Walking The Dog with Emily Dean - Richard Arnold

Episode Date: March 12, 2024

The fabulous Richard Arnold and his Cockapoo Clemmie join Emily and Raymond on Walking The Dog this week! Richard is Good Morning Britain's Entertainment Editor and he is one of the most well-loved faces on breakfast television. Clemmie's a bit of a heartbreaker - she and Richard are pretty much besotted with each other! During our stroll, Richard talks about interviewing Mariah Carey, what it means to be part of the nation's morning routine and how he juggles work and caring for his brilliant mum. Richard's new podcast The Sidebar is available wherever you get your podcasts - where he and a celebrity panel spill the tea on the entertainment world, with new episodes dropping every Monday! Keep up with Richard on Instagram here!Follow Emily: Instagram - @emilyrebeccadeanX - @divine_miss_emWalking The Dog is produced by Faye LawrenceMusic: Rich Jarman Artwork: Alice LudlamPhotography: Karla Gowlett  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Are you going to use my dragman? What is your drag moon? Dixie Normas. It's a southern bell with a bit of sass. This week on Walking the Dog, Raymond and I went for a stroll with one of the most well-loved faces on breakfast television. Good Morning Britain's entertainment reporter Richard Arnold and his beautiful cockapoo, Clemmy.

Richard's got up close and personal with so many stars during his 30-year TV career. The man seriously met everyone from Mariah Carey to Barbara Streisand. But I like to think, Ray, was an absolute career highlight. We had the loveliest chat because Richard is genuinely one of the warmest and nicest men in showbiz, and he's also absolutely head over heels in love with his dog. So frankly, I was officially sold. You can obviously catch Richard on Good Morning Britain and do also check out his fabulous new podcast,

The Sidebar, every Monday, where he and his celebrity guests spill a tea on the entertainment world. I really hope you enjoy my chat with Richard. I'll stop talking now and have to be. hand over to the man himself. Here's Richard, Anne Clemmy and Ray. Let's go down this backstreet, Richard. Are we recording already? Oh, are we? Right. Are we live to tape? First of all, I'd like it on record that I'm furious. You're not Claire Boulding. This is not what I was told would happen. I do know she had fun with you, though. We had a lot of fun. Raymond, he was utterly transformed in her presence.

Really? Yeah. Can Raymond be trouble then, Dawn? Does it look like he's going to be trouble? Let's see how he gets on. Right. But come on, Raymond. What do you think of Richard so far?

Yeah. Well, there's no shade, but he's not giving me a lot to work with. I'd rather hoped it would be a two-way street. It's not the first time you've had that in an interview. I'm just grateful he's not falling asleep. I'm sure someone must have done that with their eyes open, and one of the interviews I've done over the years. Oh, Emily Dean, it's a pleasure to see you again.

Oh, well, Richard Arnold. Yes. You've just done the intro for me because you're that much of a pro. I'm so thrilled to be with this man. We go back a long way. It was many years ago and we were on a rattler heading north to Glasgow for a cheeky party and we were introduced through mutual friends.

And we shed them quite quickly, didn't we? I seemed to remember you and I just had unfettered banter and joy. for two days. I want to discuss all this. I'm going to formally introduce you. Go on. I have to pretend to be posh, like you are in your job. Are you going to use my drag name?

What is your drag name? Dixie Normas. It's a southern bell with a bit of sass. I stopped short of using it on Good Morning Britain, but it seemed to go down very well with the crew. I'm rather fond of the South, you see. I think I would have been really good friends with Dixie Norma. Absolutely.

When we did Alan Carr's epic game show, he said, I'll give you a tenor if they keep that in. Well, they did. So he goes to show how low the bar is set these days, doesn't it? I am with the very wonderful Richard Arnold. I'm going to go one of our best love TV faces. What? I suppose if you've kept a presence for as long as I have since the midnightish, you're sort of part of the landscape. Are you part of the furniture?

Even if that piece of furniture is probably like a, I don't know, like a red or black lacquered wood that wouldn't look out of place in Carls right on Coronation Street. Do you know what I mean? Slightly dated. With a veneer of being present in the modern day. Your official title is Entertainment Reporter. Entertainment editor of Good Morning Britain. I mean, I've been on that show for so many years now.

Clemy's just taking a comfort break, my cockapoo, one moment. Oh, Clemy! So I've been part, I suppose, of people's early morning routine for such a long time now in various capacities. Ever since the mid-90s when I was on a youth show where I earned the moniker's soapy dick. Are we sensing a pattern? You've been waking us up for how long?

Over 25 years? Yeah, 20... It was 20. seven years. It was January, yeah, January 1997 when I was asked to come on the then-GM TV. And it was Matt Lorenzo and Penny Smith. I had frosted tips. I had a turquoise shirt on.

So it was a Ben Sherman shirt. That's how far we're throwing ourselves back. And I do remember, very, oh, very puffy eye. Bit doughy back then as well. And the frosted tips didn't help. So no one was really tuning in for my looks. at that time in the morning, maybe no one was tuning in at all. But, yeah, that was the first appearance.

So, yeah, to cut a long story short, and I did make that one very long, yeah, 27 years, mate, doing all sorts. I have to say, Richard Arnold, your dog is quite breathtakingly beautiful. Steady. Do you think? Well, she is to me. She is to me. She's my first ever pet.

My first ever pet. Can you introduce us forward to her? Yes, this is Clemmy. Born on the same day as our late queen. So, and that was, what, I think about nine years, it would be nine years this April. Well, love of my life, obviously. She's from Lancashire originally, and I remember leaving the Good Morning Britain sofa to go and pick her up, bag of nerves, obviously,

jumped on a Rattler north. There'd been a strike, I think. And then as I emerged from the station, there was a fracking demonstration. Like I wasn't on a knife edge already. and then I got to where I was picking her up, this lovely farm and the rest is history. Oh, she's so lovely. Yeah, it's extraordinary really

because my other half did say, oh, heartbreakers, but I'd never had any sort of pets. What did you all the half mean by heartbreakers? Well, because he'd had pets all of his life, including a tortoise that disappeared once, and inexplicably came back 25 years later. Again, story for another time in a completely different subject.

So remaining on peace. We've all met people like that in the end today. It's Tom Jones. Exactly. And he was absolutely right. And I suppose being the one that picked her up, that sort of initial bond, the dare I say it, the alpha of the pack,

which is a leap of faith for me, really. So we've always had quite a unique bond. I was very lucky that I could take into work. I can tell already Richard. You and Clemy have a lovely bond. Yeah, I always think she's sort of a cartoon dog. She does give me a lot to work with, but then she's been in that environment for quite some time. I remember when I took her in, one of the first times I took her into Breakfast TV, ITV is a puppy, and Rennie Zalwiger was in the building, and she was in the background, a shadowy figure in the gallery.

