LIFESTYLE
LIFE’S LOVES
A book I love is… Perfume. It’s always stuck with
me, it’s about a man who can distinguish the vast
range of scents around him but becomes a murderer.
A film I love is… Withnail and I and also Pretty in
Pink. They both remind me of people and times.
The night before I performed at the Edinburgh
Comedy Festival for the first time, I watched
Withnail and I and just sat and laughed. Pretty in
Pink, with a soundtrack full of songs by New Order
and others, reminds me of being a teenager.
A TV programme I love is… Modern Family. It’s
something I can switch off to and I really like Gloria
in it. I also love watching true murder programmes
such as The Jinx with Mark.
A song I love is… Fools Gold by the Stone Roses. I
just love that riff. They were on at Middlesbrough
Town Hall the night before I sat my History A-level,
so I had to choose whether I revised or went to see
them. I chose to be swatty, revised while everyone
else I knew went to the gig – and I regretted it for
years.
A holiday destination I love is… New York. I used
to go there all the time with a girlfriend. I knew
all the streets like it was my home city. I don’t get
the chance to go now I have responsibilities, but
back then I used to go in November and do a bit of
Christmas shopping.
PEOPLE IN LIFE
The biggest influence on my career were… probably all
the people who told me why I couldn’t do it. It’s all those
weird things you get told – one boss said my hair wasn’t
right and someone once told me my voice was too high.
Those kind of comments motivated me to prove them
wrong.
The people who make me laugh are… my two friends,
Rhod Gilbert and Sarah Millican. There’s a gang of us
including Sarah and I who try and go for a cream tea
every couple of months, and she’s always funny. Rhod
makes me laugh because he’s always quite shouty at me. If
you get a text from him you can imagine his Welsh voice!
The person who inspires me is… my chum Sarah
Millican. She is amazing because while the rest of us talk
about writing a book, she actually sits down and does it,
and writes her autobiography. And, of course, it will then
be a best seller for weeks and weeks. Sarah is a massive
inspiration – and really supportive.
The people who make me angry… are definitely the
sort of people who don’t have children but who park in
mother and toddler parking bays. And there’s also those
people who take liberties by parking in the bays and then
you see their children are about 12 years old and you
think ‘Nooooo! It’s not for you!’
WORKING LIFE
My greatest achievement was… apart from my children, obviously, it would
definitely be winning The Weakest Link. I beat Johnny Ball – and he’s really
clever. I couldn’t quite believe how well every round went but I was still
there for a head-to-head with Johnny. My winning question was about what
was invented on a bridge in New Zealand. I had no idea but the only thing I
could think of was bungee jumping – and I was right! I’m really happy with
my performances in quiz shows. I won the Weakest Link and I came second
behind Jesus – aka Robert Powell – on Test the Nation!
My biggest disappointment was… missing out on being the Doctor’s
assistant on the Dr Who radio series. I met someone at a do who told me
‘Oh, we tried to get you to be the doctor’s assistant but we never heard back’.
It was the first I’d heard of it, and I was gutted. Sheridan Smith was one of
those who did it instead, so you end up wondering what might have opened
up had that happened.
My business mantra is… the same as our family mantra – find a way.
When I hear people say ‘You can’t do that’ or ‘You’re not allowed to do that’,
I always say ‘Find a way’. I need to look up the Latin for it and have it as a
family crest.
The alternative career I might have had was… well, I quite fancied
advertising but probably a travel writer. I just love travelling, so going
around the world for a job sounds amazing.
My favourite place on Teesside is… definitely Roseberry Topping. I went
up there quite recently with my dad. You can just see for miles and there’s
that twin thing of incredible countryside and sprawling industry.
tees-life.co.uk
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