Mum tells me, ‘I like the show but you’re no Bradley Walsh’
The comedian and TV presenter has enjoyed success with shows including I’m A Celeb, Altogether Now and his latest BBC quiz series Head Hunters. We caught up with him to chat about his rise to fame and being snubbed by Lady Gaga
I catch a lot of boxing videos on YouTube. And recently Peaky Blinders on BBC iPlayer and Top Boy on Netflix. But it’s weird because when I watch, I pick up on stuff. So with Peaky Blinders, I speak in a Brummie accent. But with Top Boy, I’m saying, “Mandem needs a coffee.” Are you in control of the remote at home? The secret to a happy marriage is a superking-sized bed and two TVs. We have separate rooms so I can watch the football and my wife [Louise] can watch Emmerdale, then we reconvene and sleep in a bed that is so big I can barely hear her breathe. Which celebrity would you choose to watch TV with? Tom Allen [host of The Apprentice: You’re Fired] is good, but he loves to talk. You won’t be able to follow a plot with Tom on your sofa. You’ve recently presented your first quiz show, Head Hunters, which is a big career moment… It’s amazing and feels a bit surreal. At least
my mum will be able to see me more. But I’ve got some way to go to pull her away from The Chase and Pointless. She’ll tell me if she doesn’t think it’s good enough. She’ll say, “I like it, but you’re not as good as Bradley Walsh or Richard Osman.” What other pinch-me moments have you had? I did the Teenage Cancer Trust gig at the Royal Albert Hall, which Roger Daltrey from The Who organised. I was backstage with my mum and dad, and Roger came over and said, “Thanks for doing the gig, Rob.” And I said, “Thanks, Roger,” and he wandered off. My dad lost his marbles! Did you get a photo? I don’t really ask anyone for pictures because if I did, I’d get carried away and start pulling an autograph book out. But after the Royal Variety Performance I did. I’d got drunk after my set, not realising you had to go back on and meet everyone. I asked Lady Gaga for a selfie – and she said, “Nope.” It was the only time I asked and I got turned down. What do people usually say when they meet you? A lot of the time they go, ‘Where’s Romesh?’ because of the shows we do together, or, ‘I like you on 10 Out of 8 Cats’, where they get the numbers mixed up. Or the other one is, “Oh, it’s the geezer with the teeth.” l Head Hunters is on BBC1, weekdays from 2.15pm.
‘People will say I like you on 10 Out of 8 Cats. Or the other one is, Oh, it’s that geezer with the teeth’ Rob Beckett