And we were sort of said, oh, you know, best not to sort of acknowledge her unless she acknowledges you. But that's only because she was doing a research. It was not a reflection on her. And she sort of parked the Bridget Jones research and came to see Clemy, who was sat on my lap, and she reached in and started massaging her gums.

At which point, as any new parent will tell you, I bristled. And I thought, I can't take René Zelliger down for touching. my most precious puppy, but she was delightful. And yeah, Clemy as a result, has met them all. Or as Frank Skinner once said to me, you know you floated to the top with the rest of the ship, Richard,

when they let you take your dog to work. I went, thank you, Frank. I noticed he doesn't let me take my dog into the radio show, but that's another interesting. Okay, noted, Richard. Noted. Oh, Richard. You know, I waited for you earlier when Clemmy did her business.

Yes, or was it time? Ray's has a comfort break coming. Oh, wonderful. Oh, it's gone. Where's it gone? Well, I suppose, is it me? Why is it gone? I don't know.

It's quite fluffy at the back. I wouldn't even know where to go in there. Oh, hold my coffee. No, don't mind if I do. I wouldn't say that to Barbara Streisand. Oh, my God. Where's his boot gone? It's not come out.

Like, maybe he's just not ready. Don't intimidate the young man. Poor thing. Honestly, I'm an only child. I know what it's like to have a mother. Let him go in peace. I just need to check if he's done it. No, there's nothing there.

Okay. Right. No sanitiser. Interesting. You'll be holding your own coffee moving forward. Good girl, Clemmy. You're such a good girl. On my other side of the family, on my dad's side,

my cousin Martin grew up on a farm with my cousins, David and Linda, my auntie, and Uncle Fred. And they had dogs. And Martin said to me, said, when you get a dog rich, you know, you put the work in in the first six months and you'll have a dog for life.

And I took that to heart and applied myself wholeheartedly. But that doesn't surprise me, because I think you are someone who puts in the hours, you know? You've got quite a work ethic, I think, haven't you? Well, I always think it wasn't Les Dawson classically trained and that's how he could make the piano sound so terrible but still funny. Like not just terrible but comical. So maybe, not that I'm saying for one second that I'm classically trained in anything.

But yeah, you do, absolutely. You do have to put the graft in. No one gives it to you, do they? So, oh, this is beautiful. So we're in Regents Park. Yes. And we're just by this big, is it, it looks like a boating lake. Yeah, they're sort of pedaling.

aren't they? Pedaloes, don't get me started. So much effort for so little return, don't you think? So don't think about getting on a pedalo today. Let's walk this way. Oh, Clemmy, there's some big birds over there. Yeah, she does love a duck, which is why we keep them tethered at this particular juncture. Oh, I see. Also, as any dog owner will tell you, when they do have a tendency to roll around in stuff. Yes. Ducks, potent. Clemmy is a cockapoo.

Cockeroo, yes. So she's a full cockapoo. Full cockapoo. Full cockapoo and mother was a showgirl. A dad was quite the rutter. Dad was the poodle. She gets the wiggle on her back from the mum, clearly. I can never tell people have got varying opinions and it depends on how shaggy her coat gets.

But it's whether she's more cocker or more poodle. She looks more, yeah. She only needs to be told once and that was the same when she was a puppy. So the poodles, they're intelligent, aren't they, I'm told? They've got a lovely temperament, I think. Why did you go for a cock-a-pooh? Interesting story. So I wanted a dog primarily that also I could take into work so hypoallergenic.

Yeah. And a friendly breed, because initially I had visions of maybe getting a couple of corgis. And I thought, wouldn't that be great? Because every time you leave the house in the morning, you'd look like the late queen or a member of the royal family coming down the stairs of an aeroplane at Dice Airport and Aberdeen on the way to Bar Morrow. But then my other half pointed out that they're quite nippy when it comes to small children. And we had several godchildren then.

So that fantasy was kiboshed. And we went the cockapoo route, which I think was initially always going to be our kind of Disney dog route, if I'm really honest. As I say, I like a cartoon dog. I like to have something to work with. Well, she really suits you, I think. I think you've got absolutely the right dog for you.

It's important. Where she was born. This is going to sound ridiculous. But I did a deep dive on all the books. Obviously there was a little bit of puppy training involved in the sense that you went and visited people at the local vets. Yeah. You know, other dog owners. And they're all sat there like proud parents watching these dogs roll around in front of them thinking,

oh yeah, definitely the best behaved. Definitely the best behaved, right? So I went to stage further and asked Shelley von Strungle to do our charts. Yeah, but Shelley kindly said, you know, it was destined, meant to be, if you like. Oh, I do think, I do sort of believe that on some level. I think Ray came into my life to help me at a time and I wasn't having a great time. I know. They really do, don't they?

Yeah, well, of course. I mean, oh, this is beautiful. See, I love them. Hello. Hello, darling. Hello, there. Hello. Gorgeous creature.

Come on, Ray. And I know the journey that you went on with, And when my father passed away eight years ago, you never forget it because it was the weekend of Brexit, Clemmy was about a year or so old, and what an enormous comfort she was. A, because she sort of gave you a structure every day. I was looking after Mum at the time,

so again, being an only child, so it was just the two of us left if you'd like it. And so I would walk with Mum and Clemmy, In Clemmy, Clemmy would be this great distraction. Clemmy would be a huge comfort. She'd give you a structure to the day because obviously they needed to be walked or she needed to be walked, I should say. So in that sense, she was an absolute godsend. I remember watching TV once and shortly after Dad died.

I can't remember what the TV show was, but someone was delivering a eulogy. And I just sort of burst into tears on the sofa. And Clemmy just came up two paws, either side. And now if I take so much as take a sharp intake of breath watching, I don't know, Love Island, or Celebrity Big Brother, or any other ITV show I can think of of trying to stay on brand. Sharp and take a breath, she's all over me. Funny, isn't it? I love him.

I adore them. And she stayed with Mum on occasion as well, many occasions, in fact. And mum said the same. Sometimes, you know, back this was shortly after Dad. done, you know, when the tears came, she was right there. I mean, even if you're just doing like a 20-minute dog walk, and you know, you enter with a sort of frame of mind where you're feeling a little bit like lust or a little bit flat or you've got whatever worries you have on your shoulders. And then by the time you get to the end of that walk, got a whole new perspective

and you wouldn't necessarily have gone out to walk if you didn't have, you know, your pooch. I want to go back to Little Richard, as it were. Right, go on. Growing up, was it in Hampshire originally? Hampshire originally, yeah. Hampshire originally. And then when I was about 11 years old, we moved up to Scotland to Aberdeen Chateau in Verruh. Because Dad was a helicopter engineer.

