Walking The Dog with Emily Dean - Josh Jones (Part One)

Episode Date: January 6, 2026

This week Emily and Ray take a London stroll with the brilliantly funny Josh Jones.Josh has become one of the most exciting names in stand-up, with appearances on 8 Out of 10 Cats, Would I Lie to You?, and The Jonathan Ross Show. He chats to Emily about his life, comedy, and the very happy news that he and his partner have just officially adopted their rescue dog, Ellie, back home in Manchester. Safe to say, Josh is completely besotted and rightly so.They also talk about Josh’s current live tour I Haven’t Won the Lottery, So Here’s Another Tour Show, which is visiting venues across the UK until April. Tickets are available at https://joshjonescomedy.com.It’s a joyful, laugh-out-loud episode with someone who has genuine funny bones and an infectious warmth that wins people over instantly. Ray adored him, and so did Emily, the perfect way to start the new year.Follow Emily:Instagram X Walking The Dog is produced by Will NicholsMusic: Rich JarmanArtwork: Alice LudlamPhotography: Karla Gowlett Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I actually get more scared when, like, I'm in a really, really posh southern town or a commuter town in London. Because I'm like, I don't have an aga. I've got nothing to talk to you about. This week on Walking the Dog, Ray and I went for a London stroll with the brilliantly funny comedian Josh Jones. And Josh had some very exciting news for us. He and his partner very recently officially adopted their rescue dog, who was back home in Manchester but I couldn't wait to hear all about her and Josh couldn't wait to tell me the man's obsessed with her

and I don't blame him. Josh is fast becoming one of the most talked about names in comedy he's appeared on everything from 8 out of 10 cats to would I lie to you and the Jonathan Roth show and his stand-up is absolutely hilarious so if you haven't seen him live yet you really must he's currently touring with I haven't won the lottery so here's another tour show and you can go and see him at venues all over the country until April. Get your tickets at joshjonescom.com.

So, full disclosure, Ray and I pretty much fell in love with Josh at first sight, partly because he's just one of those people with proper funny bones. He genuinely made me laugh so much at one point I was in pain. I mean, that could have been my joints playing up. I'm not getting any younger, let's face it. But you get the idea. The man is just an utter joy. to spend time with and just FYI he also described Ray as the first openly gay dog

he's ever met basically I can't think of a better way for us to kick off the new year and I can't wait for you to hear our chat I'm now going to hand over to the fabulous man himself here's Josh and Ray Ray right Josh I'm gonna put Raymond down okay fab he's got his little Christmas jumper on. What do you think? I'm so jealous because there's no lead and I really want my dog to be leadless. That's a dream. Why? Just so I can be like, woo, we're careful. But I get a bit nervous when if the leadless, I'm not paying attention and I will miss a dog poo and that's a big fear of mine because I don't want

to get in trouble for not picking up dog poo. Isn't it awful when that happens? Well the other day we was on a dog walk and we forgot the dog poo bags so I had to run back after a poo while my boyfriend just stood with a dog for like 20 minutes and was just like gadding the poo it's become I mean you're a young thing but I'm old enough to remember when no one had dog poo bags and you just had to the streets were just covered in shit yeah it's like neo in the matrix but for dog poo come on Ray look Josh I can tell he likes you because do you see he he He's twerking. Yeah, he's got a little bum wiggle.

Do you like him, does? Yeah, he's so cute. Oh, Ray, go on the other side. So fluffy. Yeah. I think you're going to get on really well. Yeah, I'm excited. Ray's an ally.

Oh, great. I mean, there's no being about the bush. Ray is gay. Yeah, I don't think dogs had that. I've never really seen dogs at like a reform match or anything. I don't think they're that political, really. I think they're just happy for everyone. Oh, I've met some dogs that I think horrible.

Leave means leave. Yeah. Do you know what I mean? Yeah. And that's what I love about dogs. You get an energy, the same energy that you get with people sometimes. Like my dog, he's a little bit of a snob. Is it?

Do you think he is? How old is he? He's eight and a half. Okay. Raymond. So he's lived, he's got life experience. Yeah. He's lived with it.

