PARTY TIME WITH GRIMMY
Is there any celebrity Nick Grimshaw doesn’t know? Lucie Cave is determined to find out
Nick Grimshaw has placed a bet on how long it will take heat to ask him about his friendship with Harry Styles. The only thing is, it was wagered between Nick, 32, and heat’s entertainment director Boyd Hilton, who happened to be hanging out at Nick’s house a few days before (he’d got an invite to watch “the fight” on telly – that’s the sort of circles our Boyd moves in, you see). Nick’s gone for “ten minutes”, Boyd reckons “seven”. Nothing like being stitched up by your own colleague, eh?
Obviously, we’re not just here to grill him about Harry – we’ve got face time because Nick is promoting Radio 1’s Big Weekend in Hull. Five years into his tenure as host of the station’s breakfast show, a stint as a judge on The X Factor, and a handful of new celebrity mates later, he hasn’t lost any of that sparkly eyed, bouncy haired enthusiasm. He even runs into work at 5am, he’s got that much energy… You seem to have celeb mates coming out of your ears. What makes people gravitate towards you? Have you got all their secrets stashed in a box somewhere? [Laughs.] It’s hard to answer that. I guess I just love talking to people, I love having a gossip and having fun. I never want anything to end – like, I won’t want this interview to finish. That’s why I can’t stop going out. I never want the party to end! But how does that work when you have to get up at 4.30am? I used to find it hard to go out without drinking, but now I don’t mind. I feel a bit proud, like, “Go, me!” But if it’s an extra-fun party, it’s best to stay up all night. What’s the best star-studded party you’ve been to? Me and Florence [Welch, from Florence + The Machine] were Djing at the VMAS once, and it was scary, because suddenly on the dance floor, were all these people I like – Kanye, Mary J Blige, Drake, Lady Gaga – all these pop stars dancing in front of us. Then everyone got invited to Drake’s house for a party. Do people like that know who you are? Drake might say, “Hi,” but Kanye would have no idea. Even though I’ve met him a few times.
What was Drake’s party like? Drake loves white wine spritzers – “prizzy with Drizzy”. I drank loads of white wine and was sick in his loo. Is there anyone you’ve been star-struck by? We had Chris Pratt on recently and it was quite intense. When he came in, I thought, “Oh my God, he’s really gorgeous, he’s such a movie star.” And I played the same song twice and it went to shit. I never thought about being in love with Chris Pratt until I met him. What did he smell like? We made him act with a bacon sandwich, so he smelt of bacon by the end of it. Do you ever feel awkward in interviews? Sometimes. I wanted to ask Orlando Bloom about his break-up with Katy Perry, but I really like Orlando and I really like Katy – if I didn’t like them, I probably would just ask it. I think they’re funny, good at their jobs and don’t take themselves too seriously. I kept seeing that he had Katy’s dog on his Instagram and wanted to know, so I asked it in a roundabout way about the dogs. I also asked about the paddleboarding… Oh, and he saw the picture heat did with David Walliams and Alan Carr [who recreated the pic of a naked Orlando paddle-boarding with Katy] and thought it was hilarious. Have there been any interviews you’ve hated? Naomi Campbell was a bit tricky, but you kind of want her to be, because she’s Naomi Campbell. Have you accidentally spilled the beans about your celeb mates on air? It’s hard not to. When Cheryl was pregnant, me and my friend Amy had lunch with her and I didn’t ask her too much, because I can’t not say what she’s told me on the radio. So I was like, “Everything OK?” and avoided saying stuff like, “When’s it due?” She probably thought, “He is so into himself.” Did you know she and Liam were going to name him Bear? No, honestly. I didn’t want to ask. I never want to say much about Cheryl, because I really like her and everything I say about her gets turned into a story. I like the name Bear, though. I’d really like it for my baby’s name – but I can’t now. Ever dobbed any other celeb mates in it? I once told my listeners that I’d been out with Rita Ora and she was farting all day. She told me afterwards, “Don’t say that on the radio, please!” OK, how far into the interview are we? About ten minutes. Right, we’re going to ask you