Wait, what? Yeah, it's a helicopter engineer for the oil rigs. So he was super small. Well, yeah, he was good with his hands because I'm certainly not when it comes to anything remotely technical like dad. But, you know, he was, I remember that, you know, mum would give him a bit of tappelware and send him off to work before she went to work. She was in retail mostly and he'd be, you know, have a donkey jacket on and stuff. and occasionally he would spend time out on the rigs, but mostly he was based in Aberdeen.

But that's what prompted the move to Scotland, which is why I straddle Hadrian's wall. Caledonia calls me all the time. But he's a Londoner. Dad was a Londoner. Right. So we've got Cockney coursing through our veins and Caledonia as well,

which is sort of, it holds a very special place in my heart, actually, Scotland. Did you have pets when you were growing up then at all? A gerbil. You know, it was like, do you remember in primary schools back then, you'd have a guinea pig or whatever, a gerbil. I remember I wanted a gerbil because they had those great homes with the pipes that went up into, they looked like pieces of tupperware actually, didn't they?

Anyone who's old enough will remember those homes. And I thought, oh wow, I can literally build a gerbil village. But that was it. Yeah, we didn't, you know, I didn't really have pets. Was there a reason, do you think? I think... We did have a stray cat once, that's right, puggles. But I think mum and dad, I haven't really given it that much thought, but with hindsight, I think

they probably thought, well, heartbreaker. I wonder if also being an only child, they were aware that that would be something you might have to take on solo and not have a sibling to just dilute that experience with a bit. Yeah, maybe. Do you know, I came along in year 13 of them. marriage? Year 13, I mean. I did ask mum and dad once why it took so long and they were saving up for a carpet. I know you think it would be some sort of fertility minefield, wouldn't you? Because mum was in her early to mid-30s when she had me. And

but now, yeah, apparently that was it. And what was your childhood like? What was it? What's it like being an only child because I had a sister and I'm always intrigued to know. I mean what it's your life you can't really say what it's like well no you can't it's interesting because I as I've sort of ripened to my third act and grown up and reflect or in a position of privilege to reflect on a few years on this mortal coil I know a lot of my friends close friends are either only children or they are the youngest of the litter so we've always had that connection. I loved it growing up because I had a whole heap of cousins as well. And I suppose because I was much later than the rest of them as well, you know, I was somewhat

of a star turn, I suppose, as a nipper. But what I'm always interested in, I often think only children do have this sort of, sometimes this slight style quality. And there's a sophistication there, which I wonder if that comes from spending. a lot of their time with adults. Yeah, totally. And I also, as well, mum was sort of terrified that I sort of end up tied up to the apron strings. And as a result, she ended up with a very independent son

who bolted from the hood at 17 to go to university. So I've always been very, very independent. Were you always quite funny and charismatic? Well, I suppose it's your currency, isn't it? It's every cliche when you're sort of trying to make friends. growing up, but I was also very happy in my own world. You know, furtive imagination, loved creating my own worlds as well,

writing stories, and it was particularly feckoned when I was living in a cul-de-sac in Andover in Hampshire when I was much younger, so I suppose I would have been a lot about eight or nine or whatever. And I could tell you the names of all the couples who lived in that cul-de-sac. The doctor's wife obviously lived on the corner

because they had the detached house. All the families had their own characters, you know, amongst them. And so I would write the story of what life was like in that cul-de-sac. And I suppose that's how, you know, it fired up my imagination why I ended up with such a passion for net twitching science. like Corrie and EastEnders and, you know, the super soaps and stuff like Dallas back in the day, because I was fascinated by sagas and... But I think that charm that you've obviously had, otherwise you wouldn't have been able to do the job you've had,

is there's a particular skill to it because you don't get two hours to bring out the best in them and edit. You're often going in and you have a really brief time, don't you? What you're talking about is obviously that sort of junket mechanic when you're interviewing big names and you do have and this will seem ridiculous to people who don't really know how the industry works but yeah you've genuinely got about seven minutes nine minutes max you know sometimes you do only have a glancing blow on a red carpet in 30 seconds and one question or you have seven minutes and three questions or you are lucky enough to sit down with them for longer you're just prepared you know you're just that's the only way well well oh look this looks like a heart warden I love a warden don't you hello I'd love to draw I used to work for the council you know up in Aberdeen yeah Grampian Regional Council it was one of my first jobs used to wear Pepe stretch denim my friend Andy and I'm my best friend from school who I'm seeing very soon actually we've stayed in touch you know what you like

when you're 16 and you get your first job and you're a labourer you think well we're going to get the tightest clothes possible because you feel like the world is your oyster well imagine cutting grass in Pepe stretch I mean never felt so snug. It was very uncomfortable, but we're so pleased with ourselves when our donkey jackets turned up and they were like Belaro jacket.

It was ridiculous. Literally strictly. I really enjoyed it because I used to do, yeah, I'd cut grass with the council. I was furious because Andy was being paid about 75 quid a week and he was sitting down

because he'd passed his driving test. Well, I was too young, so I'm pushing a mower, paid much less, but loved the job. And then in the evening, there's a supermarket called William Lowe, so I would go there and stack shelves.

So that's interesting. Did your parents sort of encourage you to do a bit of growth? Yes. My goodness me, yes. Was that sort of been filled in you? I think it was actively encouraged by our parents back then, but it was also all of us together, our peer group. You know, everybody just, you just got a Saturday job then, didn't you? That was, that was in your DNA. I used to work as well when I moved down to London to go to journalism school, which may come to shock to some of your listeners, to finesse any kind of talent. I worked in Liberty in menswear in the old Thai hall. That makes sense.

So, sell me a tie. Hello, I'm interested in buying a tie for my wife's 50th. It's a posh dinner at Langans. I'd go for a traditional Ianthi, Prince, sir. It's a staple of liberty. You can't go wrong with it. I'm also looking for something for my wife. Karen up the escalator over the bridge and down the stairs,

you'll find a scarf in the Tudor building. It was pretty much how it went. But I loved it. And you know, my mum, I think that's like, I get a lot from my mum as well. Like, Dad was the sort of, well, to me, it was always very funny growing up, and I don't know whether it's again that cockney DNA

or whatever it is, but, you know, all coming from big families, etc. As dad did. And mum was the one with the movie posters on the wall when she was growing up. up, you know, she was born in 1937. She loved the glamour of old Hollywood and all that sort of thing. And she loves people, sort of person, you know, you get her on a Rattler, you're going somewhere.

