About this episode
Bella Freud interviews Richard E. Grant about his life, career, and personal experiences.
Richard E. Grant is an actor, director, writer and presenter. Born in Eswatini (formerly Swaziland), his father worked for the British government and Grant grew up as part of an ex-pat community in the country. He made his film debut in 1987 as the titular character in Withnail & I, about an alcoholic out-of-work actor. Grant played a series of eccentric characters in the 1990s, from a fashion designer in Robert Altman’s Pret-A-Porter, to a villain terrorising Bruce Willis in Hudson Hawk, and the manager of the Spice Girls in Spice World. More recently, Grant has starred in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Emerald Fennel’s Saltburn, and Can You Ever Forgive Me? for which he received Golden Globe, BAFTA and Oscar nominations as Best Supporting Actor. In 2005, Grant made his directorial debut with Wah Wah, a fascinating account of his childhood in former Swaziland. He has written several books, his most recent A Pocketful of Happiness in 2023, about his grief following the death of his wife Joan Washington from cancer after 38 years of marriage. Richard E. Grant has become a muse to fashion designers on the catwalk, walking for Burberry AW25 and Miu Miu SS26. In this episode of…
People in this episode
Host: Bella Freud
Guest: Richard E. Grant
Topics covered
- acting
- fashion
- personal stories
- comedy
- grief
- directing
Keywords
- Richard E. Grant
- Bella Freud
- acting
- fashion
- comedy
- grief
- Barbra Streisand
- directing
- Wah Wah
- A Pocketful of Happiness
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Burberry, Miu Miu, Vox Media Podcast Network
Books & works: Withnail & I, Pret-A-Porter, Hudson Hawk, Spice World, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Saltburn, Can You Ever Forgive Me?, Wah Wah, A Pocketful of Happiness
Places: Eswatini
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