Early last year, Lauren Laverne was standing on stage with Sir Paul McCartney and Bruce Springsteen – as you do – while the latter gave an acceptance speech at the Ivor Novello Awards. “Bruce had played Sunderland the night before, in a rainstorm, and could barely speak,” she recalls. “He said, ‘I’m so sorry about the voice,Continue reading “Lauren Laverne: “Looking to the future, I feel quite free””
Category Archives: Interviews
Harry Enfield: “There’s a new apartheid in comedy, which feels like a backward step. But that’s my age.”
Harry Enfield often tells people he’s retired, even though he hasn’t. “It feels better than saying ‘I’m not working’,” smiles the comedy legend. “I’m not ambitious, that’s the problem. I was when I was young. I look at people like Steve Coogan, who I knew back when we were both starting out, and he’s stillContinue reading “Harry Enfield: “There’s a new apartheid in comedy, which feels like a backward step. But that’s my age.””
James Graham: “You can’t just put people on stage you agree with”
“I think we’ve lived through a chapter of our national life where we’ve all slightly lost faith in the country working for normal people,” says James Graham. “Whether that’s the trains, the health service, or the justice system, our institutions just feel overwhelmed. Times are really tough. And yet I’m an optimist. Because when youContinue reading “James Graham: “You can’t just put people on stage you agree with””
Mark Bonnar: “I’m not sure being an actor was of any use in The Traitors”
“Just flagging,” says Mark Bonnar’s publicist, a couple of days before Weekend’s scheduled audience with the Bafta-winning actor, “that other than confirming he’s in it, Mark can’t really talk about The Traitors.” Well this is awkward. Because it’s the 56-year-old Scot’s forthcoming appearance in the TV phenomenon’s hotly-anticipated celebrity spin-off that, in theory at least, we haveContinue reading “Mark Bonnar: “I’m not sure being an actor was of any use in The Traitors””
David Byrne: “It’s hard not to feel like the dark is winning. But I’m not ready throw up my hands yet”
Is David Byrne okay? Over half a century, the musician, artist, writer and filmmaker has established himself as one of modern America’s leading cultural forces – ‘rock’s renaissance man’, as Time magazine once hailed him. But in recent years, the former Talking Heads frontman has started to ask himself: Does any of it really matter? “When youContinue reading “David Byrne: “It’s hard not to feel like the dark is winning. But I’m not ready throw up my hands yet””
Jo Whiley & Zoe Ball: “Life’s been a pretty rocky rollercoaster at times”
Jo Whiley and Zoe Ball are often mistaken for each other. “It happens all the time,” says Jo. “I mean, every single week.” “It’s hilarious,” agrees Zoe. “I was sitting outside a pub near my brother’s in Kent last week, and a woman started talking passionately to me about how much she loves my outfitsContinue reading “Jo Whiley & Zoe Ball: “Life’s been a pretty rocky rollercoaster at times””
Celia Imrie: “I’ve spent a long time trying to jump out of any box anybody tries to put me in”
Celia Imrie is that rarest of creatures in modern Britain – someone who hasn’t read The Thursday Murder Club. “I didn’t want to spook things, is the truth,” says the actress, who’d “got wind” a while back that she might be in the frame for the film adaptation of Richard Osman’s mega-selling comic crime novel. “SoContinue reading “Celia Imrie: “I’ve spent a long time trying to jump out of any box anybody tries to put me in””
Grayson Perry: “I think we might have reached peak identity politics”
Now that he’s a knight of the realm, Sir Grayson Perry has given up any pretence of not being part of the establishment. “One of the things that absolutely infuriates me is millionaire cultural celebrities pretending they’re outsider rebels,” says the Turner Prize-winning artist, writer, broadcaster and career provocateur. “I’ve often described myself as beingContinue reading “Grayson Perry: “I think we might have reached peak identity politics””
Lenny Henry: “I’ve earned the right to have opinions about things”
When it comes to national treasures, few are held in greater affection than Sir Lenworth George Henry. So we have to ask: what on Earth possessed the esteemed actor, writer, comedian, activist, academic and knight of the realm to sign up for a new reality show, in which he and a bunch of fellow celebs areContinue reading “Lenny Henry: “I’ve earned the right to have opinions about things””
Eric Idle: “If I have to turn any more cheeks, my pants will fall down”
How good is Eric Idle – the man who exhorted the world to Always Look on the Bright Side of Life – at following his own advice? “I think I’m pretty good, to be honest,” reflects the 82-year-old Monty Python veteran, when Weekend catches up with him at his London hotel. “I always say I’m an optimist in theContinue reading “Eric Idle: “If I have to turn any more cheeks, my pants will fall down””
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