I take her up to Scotland or at least try to every year. She's not as capable of doing so as she used to be. And she would make friends with everyone. You'd be on this journey for four hours. You know that's like, because that's how we met on a Rattler going north. And I swear, she said, Mom, get the story. Short of getting them to sit down with us, I said, Mom, lad's got a job to do. you know and I've always been interested in people's stories so do you think that's

possibly that that's a blend of your mom and your dad that's interesting that that ability to get on with people and I suppose it's social charisma isn't it really I do know again with the benefit of hindsight as I ripen is that um like an old fruit is that I've always enjoyed being edge of fraying I'm always far happier being the sort of the observer, the commentator, if you like, than I am in the limelight itself, even though I've had many opportunities to step into centre stage, if you like, much happier, edge of frame and below stairs. So you would rather be reporting on I'm a celebrity than be in it? Yes, I think if I'm really honest. Well, it's always been my position. When you think about it,

anyone who's tuned into breakfast telly over the years, I've always been edge of frame. I'm always on the end of the desk or at the end of the sofa. Where does that come from? The need for survival. Edge of frame, the chances are you can cling on like a cat to a curtain. But if your name's above the parapet, you might not be so lucky. But I think again, I'm rather like being, I don't know, maybe it's, I like being, I love being part of a family of faces wherever I've worked. And I'm not just talking about sort of on the screen, I'm talking about, you know, like an ensemble, you know, the people

all the mates of money produce these shows as well. Because, you know, when you've been around a long time, you get to know them very, very well, and you're all part and parcel of it. And I love that. So I really enjoy being part of that. But I wouldn't want to be a headliner. Really?

Well, that'll be my chopper, though. Thanks ever so much, Emily. It's been amazing. It's lovely. And it's Ray, isn't it? Lovely, thanks. Oh, look, is that a greyhounder or whip it? Beautiful.

Hello, what's it called? Nox. Nox. Oh, look at that. What a beauty. Look at Knox. Hi, Knox. Oh, look.

Nox, you're ever so sweet, aren't you? Clemmy's right in, obviously. Oh, I love it when they find their voice as well. That's so funny, he doesn't do that very often. I know, I love it when they find their voice. You're so funny, bud. Oh, I thought you were saying that to my friend. He is very funny.

I'll take part. I'll take fun. Nice to meet you. Oh, no, no, it's gone. Oh, look, he's turned. Gorgeous. You were quite academic, Richard, weren't you? I get the sense you were quite good at exams.

And you did English at Edinburgh University. I did. Well, I started off doing law for all of a few weeks. Back then in the late 80s, obviously, it was all about getting vocational degrees, like, you know, being a doctor or being a lawyer. And I wasn't really, you know, I didn't really have any intention. I suppose of being a lawyer. It certainly wasn't my heartland. But I think I was academic. I enjoyed academia actually. I enjoyed studying. I did enjoy that. But I'm not entirely convinced I've retained

much, which is probably why I'm in the job that I'm in now, because it's live. You read the brief and then it's on its way to Mars and it's gone. It's why I'm terrible on shows like the chase. And quiz shows. Not always terribly, but I keep the Prius purring outside, you know, waiting to take me home early because I know that I, you know, the general knowledge is good, but I sort of lose it a little bit in the gameplay because I, again, it just, I don't really have, I don't really retain much because it just isn't the space for it because you're on the show every day, aren't you? And then it's gone, like I say, on its way to miles. But I did enjoy academia. Initially, it was. not necessarily by design, but of course when I first moved up to Scotland, I didn't know many people. So I sort of hit the ground running and then... There's the ball. Do you want to return the ball? It still terrifies me.

The ball? Still, anyone comes near me. I'm quite good. With a football. Yeah. Unless it's soccer raid. But, yeah, in a park still to this day. Would you not want to return that ball?

Would you know what to do? Would you know when to look up? Maybe the shorts were cut a little tighter. Shall we go? Would you know at what point to look up when you kick a football? It's like we've never met. Now, where were we? Oh, that's right, me.

I enjoyed rugby. I loved a bit of rugby. I still love watching the rugby. Did you ever get that from your dad? Like, oh, you're going to play football? They did buy me an Arsenal lampshade once, which was totally out of joint with everything else that was going on in the room. Yeah, I do remember that growing up.

But it was very clear, very early on, that I was never going to sort of kick a ball around. I love swimming, and I did love a bit of rugby. What was the first sort of cultural experience you really connected with? Oh, well, where to start, Abba, obviously. Oh, Abba. I mean, and my friend Savannah, you know, obviously produced that, Savannah Giesel produced, you know, the Abba voyage. It's extraordinary, you know, to have that come back.

And then I sobbed on that opening night, like you wouldn't believe. Absolutely. Couldn't stop. For an hour and a half, couldn't stop. And it was because every lyric and every song that I'd immersed myself in growing up, and Abba is still my default whenever I want to go to a place where, you know, I get comfort and, you know, want to feel happy and all that sort of business. I take a tremendous solace in their lyrics and their songs.

So, yeah, Abba would have been an absolute game. name changer for me, 50 years since Waterloo, so I would have been five years old. But I only remember, yeah, I remember Abba Greatest Hits, that was probably one of the first albums I bought. You could break it up into three chapters, Abba, Star Wars and Smurfs. Which brings me to my next point, Emily, it's a little known fact that I voiced a Smurf once on the big screen. Nosey Smurf, funnily enough. It's not little known because you can't stop talking about it. in smirfs the lost village i had one line right but it was fraught with meaning as they often say

such a cliche i know but and i had it had to be repeated throughout the film and it was oh what's going on here then and it was a smurf with binoculars because he was you know nosy smir i'm not being funny but i'm not disappointed yeah i mean you sound like you're any stenders or something well the thing is i had to take it down because i went oh what's going on here then and you know it sounded a little bit saucy for a kid's film so we took that down and i think they were were deeply unsettled when I went down that a grown man of my age turned up with over 120 smurfs complete with their houses that I still had in the attic. So let's leap ahead. You leave university. You initially decide you start you're a writer aren't you and you did well you

you worked on a magazine called inside soap. Yep I decided to swap law for English language and literature got my NMMA ended up rattling through several summers at the Edinburgh Festival you know, threading tickets and because it was pre-digital, obviously, ticket stubs and meeting, a lot of the people I'd ultimately end up either becoming friends with or interviewing over the years, the likes of, you know, Paul O'Grady. Paul Merton was one of the first, Steve Coogan. And I was just sort of front of house and, you know, as I say, you know, or working in box office. And so that was as close as I got to anything remotely showbiz.