Come on, Raymond, follow Josh. Josh, it's such a joy to get to meet you and go for our little week today. Now, I don't want to accuse you of anything, but you are clutching a full fat coat. I am on go over. I will admit it. So I did my tour show in London last night.

And then because they don't live in London and loads of comedians do, when they do a show, they come and watch it, which is lovely. But then you are kind of forced to go out after. And I don't really go out after shows anymore. I can't hack it anymore. When I was in my 20s, it were fine.

But now I'm in my 30s. I just want to get to bed straight after my gig. But we went out last night, and I had a couple of apparel spritzes. And, yeah, I feel a bit. You had what my mother used to call a few cocktails. Yeah. But I had an apparel spritz, but the weight of a person was really judgy because I asked for lemonade instead of soda water.

I've got a real judgy look about from that. Talking of judgy looks. Oh, poo. The poo. First poo of the day. Your publicist who got his phone out and I thought was going to take a picture of the poo. I mean, there's some strange people out there.

Really good thing about small dog, small poo. That's good for you. I want to hear about your lovely dog because obviously you're based in Manchester. aren't you and you've come up here because you were working so we've grabbed you but I was very excited to learn that you've recently adopted a dog yeah rescue dog so we don't know how old she is um they said they think she's about five but before we had her she was really mistreated by humans so it's just been a lot of

getting to like be all right with humans and now we've started spooning so it's like it's getting good but at first she was quite wary obviously as well because we're both two blokes I think she must have been maybe abused by guys because she was a bit like

oh hang on Josh I didn't know you would get hate I wish you turned out again I'm so sorry I didn't think the place where I might get homophobically abuse was on a dog walking podcast. But, no, yeah, so because of that was, I was like, oh, what will she be like? Because I think she was like more scared of blokes. But now she's kind of fine with everyone.

And we have guests over all the time and she's pretty chill. But we have two cats already. So the biggest fear were what will she be like with the cats. And she did try to eat one on like the first week. then after that it's been pretty chill actually and what i mean she's obviously a mixed breed isn't she but yeah what does she what have you thought of doing that DNA thing i'm going to but everybody this is the best thing about having a rescue everybody keeps um guessing my favorite guess was my friend said they think she's a mix between an alsation and a jack russell and i was like that would be

a very hard jag for the jack russell that's that's like that's like that's like that doesn't look good. I'm the Jack Russell in that scenario and I feel for the Jack Russell. I've been the Jack Russell, Josh. Oh yeah, so I just think, I don't know what she is. I think she might be about 12 different dogs. But my brother had, so this is why I got her.

So my brother fosters for that dog rescue. So he has like a turning wheel of dogs there every couple of weeks. And we basically, we basically, we fell in love with this particular dog because we were not getting dogs, we've got cats. Yeah. But then we was like,

oh God, this dog's so cute. And that's a bit unfair because all the dogs he had were cute. But this one just really like spokesworth. No, I know what you mean? It's like, you know, dating, isn't it? Yeah. It's just a feeling you get about a certain one.

I had that with Raymond. And he was the weird one because he didn't look like a normal Shih Tzu and all the other Shih Tzu. they tend to be black and white or tan and white. And this weird little brown thing came out and she went, he's a bit strange this one. He was sort of like a bit other.

Do you know what I mean? He wasn't with the gang. And do you know what, Josh, that's what I liked about him? Yeah, that's the best thing. You don't want the popular dog because I know all the other dogs are going to come up to you. And, well, I want to hear all about your partner and your, what's your dog's name, by the way?

Ellie. Oh, Ella. Yeah. Was that her name, or did you... Yeah, no, they named her Ellie. But I wouldn't... I didn't want to change your name because I didn't want to confuse her.