about Harry now. How is he? [Laughs.] He’s good. He came on the show with his new song, which was really good. I hadn’t heard it until two weekends before... Were you worried his music wasn’t going to be any good and you’d have to tell him? I was never worried about that, because I think he’s got good taste. With all the boys in One Direction, they’re lucky in that they can do what they want and that’s why it’s all working. What’s it like listening to his music in front of him, though – is it awkward? Yes! A nd it just sounds like you’re lying when you say, “It’s good.” What happened when you heard Harry’s song for the first time? He came round on a Sunday and it took ages to listen to it. We both knew that was what he was coming round to do, but no one wanted to say, “Let’s hear it.” So we went to the gym, and in the car on the way back, I was thinking, “I’m going to have to hear it now,” and he said “Shall we get lunch?” And I said, “YES!” Then we drove to lunch and still didn’t listen to it. Then, on the way back he said, “Will you drop me off ?” And I said, “OK, let’s just play it. Let’s rip the plaster off.” It was a good place to hear something, in the car. It’s horrible playing it in the studio, because they can look you in the eye. Is he one of your best mates? I speak to him a lot, yeah. What sort of friend is he? He’s really silly and we laugh loads. He is quite deep, but I can hang out with him all day. I can be myself with him. Do you have different mates for different things? People always complain, because I invite everyone to everything. I don’t see any difference bet ween my old
‘I once told my listeners Rita Ora had been farting all day’
mates from Manchester or friends I’ve made doing the radio show. We’re going to list a few famous ones and you tell me what sort of mate they are. Rita Ora? Non-stop humour. I love her. My only complaint is she loves to Facetime and I hate Facetime. But if I was her, I would, because she always looks so good. She’s a very good friend as well. She’ll go out of her way to look after you and check that you’re alright. Cheryl? She’s so caring – she’s great to go to for advice. Daisy Lowe? Food! We go to her house to eat – she’s a really good cook. Alexa Chung? We’re on a Whatsapp group and she’s very funny, but always makes me feel stupid because she’s so witty and clever. Kate Moss? She’s really funny, as well – she’s very inclusive and is a good role model in many ways, because she really doesn’t care what anyone thinks about her. Ed Sheeran? We email – he doesn’t have a phone. He’s really genuine. He’s so good with everyone he meets – he talks to everyone and remembers their names. Caroline Flack? She’s good to go to the pub with, but she’s dangerous. Whenever we see each other, we’re like, “Uh-oh.” Do people hassle you when you’re out? Not really. The only time I get it is in the supermarket, and people say, “Where do I know you from?” Or, the other day, someone said, “You’re off The Voice .” And I said, “No, I did The X Factor.” And she said, “I don’t watch The X Factor, so it’s not that.” So I said, “Well, I’m not on The Voice!” I was having an argument about where she knew me from. Did you enjoy The X Factor, or does it all seem a mad blur? It was really full-on with long days, but it was so much fun. Would you do it again? I would if Rita and Cheryl did it, because it reminded me of when I first did T4 and there was a massive crew and everyone had lunch together. I loved all that. Did you hang out in each other’s dressing rooms? Simon’s room was a cross between a Jo Malone shop and a posh Barcelona hotel. But he never really hung out in there. He’d just come to mine, say, “Hi kids,” and smoke loads of fags. Are you still in contact? I haven’t spoken to him for ages, but we had a Whatsapp group when we did the show with me, him, Cheryl and Rita – we would be really cheeky and he loved it. Do you get affected by negative press? I used to be much more selfconscious, but now I try not to be insular because I can get really bad anxiety… I go through bouts of it and have panic attacks, and they come on for no reason. Have you ever been to therapy? No, I wouldn’t mind going, but I meditate and do yoga – which sounds really annoying, but it’s so good. I’ve learnt it’s important to be nice to yourself. When you get to 30, you think more about what you want and not pleasing other people all the time.