So I would work every summer during the festival in August and then go into railing, which is what we used to do back in the day, kids, you remember? And then moved to London in the early 90s, went to city university to study journalism. And then that's when I sort of fell into magazines and radio, really. And did the TV, your TV career as a sort of entertainment pundit, did that start as a result of you being a journalist and then saying, oh look, you know, let's get that guy on to talk about this premiere or, you know. Absolutely. We were sort of encouraged to specialise.

And there was a little known magazine at the time called Inside Soap that was but six months old. And I remember we were at the city and it was a postgraduate diploma. In periodicals, believe it or not, that dates me even further, doesn't it? And I remember they went round and asked, oh, you know, to everybody, you know, where's your placement? You know, during the course. Observer, guardian, right across the board. Inside Soap, should I've heard of that? Changed my life, though.

A couple of years later, the Sunday show approached and said, oh, doing this new youth program. And we'd like you to come on and take a wry look at the events in Soapland. And so Soapie Dick was born, and I've been in a lather ever since. You've been on, working on what was originally GMTV, and it's now Good Morning Britain and it's gone through various iterations over the years

you have survived all of them there was a brief hiatus where I left for a bit but yeah generally part of the landscape in various capacities for quite a long time always a gob on a stick always there to fill a bit of dead air

how do you overcome nerves and how do you manage to make that sort of presenting because it's quite technical look natural and effortless I suppose it's just time. I mean, always be prepared, but also I think having been around a while and the Sunday show was live with no water queue or any kind of support in that sense. And so you had no choice. And then of course radio as well, you're always sort of filling hours of radio, aren't you talking? You're kind of paid for when it goes wrong and not for when it goes right. But then you're the king of innuendo. And what is interesting about you, I would say you are.

in a long tradition of gay men doing that, making that acceptable. You're a Larry Grayson in some ways. And still the compliments come. Yeah, quite right. But do you know what I mean? No, I know what you mean. I mean. It's a gay, old tradition. Well, in the end of the day, you've got to remember, the landscape has shifted hugely

since I first started. It's completely different now. And I was the sort of the friendly face, the acceptable face, on television back in the day. You know, but you always know where the line is drawn. You have to lead people gently along with you, I think. It was sort of a balancing act, as you say. Yeah. Does carry on?

I think there's an element of that balancing act continuing even today. Do you think so? Yeah, absolutely. But the landscape is a lot, well, I would say certainly in the business, is a lot better now. What are your dogs called? They're lovely. Luca and my life. What kind of dogs are they?

They're golden retrievers, but they're old-fashioned goldens. They look slightly different, Rich, don't they? This is what all goldens used to, well, they weren't all as muddy as this, but when I was a kid, this is what golden retrievers were. So why do they look different now? People like one platinum blonde with straight hair. Oh, I know. Tell me about it, every man I've ever met. These are like the dog that my family had in the 1960s.

Just beautiful. They were all like this, but ours was bigger than these guys. I want to just go back to, I mentioned Paul O'Grady just then. And I remember watching you, Richard, and it was really touching. It actually made me well up a bit, because you were talking about him and how, what an inspirational, important figure. Absolutely. Well, I mean, you know, I first met Paul in the Edinburgh Festival when I was tearing ticket stubs. And I remember him turning up, he was in one of the venues in the assembly rooms.

And I remember him turning up and I was front of house and I was sat on the floor threading these ticket stubs. and all I heard was this voice going, you're right ice. And I looked up and I'd only ever seen him as Lily in a B-jams frock selling ice creams outside his own venue underneath the roof of the assembly rooms. And he was just so charming. I remember looking at him thinking, oh, this dashingly handsome man. I'm thinking, what warmth, you know, what spirit. And over the years, obviously, we sort of ended up in the same orbit with mutual friends. And so it was extraordinary to be part of that.

And he was just so generous to work with, whether you were interviewing him or he was interviewing you, or whether we were out having a cheeky little bit of Christmas carnage at lunch with, you know, the aforementioned Alan Carr and Gok and David Ames and salad insue and stuff. And it's sort of quite the tribe and borders, of course, needs a mention. So they were great lunches, you know. And Paul was just, as I say, so generous in spirit. And whether you were front of house below stairs. upstairs, left right or centre of frame, he was the same, you know, and that's great.

That was a beautiful, beautiful skill. And you're very good with celebrities, I think, because I think there's a real art to that, isn't it? I think there's a way of being charming and respectful without making them feel othered. Well, humour's a great leveler, isn't it? I think you always have to treat your subject with respect. You let them do the talk in it. Good morning. Good afternoon even. this morning. Yeah, this morning. And I'll see you tomorrow as well.

Oh bless you. I really appreciate that. Thank you very much. We'll see you tomorrow morning then. You need to get to bed though. Yeah, I do thank you. I will do. Take care. Take care. Do you get recognised a lot, Richard? I think it's because you're part of people's routine. I've been propping up so many bars around the world over the years as well and if there's a Brit there and you're part of their routine in the morning, then it's great. You're never alone. It's a lovely, lovely feeling.

Are you comfortable with fame? Yeah, absolutely. Be honest. A lot of people say they don't like it. Do you like fame? But it's not fame. It's very different. You know, when people do know you, they know you because they're, as I say, you're part of their morning routine and they know that they can approach you because you're just the same.

And I've had many a pint bought for me over the years, which is lovely. And like I say, you never feel alone. wherever you are in the world. There was one woman once when Bonizarees came up to me and she had BlackBerry, this is how long ago this was. She had like a picture of me on the BlackBree. It was her husband's Blackberry and I said, oh, what is it? What does he do? Immediately I thought there must be trouble at home if he's got a picture of me on this Blackberry. And she said, oh, he's an anaestatist and yours is the last voice that people hear before they go under his first job of the day. I was like, I thought, oh great. Once again, I'll snatch a compliment

from the jaws of that. Can imagine if mine, was the last voice that you heard. Look at this, Richard. It's a zoo. What the hell is going on? It's camels. Yes, there's camels. It's the zoo.

We are in Regents Park. Yeah, but I didn't. I wasn't expecting camels. Guys, I didn't even know what was going on. We were just walking along and I've just seen two camels. It does explain some of the noises that we've been hearing because it's starting to sound a little bit like Jurassic Park if you listen closely. Look at them.