Yeah. And even though she only had the name for a couple of weeks, but she was, you know, she was going through a lot so far. I'll just keep her name. But it's an hard name with a Manchester accent because someone would be like, what's the name, so I'll say, Ellie. And they're all like, I'm like,

but I don't know how to say it in a posh. Yeah. posh accent yeah so it's Ellie Ellie but yeah because when I'm shouting her I'm like ele and I feel quite scruffy because I can't say it right but and did she have a sort of difficult history door yeah so she from so what the dog rescue told me was that basically she was rescued from this place that was kind of pretending to be a dog rescue you and there was so they must have been getting like loads of street dogs or whatever and then they were trying to sell them on so to to make them more like profitable and try and make a look

cuter or whatever she's had of it is clipped and you can tell that she might have had like a nose broke some she's got no cartilage in a nose so she's really heavy breathing but she's breathing fine if the vet said she don't really don't really need to to be operated on because it's just cosmetic, so we're not really going to do, don't really want to put her through anything. Oh, bless her. But yes, she's had a bit of a shit, a shit life, really.

I didn't know whether to bring it up, because I was like, it's that a bit too depressing for the podcast. No, do you know what? I think it's, I actually find it really uplifting because I think the fact that she was in that situation and has ended up with you, how amazing is that? She's really getting on with everyone and he's really like coming out she's getting a little personality when we first

met her was like oh she's really chill and she's very quiet but that's because she was like anxious and shy and now like oh she's a bit of a knobbed actually but I really like it she's got an act like she's got a bit of an attitude now and she's got a bit of a personality you've got her if you're a woman these days yeah you know what i mean but we're we've got two cats and they're both girls as well so we're all it's all female pets this is my kind of household josh already i'm loving your household two gay men and just female pets it's great it is good that is my definition of heaven yeah it's really nice um i want to ask a bit more about your childhood and your career which just seems to be going from

strength to strength and you grew up obviously in manchester it doesn't take far up to work out maybe you grew up in Manchester and it was you did you grow up in was it a very female household or did you have siblings was it so I grew my parents and split up when my mum were pregnant with me and they were getting divorced like as I was being born yeah so I'm like I kind of joke about it but I'm kind of the last shag of a 12 year marriage which I think is quite cool did you have a relationship with your dad Yeah, but it was just as he lived in one bit and my mum lived in another and I were between the two.

So my dad lived in a place called Dralston, and my mum were in a place called Phelsoff and I kind of like, yeah, and for them both in my head. And do you have siblings? Yeah, so I've got one full brother and then I've got a brother and a sister who, so when my dad met my step-mom, which was, I was like just born, my dad met my step-mom and she already had two kids and my dad's kind of like, of like raised her kids so we was never really raised to be like step brother and sister we just said normal but I've got them two and then I've got an actual full brother with my mum and my dad but I'm the youngest of the four you know what that doesn't

surprise me yeah I think the youngest always end up being attention seekers really so do you have siblings I know what you're going to say but you're the youngest I hear the youngest yeah well younger Well, do you know, and I like saying this now, you know, like you were saying about Ella. It's depressing something. My sister died, which was really sad. Yeah. But you know what I love is when you said, do you have siblings?

I always say yes. Yeah. Because she is still my sister. And, you know, I used to, I went through a period because I was embarrassed and I would say, no, because I thought, what if they asked me? And you have to get into it. And now I'm really, I think, I'm not going to deny. You know, I'm like, you're always, you know, they always have a sibling, don't you? so yes but my brother the one who has to say mum and dad my brother Sam he's like my best friend

so we are really close but he's five years older than me yeah would you have said you would you have been described as a show off yeah yeah yeah I were well also so like I think my school was a little bit rough and was it yeah and a bit to my family are a bit rough I hope they don't listen to this but they were and like everyone was very sort of I lived in a big banter house like you just ripped each other everyone took the piss out of each other and I think because I was obviously quite flamboyant I just became very um very good with the comebacks because it was kind of like survival and also like I did boxing for years and stuff because yeah as a teenager because like no one wants to get battered off the gay kid do this so I realised that

