shows made in the region were Biker Grove and Look North and that was it. And everything about sort of film and television seemed far away. Now obviously Newcastle has a thriving live comedy scene, but I was a kid and I didn't know that. Right. And I didn't, you know, because I don't have a strong

northeastern accent. I never feel, I don't feel like I'm a good sort of representative of the region, you know. Was that conscious at all with your accent? I think it was and I regret it deep. I Really? I think I didn't want to, yeah, because there weren't that many Jordy's on the telly when I was a kid and then they became really popular after the voiceover guy from Big Brother. And now everyone loves a Geordie accent, but I don't have one. So I wonder if do you think that was you thinking? I think I wanted to sound like the people off the telly, yeah.

Really? So I just went for something milder. And my parents aren't from the area, so my dad's Mancunia, my mom is Scottish. Yeah. So I just picked an accent. And were you always kind of interested in performing? Sometimes you've talked about being maybe a shy show-off. And I think shy show-off sometimes they do secretly want to be in the school play.

Yes, yes. But they'll sort of be like, oh, I've ended up having to do this. Do you know what I mean? Nightmare. No, I secretly wanted to do it, absolutely. And a lot of my time was spent engineering ways to get to do it. do what I wanted to do. Yeah. So when I was trying to make films when I was a film student, I started doing comedy just about the same time because I realized that pitching the films

where I would stand up for five minutes and talk about my idea and people would laugh, went way better than any of the films. Nobody really liked the film. Nobody was interested in what I was trying to do. But they did react. I got a reaction at least from pitching. So you knew that you were sort of a good communicator. I suppose so. I'm well done for accepting that. Well, with caveats. I suppose, maybe.

I think I was just working towards a contradiction. I don't know that many people who know me would praise me for sort of my sensitivity and communication skills. I would. Oh, that's very nice. And I've only met you for 20 minutes. So you did appear in the Nativity play, didn't you? That was my first laugh I ever got.

You've done your research. I don't know how you know that. I'm old school, Alastair. I read things. I listen to things. Wiretap. Not like these bro podcasts. Anyway, what's going on?

Tell me things. It's not like being interviewed by the Starzy. How do you have all this information? It's not like being interviewed by the Starzy. I'm going to go on the record and say it's lovely. Just want to be clear? That was a joke. I enjoyed the joke.

So, yeah, so my partner, who I mentioned before, my lover and confidant, she played, we've known each other for years, she played Mary and I played Joseph in the Nativity. Don't. That, honestly. It's very sweet. Although I, my, we were, my costume was like a blanket stapled with two staples over my shoulder. I mean, I think you're one, it wasn't like a blanket. It was a blanket. It was a bed sheet of some kind. And it came, basically it came off during the innkeeper. the scene and shimmied, gradually shimmied down over the course of the scene. I was wearing Jim shorts underneath. It's a biblical strip cheese.

I don't like it, Alistair. Well, all I remember was the audience laughing. And I remember afterwards my friend saying, you were so embarrassed, you looked really embarrassed. And I wasn't embarrassed at all. I was pretending to look embarrassed because it was funnier. Right. And I thought, oh, that's weird, vaguely sociopathic behavior, now looking back on it. but I thought it would be funny to try to look like I was recovering,

you know, to try and go on with the scene and recover. But that's quite as... While it was falling apart. And that's quite a sophisticated comic response, if you like, which is I've not had control over this, but I'm going to seize control over this. Do you know what I mean? I genuinely didn't do it on purpose.

No, but that's what's interesting, is that when it happened, you know, that's what comics are instinctively brilliant at, is someone will say something they weren't expecting. They'll turn that, they'll alchemise that into comedy. Yes. And that's kind of what you did. I suppose, yes.

Was alchemised the bedsheet falling off? You were heckled by the bedsheet and he thought, okay, what can I do with this? How can we make this funny? I know, if I look mortified, that's funnier. And of course your instinct was absolutely right. If you're enjoying it and it looks intentional, it's not as funny. you were sort of, it just displayed, I think, quite a sophisticated understanding of the power of comedy lies in a lack of self-awareness. Yeah, that's what I tell myself. When I go out doing shows with tech and structure and stuff, and I mess it up, I try to remind myself that everything working perfectly isn't funny.

Nobody cares if the show works perfectly. Things going wrong is more funny than things going right. Yeah. Which is what I tell myself to make you feel better about like messing up a queue and tripping over parts of the set and that sort of thing. Oh, look at that little Pomeranian. Oh, Pomeranian making solid eye contact with Raymond. Yeah. Little POM. Take a picture.

It's like a meeting of an orange and a black pom-pom. Oh, do you know what made me a bit sad about that? Hmm. I felt the owners felt Ray wasn't quite good enough. like I was and Wells nodding he knows I look really exciting and oh and I saw that as a beginning of an encounter yeah and they just called their dog away summoned the Pomeranian away don't don't talk to that Shih Tzu it was like one of those sort of Dickens novels it was like come along we need to go to church now leave the beggars

alone oh Ray never mind but Raymond's unaware of that he doesn't I know we're acutely attuned to class in a way the dogs aren't you say that he's is quite a snorber Alastair. Oh. Well, I mean, I saw him pull on his own tail earlier, so. So little Alistair, who I suspect was a lovely child, I don't know why, but I'm getting that vibe. I would say sort of an opinionated and very talkative child.