Back to my original point about whatever the subject is. And by that I mean the person you're interviewing, whoever you're entering from whatever walk of life you know you treat them with respect you can top and tell any chat in your own style but you have to let the subject um do the speaking really and tell their story because everyone's got a story worth listening to fact i mean that the reason i still enjoy it after all these years is that no interview is the same and i also love this is back to my original point about being edge of frame and being observer i love the theater around an interview but i love witnessing all of that because generally most people will behave when you turn a camera on.

Wow. Not everybody obviously but most people do and if they don't then they damn themselves don't they you know. But you're I imagine those women with big personalities and big reputations Mariah Carey Barbara Streisand yes I said Streisand I know um stric sand I think you would be very good with them so Mariah The Mariah's story was, yeah, we flew out to interview Mariah Carey. And as we were saying earlier about the fact that, you know, sometimes these interviews, they can be quite short. So you have to sort of manage your expectations. But we'd flown all the way over from London to Vegas to interview her.

And lovely producer John said to me, oh, Richard, I've just been told that Mariah will be standing. And I immediately thought, oh, my goodness me, is this basically a stick mic on the side of a red carpet? And they've flown us all the way out here to interview Mariah Carey. I wasn't expecting an audience as such with Mariah Carey, but we were expecting like a junker of at least, you know, eight minutes or so. And I said, John, you've got to go and tell him. It's got to be a sit-down interview. Anyway, John, bless his heart, comes back, ashen face.

He said, Rich, he said, no, they've said that Mariah will be standing, but she's happy for you to sit. And I thought I had no idea what I was going into. And then as I turned the corner, Mariah, God bless her, was in this sort of heavily boned, sort of fish tails sort of outfit. You know, like sequence everywhere, obviously, but, you know, definitely figure-hugging.

And so she couldn't have sat down if she tried. So that was the rub. And so when I went in, I was standing and she was standing. And it actually turned up to be a great interview. She's an absolute star. Totally gets it, as you can imagine. And I remember at the end of the interview, and it was an interesting mechanic, actually,

because when you're standing and interviewing someone, it's not confrontational as such, but sometimes if you're sat down on a comfy sofa, you know, you sort of drift off and go from a tangent and whatever like that. But it actually turned out to be quite a great chat. And then I said at the end of the interview, I said, oh, Mariah said, well, I've come all this way.

We've got to have a picture at which point all of Mariah's people looked at Mariah. And Mariah, of course, was absolutely fine with it. But everybody around was sort of going, oh my goodness me, he's going to approach her, and I went in and I stood next door, I went, blimey, Mariah.

I said, it's like the stairway to heaven. I'd never seen. It was like the light of seven sun. It was absolutely extraordinary. But again, that's what I love about my job, and I'm very fortunate. And it hasn't always been Mariah Carey's and Barbara Streisand's and the late great Tony Bennett to name But a Few. You know, it's been interviewing everybody really. Mum's so funny, bless her. She's always like, have you met him?

What are they like? Have you met her? Is she all right? You know what mum's do and dad's do? God bless her. do you know, God bless them. I say, yeah, mum, lovely, yeah. And I do spend a lot of my time with my mum now because I care for her during the day when I'm not working.

And, yeah, she'll fixate on someone going, yeah, you sure about them? Yes, mum, lovely people, lovely mum. It's so funny. You know, and I love that. I wanted to ask about your mum. Yeah, she's not. How is she doing, Richard?

She's not as robust as she used to be. Certainly in spirit, thank goodness. And for that I'm very grateful for, but she's not as independent now. So I'm very lucky the geography of where she's at and I'm at and where the studios are and wherever else I'm working in London, we can manage it. And every morning I get up on the way to the studio, I stop off, make sure her hot water bottle is hot. and make her a cup of tea, then she's like, you're going to be late.

You're going to be late. I said, no, I'm fine, Mom, it's right. Because God bless her, she's only been up in London eight years since Dad died, right? So I moved her up because I thought, right, come on, mum, we'll go through this together. And we've always been very close. And I was like, right, Mom, don't worry about it,

but she's got no sense of geography. So she doesn't know that the studio's only like 10 minutes away. I said, Mom, I'm going to be fine. And this is a woman who still knows what her 54-year-old son is wearing to school every day. Do you know what I mean? Because she sees you on telly as well. Yeah, exactly.

So when I'm on the show, she does watch me every morning. And when I'm on the show, a carer goes in. And then I get to her sort of in the middle of the day, make sure she has some lunch. And then cook for her in the evening and put her to bed. Is this every day you do this? I do this every weekday and end at the weekend. I do get a carer in. You're having to juggle caring with your career, aren't you?

Yeah. You know, I'm very fortunate that I've got the time. to do it you know there are there are many that struggle a lot more with balancing you know caring and a career or full-time job so I'm lucky that I'm able to do it but I it's a choice as well in many respects because I want to make sure that she's getting a cooked meal in the evening and it's not just something that's microwave with the best will in the world and look we're not talking gourmet she's getting egg and bacon tonight girl on a mighty white but

she loves it do you know what I mean it's such a lovely son it makes me cry actually. Well, no, it's a two-way street. She's given up the best years of her life for me. Do you find that thing I felt with my mum, Richard, that when I was, my mum had motor urine disease, and it was just really quick, though, you know, so, but I felt this constant sense of guilt. Do you relate to that? You feel guilty when you are there, you feel guilty when you're not there. And I think that anyone who's caring for anyone in any capacity will feel that. you'll feel like when you're present, it's never enough. And when you're away, it's all you can think about.

And you sort of tie, like, for example, my heart sort of in my mouth, even though I speak to her over the weekend, and she's got some fantastic neighbours. So by no main shape, I'm doing this on my own. Great neighbours. Got a name trick, them Thomas and Sebastian. Lovely boys upstairs. Fabulous with her. But I go on a Monday in my heart slightly in my throat because I feel like I've been away for two days.

But I'm very lucky because I can still. cycle over at the weekend if she needs anything extra. So we manage. It's been a gear change because it's really only within the last year but she's very spirited and I sit there, you know, knocking out a few emails and all I can hear in the background is a bit of foils war and I'm thinking, oh, you know, it's not going to be forever. So let's make the most of it. Do you know what I mean? I treasure it really. Yeah. I thought it was really lovely as well. I know you've spoken about Kate Garraway, as you say, as a good mate of yours. And that must have been something.