I had a I only had a few fights when I were younger but it stopped me kind of getting bullied so I got bullied for a bit and then kind of had a few fights and then was all right then and what do you think I mean I was going to say what were the reasons for you being bullied but that that feels like victim blaming actually because how are you how are you meant to bloody know what I do say though I did get bullied but not as much as I deserved do you know what I was in a school in Manchester in the late 90s early 2000s doing fucking show tunes I should have been burnt alive really but it were fine so it sounds like you kind of cope with that quite well yeah but I think um I don't know all I'm still

really close with some of my friends are like my friend some of the buddies yeah she battered me actually no but my friend Ollie I've been friends we've seen so five five or six she lived near me dad and stuff and I've got loads of friends from then I've got another friend Beth and the three of us have been friends since we were kids and but everyone is very no-nonsense sort of I think my boyfriend gets a bit intimidated from them all because they're all very like not not emotional but if you're crying they'll be like right fucking grow up but they'll help you out

do you know what I mean so they're nice but not not what yes and I know as a southerner we do lack that that edge that toughness do you know what I mean yeah but yeah I don't so everyone's just kind of like you'd be all right do you know I mean yeah so it's just kind of like that really and were you always funny Josh I well when I Everyone says when they did stand up, their families are always like, oh no, like, it's at a career or whatever. And none of my family are in the arts at all. They've all, like, got normal jobs. Yeah, what, I was going to ask, what do you, did your parents do or do? So my mum worked at British Gas and a call centre.

Oh, I bet she was friendly, though. She's, oh, so she's, she's quite a big character, my mum. What would she say when she answered the phone? Hello British Gas. Can I help you? Well, she has got like a work voice because normally she's quite rank, but she has got a work voice.

But it was funny, my mum, my mum's a bit of a drinker. She loves a tipple. Yeah. And I did my tour show at the Lowry in Salford last week or the week before. Yeah. It's like, biggest tour show of the tour and I take photos with people after the show if they want it.

So there's a bit of a cue and stuff. but then someone sent me a photo they had a photo with my mum because my mum was pissed and were like that's my son and then she just started having photos she's bit mad so she worked for British gas and what about your dad when I was younger he worked in like a fish factory when I was younger yeah well C mark I don't really know what he did it was like boxing fishes I don't know what he's doing and then he got a job he's not a police officer but he works for the police and he works in the controller room i think it's like 9-99 sort of what you're doing are you all right sort of stuff

we don't speak about his job i can tell you don't speak about his job because no one in the police service answers on and goes what you're doing yeah yeah it's not my dad bringing people what you're wearing i love what you're doing but no so i think he works in the the people ring. It's quite a serious job. It's a serious job. People are ringing and being like, I'm sorry Mr.

Jeremy is to bring you into this trivial dog walking podcast and suggest that you would ever answer the phone by saying, what are you doing? Yeah. Thank you for your service. Yeah, so he does that now. So that makes me think he's not, he was quite good with laying down rules and authority.

Yeah, but I only saw him two days a week. Oh yeah. So, like, and my mum didn't lay down any rules. Just you know? They were very different. My dad is, like, you don't, like, if you don't eat all your veg, then, like, you can't, like, play out what you make. My mum was, like, I don't have veg in the house. So it was, it was very different.

But, yeah, I saw my dad twice, um, twice a week growing up. And, um, yeah, he was, you know, he was a bit, he's a bit more strict. Yeah. Yeah. And so was it always sort of somewhat inevitable that you were going to perform or become a comedian? I didn't have a clue what I were going to do, really. But then basically, when I were at school, I had, because I were dyslexic, I had, you know, one of those helpers and stuff. And he said to me, you need to definitely do drama at college.

Oh, really? So I did a B-Tech at college. And then when I was at college, I wasn't the best actor was all right, but I was the best at making stuff from nothing. So, like, if it was devising stuff, it was mainly a lot of my ideas. And then I had a teacher there was like, you need to do comedy. So then I went to uni and I did like a comedy writing course at Salford, Jr. But I never wanted to do stand-up.

and I was the last one in the class to do stand-up because I wanted to do character stuff. Yeah. But then I ended up doing stand-up. You ended up doing stand-up, but there was a point when you were thinking you might do acting. Yeah.

What were you like as an actor? It was all like the stupid character, all like the, like the voices. And I wasn't, I remember. Here's my crazy fly. Well, actually, because I was always putting myself down as the comedy role for the last thing at college, my teacher made me play the main guy, and he was straight. So I remember just looking in the mirror, trying to do a straight voice, but not in a funny way. So I had to be like, just practicing a deeper voice.