Luckily, I'm fine now. But a happy child, would you say? I would. This is why I think I've probably got no right to be a comedian, because most comedians had sort of, a tragedy or a miserable upbringing in one way or another and they channeled that suffering. Or an undiagnosed personality disorder. Yeah, yes, yes. I mean, we don't have to name individual comedians.

We know them. We could. Whereas I think I'm, I think, yeah, I'm too on an even keel to be a comedian really. I have no right trying to make people laugh when there's clearly nothing wrong with me. That's quite a long pause. You didn't immediately co-sign there being nothing wrong with me. I think sometimes I like to embrace my inner Louie Thruh. Oh so what do you say that? Can't really do Louis Thruh. That's the best I could manage. I wonder what Alastair thought of me. Yeah, I think you do genuinely strike me

and I'm only basing this on the first 20 minutes to half an hour of meeting you. But surprisingly damaged pre. Get that on your poster if you want. I'm in, yeah, reasonably good condition. I'll take that quote. It's just an energy you get from people. No, I had a happy childhood, and I think, I don't know. I do think you make your own happiness,

but I also think people have sort of a base mood. Some people are grumpy people and some people are happy people. And obviously, you know, tragedies and things that come into your life affect that. But I do think people return to being their sort of baseline. I do think I'm a fairly happy person. My standard default position is fairly optimistic. I think I'm an optimist. I think I choose to like people.

I'm not hugely sociable. But I like people. Maybe that's why you're so happy. I like people as an idea and then don't spend any time with them. Maybe also, I increasingly think. that you know when you think about things like damage I think sometimes I don't think sometimes I think most of the time it is caused by there's environmental stressors in whatever way when you're growing up I remember a therapist

saying to me I said well what happens then what do you do you're just stuck with that if you're born with parents who maybe have their own issues and she said I know it's about recognizing it yes you either have people who were lucky enough to be born into a kind of stable household, which it sounds like yours was. Yeah, yes. Or you, that's not your story, but the key thing is saying, okay, that was quite a weird environment.

Here's why it's weird, I've acknowledged it, now I can hopefully move on. I think the problem is when you don't acknowledge the dysfunction is what I'm saying. I mean, I suppose in a small way, like I'm uptight, I'm sort of repressed. and I'm not great when it comes to emotional expression and that's part of our family. We like each other. We're not, you know, we don't, we're not Italian. We don't go around hugging and kissing each other all the time. You see, that's interesting because we were like, my mother was an actress.

I don't need to say anymore. End of anecdotes. Yes. I got, you know, and... This is why I'm terrified of actors because they have that capacity to be vulnerable. And I think comedians who can also act, I'm really impressed by, because comedy is like a... a defence system, isn't it? I've got all these jokes,

I've got all these heckler put-downs. I'm equipped with an arsenal of gags, whereas actors have to be vulnerable. How do you do that? I don't know. Yeah, well, I think also it's an interesting thing you're saying as well about that not growing up in that sort of Mediterranean

type, you know. In my complexion, I'm relieved. I didn't. grew up in a sunnier climb. No, but it wasn't like people... Were your family demonstrative? Were you huggers? No, not really.

I hugged my dad once and he said, we're not American. We've softened up. I hugged him yesterday, although Man City did win, so he was very pleased about that. We're not America. One hug.

One hug, one hug, that was. In 2007. I've huged my sister. Just a, I think three or four times now, so we're doing very well. And was she older than you? She's younger than you. Did you get on with her when you were growing up? I think so.

I think she had a more difficult adolescence than me, I think. She had a stormier, more classic, frustrated teenager. I had one of those. Yeah, were you a rebel? I genuinely think it's a bit harder for women. I mean, I don't want to say that actually, because men obviously face their own sort of, you know, teenage demons.

But I think it's that thing, certainly for me, it's that confusing time where you suddenly feel permanently watched. Yes. No, I think that's a women thing. Not to stereotype too much, but I think all the men I know really started to struggle at like 32.

They started going, oh, nothing's worked out for me. But I do think that becoming sort of 12 and 13 and suddenly people look at you differently is a thing that I got experienced. No one talks to you about that or prepares you really for it and says, what's going to happen now is that weird old men will start looking at you in a very weird way and thinking they can come over to you and talk to you.

Yes. Take your headphones off, have a conversation. Yeah, this is something I've noticed because during lockdown, I and several other people did quite well doing social media sketches. and the way the female comics, the way the women describe their experience of it, it's just so different to me. Twitter, back when it was Twitter, you know, it's awful, I'm just constantly getting, you know, pictures in my inbox and it's like nobody, nobody in the entire time of me doing quite well on the internet ever tried to have sex with me. And that is, I'm not saying that that's wrong. I'm not complaining. And I'm sure more attractive guys probably do get that.

bit of attention but but it's so different it's so different to what why is producer will laughing again this this is outrageous I just blame him and then I can laugh and let's go and take a picture on the old gnarled oak these are lovely I feel like we've got logs do you know what I feel like that's what people would want from you yeah the oak tree a good old English oak very much suits me I really hope you part one of this week's Walking the Dog if you want to hear the second part of our chat it'll be out on Thursday so whatever you do don't miss it and remember to subscribe so you can join us on our walks every week