She went through that as well. And I suspect you were supportive to her. Something you relate, you know, going through it gives you empathy, I guess. Yes, yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. Kate was a huge support, you know, extraordinary to think after everything she was going through, that she had the time to do that. But obviously she'd navigated the care system as well in a much more, obviously,

extreme way. But that's the same for anyone who may be listening, who's starting out on this sort of journey of caring, because, you know, the practical side of things you don't know, you start to think, oh my goodness me, well, I'm not a nurse. At what point am I doing this really just for us? And am I helping as best I can or not? But we've reached a touchwood plateau at the moment where the status quo suits us both. And I hope it lasts for as long as it possibly can. And tell me, I know you mentioned you lost your dad. I'm really sorry because that was

What was that about 2016 was it? Yeah, Brexit. That was Brexit. You were saying. Yeah. It was eight years. And it was it quite sudden? Very sudden.

Yeah, very sudden. And I was out, I just got to Italy with two friends of mine, Judy and Mal, a great couple, early 70s. We've had some capers over the years. Anyway, we've gone to do a little bit of a shop for the house, you know, as you do when you arrive somewhere. and then I'd left my phone behind and that's that awful moment when you look at the phone. First of all, the alarms were going off in the house because the friend who was looking after Clemmy didn't realize that she couldn't roam all over the place when he set the alarm. And then at the end of it, there was like a message from a cousin that said, you must call home.

And that's when I found out. And I remember going out into the garden of this house, and I felt the biggest rush of love I have ever felt my entire life. I felt like I was lifted off the floor by about a foot and then put back down. It was, I get goosebumps now, I've been thinking about it. It was extraordinary. It was like the last hug for my dad, just going, all right, son, you've got this and put me down.

It was unbelievable. I told the story. It was in the eulogy that I read at Dad's funeral. And so many people came up to me and said, oh, I've had a similar experience. Like, I mean, and then, of course, you have the grief. And as we know, that comes in waves. And there are all sorts of stages of that. But we were very close, Dad and I.

He'd be texting me all the time on his burner, you know. And we had a similar sense of humour. But, yeah, I'll never forget that as long as I live. I know that seems silly because obviously it's the day your dad died. But it was the feeling. It was just like it was most extraordinary feeling. genuinely felt like I've been lifted off the ground. And what's your last memory of him, Richard?

Do you remember? Yes, I do, because it was shortly after Father's Day. And he left his Father's Day card behind. Thank you. Thank you very much. He'd left his Father's Day card behind, which I didn't realize until after he'd left. He paid for lunch that day, and I said,

but Dad, it's Father's Day. He said, no, son, I want to. get this and then he swept the steps outside the house said rich this is how you do it and then he gave me a hug and i can remember his earlobe now we all know that things get lower and bigger as we get older right my nose is becoming quite impressive like my late fathers and my earlobes are starting to grow and i just remember kissing his earlobe that's the last memory um so a very happy memory in many respects there was nothing left unsaid. But it does make you think, oh, I wonder if you know, you get a sense of it, if you, you know, make a sharp exit. And then the relationship with your mum shifts enormously,

obviously because you step up to, or you have to sort of try and convince them that, mum, that, look, I can, I'm able to step up and deal with this. But of course, she doesn't want that on your shoulders and she's mourning her childhood sweetheart. So, but here we are, you know, I'm so glad that, you know, not every woman at 79 would leave their original hometown and move up to London. I want to tell you something, which is, I think we might have mentioned earlier, that you and I, Rich, obviously, know each other of old, and we first encountered each other through some mutual friends, and I remember we ended up on some trip together to Glasgow.

What was strange? We didn't really know each other that well. No. But I remember there was one time, I've never forgotten this. I still tell people about it. When people say, when is the most you've ever laughed in your entire life? And I remember finding myself in a chip shot with you. It was the chip shop around the corner from Versace, wasn't it?

That is so well remembered. We were on our knees. I have never. I say to people, this is the most I've ever laughed. Honestly, in my entire life. We were laughing so hard. It was the only time in my life that I've physically collapsed from laughter. I was slumped.

We were slumped on the floor we were laughing so hard. It was... But you know what I remembered about that? I couldn't tell you what we said. No. What was so funny, but it's that great Maya Angelou quote, which is you forget what people said, you forget what they did, but you will never forget how they made you feel.

And you made me feel, frankly, incontinent. But you made me feel so happy and I never forgot that. And whenever I look at you, if I see you on TV or it, it makes me feel happy. We should point out that we haven't seen each other for quite some time. But I do remember that moment. And whenever I do remember moments like that, they're always in Technicolor. And it's almost like you can remember the scene from like a, you know, a favorite film or a sitcom or whatever you're watching. So I do remember it.

And I do remember I ordered a smoked sausage supper as much I do remember. We're talking a while ago now, right? I've always known ever since that time that charisma is your, that's your currency. Oh, you're very kind. May I repay the compliment? So, this feels like a more appropriate ramp. To come up and talk about the sidebar, my podcast, an irreverent take on the, week's news in the world of Shobis and down the tins and minds with some of my close

celebrity pals and pundits. Yeah, it came about last summer. I was with Jamie East, who I'd known for a while and essentially we wanted a kind of, like I say, irreverent and cheeky look at the Shobies world, but an extension of what I do on Good Morning Britain and with a sort of loose women type sort of vibe really. And an informed look at, you know, the world of showbiz. Because myself and the other pundits are involved and the sidekicks at the sidebar, if you like, they're very much, you know, they've trodden the odd red carpet as well over the years. We've all been in the orbit of these people.

So it's coming from an informed sort of perspective, but it's certainly not about throwing people under the bus, as we've established, I think, on this show. You know, that's never been my currency, and it's not what I'm about. But it's like the first thing when I went into makeup this morning, The first thing that Terry said to me, have a mint, I went, all right, Terry. She went, Sharon Osbourne, is that how much she's really being paid? And it's that chat that everybody has, you know, about whether it's Celebrity Big Brother,

whatever's making the headlines, everybody's got an opinion on it. Because we all have this common currency, whether it's a Kardashian, whether it's Mrs. O, whether it's someone on the cobbles or in Albert Square. So that's what we wanted it to be. You know, a chat. The sort of chat that you'd have, like we're doing now, which you and I would have done of old as well, walking the dog or chewing over, you know, a hobnob.

I really enjoyed it, Rich, because I think, I mean, you're so great at those things anyway, but it feels like it's a blend of sort of, you know, it's entertainment and it's funny, crucially. but also there's a bit of insider insight. Well, yeah, again, that's where our point we were making about the theatre of this whole business, you know. You can have the main event,

but it's all the sizzle that happens around it that I love. And so you can offer up that insight and your perspective. And if it's not a fellow journalist who's on the panel, if you like, then there'll be someone, you know, like Bobby Norris, for example, he's terrific because he's been through the machine. He's towery, isn't he? Yeah, so he's been through the machine. He knows what it's.

like to be on the on the raw end of it all but also you know front row and centre as well and the you know as the star of the show if you like so it's great to get those different perspectives and it is a conversation that everybody will be having invariably yeah that week um whether they are dog walking on the school run or um just having a blether at home you know everything you do you do well and I think the reason you do everything well is because you don't half all things I think you're someone who does your prep. It's really important to do it. It's really important to do it.