And we had to do like a sex scene. I was, this was at college as well. And so we had to do a sex scene in this play and this girl to like jump and wrap her legs around me and like, And it felt really uncomfortable. I can't, I'm not that good of an actor, it felt really weird. So, yeah, and I had to be like dominant and manly. And I hated it. Yeah.

So. Did you go to, you went to college, didn't you, in Oldham? Yeah, Oldham College, which was a BTAC course. Yeah. And Oldham itself is not like the best area, a bit, deprived, but the college was so good and they've got such good alumni like Saran Jones went there and Sarah Lancashore. Yeah, and Jane Orix as well. So it's like loads of people who went Corey went through there. Did you say, did you ever think? Maybe I'll do, I'll end up on Corrie. Well, I had a teacher who I still speak to called Miranda. She was great. And she was the one who pushed me to do comedy because I was like, oh no, I'm going to try. And she said, I don't think she really remembers it. I've always remembered it, and I think it's the best advice I've ever had.

She said, with your voice, the only acting job you'll get is a nursing coronation street, which is quite harsh. But also, like, so true, because you get typecast and shit. So she was like, make your own stuff. That's what you best are. So then I'm so glad she actually said that, because I think it's really made me be like, oh fuck I have to make my own stuff because I will only get cast as a nursing coronation street. I just think what she probably recognised

was that you've got very funny bones and that's sort of something, it's an energy you get from someone the minute you meet them. You're a funny person. You can't help but be funny. And I think that would have been a waste if you'd have been an actor. Because you can still act as a comic.

Yeah, and also like I think comedians make good actors Because with actors, a lot of them are out of work for most of the year. Yeah. Whereas comics, we're on stage five nights a week. And although it's different, it's stand up, we are performing five nights a week to live audiences. Go away, helicopter. I can't even see it.

Can you not see it? No, I can just see the sun. I'm so hung over, that's too bright. I'm very conscious of more helicopters at the moment. It just seems... To be fair, though, I'm scared of love. London. And it's funny because I'm from Manchester, but I remember, so I lived in London for like two years. Yeah.

And I was like, I'm from Manchester. I'm tough as fuck. I can look after myself. When I first got to London, I was like, I'm a country bumpkin. I don't know nothing about the world. This is terrifying. Really? It's just too big for me. I get overwhelmed. Do you know what I am conscious of is just how much less friendly it is? And I know that's a cliche. Yeah.

But it was like my producer and I went to, well, to interview Charlotte Church the old day who love her but how I felt the amount of encounters I had with people just in and around where is there something about London where it's like I feel like Ray and I could die in the corner and we could be left here for weeks yeah they're like move I'm late for work right let's move now I want to get away from that silly helicopter where so where I've moved to now though with I've moved further out of my Manchester and it's a bit more suburbia which is lovely and there's a butchers

near mine and a greengrocers so I love it I feel like I'm in the 50s and I've been going in there and they're always asking me what I'm gonna cook with the food that I'm buying and then when I go back in they asked me how it was and I love that I show them pictures well I feel a bit like you're sort of yeah that would make me feel like I was in downtown Abbey or something like the bell going But yeah, ding-a-d-d-ding-a-ding, morning. But, yeah, I like knowing everyone in the local shop and just chatting to everyone and all that sort of stuff.

Have you ever heard of a pizzle stick? A pizzle stick. What's that? We have a fancy dog shop name mine. Oh, yeah? And they're quite expensive. It's like a four-pound of pizzle stick, but it's a dried bull's penis. And she fucking loves it.

Yeah, and it takes it. It takes her an hour because it's really dry. I know the feeling, but yeah, it takes her an hour or two to get through it. Ray, should we get you a bull's penis? Because I do love her, but sometimes, Jo, if you're cooking, you're like, ooh, get away. So I give her a pizzle sticking and then she's gone. But she won't walk on laminar? Won't she?

No. No, he's quite fussy about what he'll walk on. He likes rugs. Listen to that barker. Listen to that barker. Yeah, I'm glad I'm carrying Ray. They look lovely those dogs, but they look more like guard dogs or something. Well, yeah, with Ellie, she's, because she's reactive.

