Tom Allen

About this episode

Tom Allen shares his experiences growing up as an eccentric child and discusses his career in comedy and literature.

Our guest today is the comedian, author, actor and presenter Tom Allen. And this is a truly charming edition of Rosebud. Tom tells Gyles about his childhood in suburban Bromley and opens up about what it was like to be an eccentric child who refused to follow the crowd and liked dressing up as an emperor. Gyles and Tom bond over some mutual passions, including Noel Coward and stationery. And Tom talks about coming out and his first kiss. Tom is currently in Titanique in the West End of London. His new novel, Common Decency, is out in May and is available to pre-order here . Don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube here . Join The Rosebud Family here . And visit our website here . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

People in this episode

Host: Gyles Brandreth

Guest: Tom Allen

Topics covered

• comedy
• childhood
• identity
• theater
• literature

Keywords

• Tom Allen
• Gyles Brandreth
• comedy
• childhood
• Noel Coward
• Titanique
• Common Decency

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Common Decency

Places: Bromley

More episodes of Rosebud with Gyles Brandreth

• Rosebud in NYC - Christine Baranski · June 12, 2026 · 1h 6m
• More Rosebud in NYC - Graydon Carter · June 9, 2026 · 1h 2m
• Rosebud in NYC - Fran Lebowitz · June 5, 2026 · 60 min
• More Rosebud - Gyles's Diaries episode 42 · June 2, 2026 · 59 min
• Will Self · May 29, 2026 · 1h 7m
• More Rosebud - Matt Haig · May 26, 2026 · 1h 18m