It's the only advice I would give people. That and stay out of my light. But don't we're dumb. And are you doing this weekly, the podcast? Yes, yes, weekly. So every Monday and then drops it five o'clock on whichever platform you choose to have me rattle along with my team in the ears. Do you get offered things that you turn down?

reality shows. You know, you were saying that thing earlier about liking to be slightly at the side of the frame? Yeah, I've been offered, well, there was initial, as I've joked about on the podcast, the initial email that went out where they insert the name were applicable for Celebrity Big Brother. But you know, you get these sort of letters, riot letters, listen to me, hello, the Ravens just left the tower. You get these emails. and they're obviously casting the net very, very wide to see.

I'm lucky that it doesn't just say, dear sir. Occasionally they do slip your name in. And whether or not you'd be available for a comment to do certain shows. And some of them feel like a natural fit. Stelope D'i Master Chef, I did the first ever series. You could have won it with a Bolognais back then, to be quite honest. No disrespect to Matt Dawson who did win it. Hasn't forgotten who won it?

He hasn't forgotten who won it. Strictly come dancing, you famous, you did. Strictly come dancing, I thoroughly enjoyed. they're both sort of you're learning a skill aren't you um celebrity mastermind i remember that what was your uh specialist subject Dallas the TV show obviously i forgot we always had that yep and that that's that's the Dallas theme tune that's the Dallas theme tune which is my ringtone um you can get it hello hello darling i'm in the middle of doing i never thought i'd say this but i'm in the middle of doing a podcast and i'm being interviewed for it you know a lovely emily

She's brought her dog inexplicably along because that is what the podcasts are about, isn't it, Emily? Yes. I'll call you after caller. All right. Take her. All right, tell you. Who's that? Wrong number.

It was my friend Joe, who's a PR for EastEnders and Doctor Who. I saw EastEnders come up on the screen. I like that. She's great. You know, you can ply her with liquor, but she won't spill a... She won't fill the bean. Ah. I can't imagine you being annoyed, Richard.

You're very sunny natured. You must get frustrated sometimes. Oh, I suppose. How does it manifest? Are you someone who sort of, like particularly with your other half? Do you explode in the moment and then it goes? Are you a sulker? Which one do you tend to be though?

I always think about the end result. Never used to be that mature, but I try and think about the end result in where you want it to land for all parties. keep that in mind no matter what. Occasionally you sort of have to show your teeth if you like, but again you can do it with good grace and manners and you'll achieve the result that you want. Are you good at saying sorry?

Oh yes. Yes, I reckon you are? Yes, absolutely. What do you like at difficult conversations? Because you're so nice. Well, I think I've probably entertained you long enough. I think I've managed quite well over the last hour, haven't I? been excruciating, if I'm brutally honest.

What do you like at difficult conversations? Do you, let's say you have to say I'm a bit pissed off with you. Would you dread that or would you be alright with it? I happily would raise it, say, you know. Would you? Yeah. I think it's a lot easier now as well, isn't it? I mean, yeah, we're all just a little less dramatic now, aren't we?

Speak for yourself? Speak for yourself. Yeah, I know exactly. As we speak, the skies ever reads its part of darkened. I find confrontation very difficult. It actually keeps me up at night. You know, if I'm asked to something and I can't go. Oh, no one's ever going to miss you, and that's meant with love.

You know, I think very early on, you would think, oh, my goodness, mean, you bring so much to it. You start worrying, don't you? And you think, oh, nightmare. But really, really, I could do with just a night in. and the next day, everything that you've built up... I think that's Raymond's poo that he dropped earlier. It could well be. Should I pick it up?

Yeah, I've got a bag. Where do we go now? We'll turn left here. We're towards the... Straight to the end and we'll swing a left. Come on. And then I shall... Come on, Clemy.

Take my leave. So you're going to go to your mum's now? Yes. Get her ready for bed. Give her a dinner. And then what time... You go to bed super early, don't you presumably? Yeah, do you know?

And it's obviously with the light, it's starting to get light around sort of 6.57 a.m. now, which is great. But the struggle is during the summer if you want to go to bed early because it's no and impossible. What time is so? I'm quite happy. Half eight. Oh, in bed with a Ken Follett. Yes. I know.

He reads as well. And then, so I'll read a couple of chapters of that and then throwing myself, headlong into a bit of a celebrity big brother and then drift off. Into night terrors mostly, but... Do you ever get, you know when you're doing these red carpet things and you've done a ton of them, you've got to be quite thick skin, Richard, having to go up to, let's say, Leonardo DiCaprio with a microphone, knowing there's a 50-50 chance you're going to get frozen out. Do you just not worry about that?

No. Doesn't bother me. at all because you're invested in the job insofar as that you want to do a good job but I'd be more nervous and more worried if I was asked to be someone's best man at the wedding where you've actually got we do? Actually, yeah, you know, you're invested emotionally.

It's just theatre, it's just sport at the end of the day. But you've got absolutely the right attitude to that because I think I would, that makes me think you don't really care what people think in a good way. And I think that's probably dot and day. Back to our original point. Don't you? Yeah.

They did well. I've got a lot to thank them for. I learned everything at their knee. Well, for that I am eternally grateful. Well, I'm eternally grateful because had they not had you, I'd never have had that night where I laughed more than I've ever laughed in my entire life. I think you're just eternally grateful that I brought you back where the walk started. Her sense of direction is shocking people.

Emily Dean, I love you, mate. Thank you so much. I have loved this walk and we'd love to see you again. Clemmy, will you say goodbye to Raymond? Bye-bye. Raymond, give us a kiss. His breath smells. Does it? Really?

No, don't go near. Don't go near. His breath smells is a thing of beauty. Bye-bye, Richard. Are we actually doing voices now? This is how it ends. Do you do a voice? Do I do a voice?

Are you comfortable doing a voice? Am I comfortable doing a voice? Yeah, I've got the pipes for it. What do you want me to do? Come on, this is how it ends. See you later, sweetheart. I really hope you enjoyed that episode of Walking the Dog. We'd love it if you subscribed.

And do join us next time on Walking the Dog wherever you get your podcasts.