Yeah. So we have to try, she wasn't, she was fine. We was trying to get used to humans, and now she's got used to humans. She's decided she hates dogs. So I'm going to, I was actually ringing around local dog trainers to try and see if they can stop. being reactive um these ones are reactive hello hello hello what's going on why with me particularly what's happened what are you telling us I love it when dogs come up to you and just bark at you like they're talking to you it's a cute

thing so you've got this great piece of advice about how you should go into comedy yeah and did you immediately that made sense to you and you thought okay no I thought comedy characters or some sort of comedy acting but I never thought of stand-up I never really watched much stand-up before I did it I thought it was quite boring did you really a bit but yeah I just thought because watching one person talk about themselves how boring is that there's no songs This is dull. But once I did my first gig, I was like, oh God, this is it.

And then I just kind of fell in love with it. And it's been over 10 years now. Were you nervous for your first gig, Josh? Yeah, I was a bit, but it was such a small gig. Yeah. It was only about 12 people, so it was fine. But I kind of got the bug, and then I was just doing it. literally five nights a week, six nights a week, from the beginning, basically,

and just kind of got into it. And I know you said how you sort of did a lot of what we'd call working men's clubs, I suppose. Yeah, I think I've done basically every rugby club in the north of England, probably. I've gigged in a lot of, like, village halls, like rugby clubs, small towns. little villages, anywhere that they'll do a monthly or yearly gig, I've probably been on it. And how have you found those? Yeah, fine. Like, I think I get a lot of people being like, oh my God, what's it like gigging in like rugby clubs and stuff?

Yeah, I felt like they're just normal people. I actually get more scared when like I'm in a really, really posh southern town or a community. town in London because I'm like I don't have an aga I've got nothing to talk to you about but if it's just a bunch of like northern bloke I don't I can't be talking about school fees yeah so but when it's a bunch of northern blokes I'm like oh yeah sounds yeah um yes it's interesting it's it's really helpful and good to hear that because I think sometimes it shows how we can have prejudices against those type of guys I'm thinking oh well they're typically masculine guys clearly you know you're going to get

abuse when you go on just got to be good they don't give me shit who who you are as like so my friend who was there before Jenna she's my tour support she's opening for me on the whole tour I think she's one of the best acts on the circuit yeah and she's a trans woman but she does those gigs as well as long as you you're funny, they'll give you the time of day, but if you're shit, you shit. And that's got nothing to do with you being gay, you're just shit.

Can't blame it on that. So like you've got learning to do it. Because I think it's a trade, you get better every year and you've got skills to learn. Do you know what I mean? Yeah. And with those gigs, they can be hard, but once you're good at them,

they're really, the audiences are really nice. They pay for a night out, so they want you to be good. But also, presumably, that's the best kind of training as a comedian. To make your comedy universal and just funny in its own right is not just performing to your absolute target demographic every week. Well, I remember earlier on when my dad came to watch me, this was about nine years ago, my dad came to watch me and he asked me, no, he spoke to me afterwards.

And he was like, yeah, it were good, but you've got nothing for blokes like me. Right. So then I'd really changed my set to make sure I've got something to like blokes in the 50s and 60s. Do you know, just to try and not be so niche? You do your first gig and it goes well. And you think, right, I'm going to do this.

But it's quite a slug being a comic, isn't it? Yeah, I've got to died on my ass loads at the beginning. Did you? Yeah. It's a horrible feeling that, I guess, isn't it? Yeah, it's kind of humiliating, but it's also like, fuck it, once you embarrass yourself in front of a couple of hundred people, you kind of just live your life pretty fearlessly. Do you know?

Let's hear this way. You're not that bothered. But, yeah, you've got to die on your eyes to get better. Yeah. Yeah, I suppose I can see it is, in some ways, a lot more than any other job, your failures go on to define you, don't you? Don't they? I mean, in a positive way, I guess. Yeah. And there's some gigs now when you walk on stage and you do a great gig, but it wasn't really set up for you to have a great gig, but you've learnt the skills to do it. Yeah, and then you're like, fucking out if this was five years ago, I would have really struggled, but I've actually, like, you can see your progression coming on and stuff. I really hope you love 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. Thank you.