Interview with Richard Herring
The
role of the comedian is a broad church, often those shouting the
loudest but with the least to say occupying the best pews. Many a fine
comic has entered the profession to enlighten audiences while making
them laugh with a viewpoint which illuminated whilst holding the world
up to ridicule. And many stand-up comedians treasure their profession as
the greatest of artforms. For others, it is a short cut panel shows and
substandard sitcoms. But as long as they’re entertaining, should it
matter?
While Richard
Herring could never be accused of trivialising the craft, he does not
believe there is a requirement of comedians beyond the obvious: “No,
comedians have no duty to anything other than to make people laugh (and
even then not always).” Herring told Coney’s Loft whilst out on his
latest tour.
“Personally I
want my stuff to have a bit more to it and I love it if my shows make
people think and discuss issues (I generally provide questions rather
than answers) but for me, making them laugh is still the most important
part of the job, even if sometimes I will do something that might make
them cry. Overall laughter must win!”
Herring
has featured on the British comedy scene since the late 80s.
Occasionally flirting with the mainstream, but often on the periphery,
he came to prominence as one half of double act Lee and Herring. After
writing for shows such as Spitting Image and On The Hour, the East
Yorkshire-born, Somerset-raised funny man hit the big time with surreal
BBC2 sketch show Fist Of Fun in the heady comedic days of the mid-90s.
Together with partner Stewart Lee (who has since enjoyed his own
renaissance in the comedy world), they rode the zeitgeist of 90s comedy
culminating in the criminally overlooked This Morning With Richard Not
Judy.
Herring seemingly went
off the radar after his split from Lee (no acrimony, the two simply
decided to pursue their own projects). However, the tireless creative he
is, Herring continued to write and perform solo shows, with subject
matter ranged from weighty concepts to the deeply personal. Religion
(Christ On A Bike), politics (Hitler Moustache) and love (What Is Love,
Anyway?) were all tackled to critical praise as were turning 40 (Oh
Fuck, I’m 40) and being the difficulties of adolescence (Headmaster’s
Son).
Whilst his creative
output has been consistently prolific, Herring’s personal life - which
he has drawn upon throughout his career - has often been tumultuous. In
2016 however, we may hope to find Herring in a more content, positive
place. He is married, his first child was born a year ago and his
podcast Richard Herring’s Leicester Square Theatre Podcast (RHLSTP) is
the leader of its genre. Looking at the subject of this tour, Happy
Now?, along with his mission to perform his back catalogue of shows
back-to-back last year, it seems Herring may now be in somewhat of a
reflective mood, pondering happiness and his position in life.
“As
I discuss in the show, I constantly think about everything, so even if I
am happy I am bracing myself for what might go wrong.’ said Herring, ‘I
have found it hard to be happy, though looking back I can't see why, I
have had the jammiest life ever. I have definitely focused too much on
my job, but I love my job. Having a family means the work I do now
has some meaning beyond self-affirmation."
Many
of us would wince at re-living our past creations at the age of 47, how
did Herring cope with performing material he had written while going
through earlier, darker times? “It was quite a journey back through my
life, but quite positive. I was sad in my late 30s, worried I'd left it
too late for love and a family, but the last few shows have gradually
seen me get my life (sort of) together. Plus the shows are all good. I
was amazed at the standard and hardly embarrassed by any of it.”
As
with much of his material, Herring is candid about his own life whilst
presenting RHLSTP which often makes for gripping and hilarious,
listening. The podcast has produced some enthralling chats with guests
such as Simon Pegg, Stephen Fry and Russell Brand as well as his old
sparring partner Stewart Lee. It’s a much recommended way to spend an
hour. Herring seems to have found his forte in the podcast format, he
confesses to liking “the immediacy, the autonomy and the lack of
restrictions” but regular listeners of RHLSTP will know there is more to
it than that. As well as the national bombshell which Stephen Fry
dropped when revealing he had attempted suicide in 2012, his shows often
deal in philosophy, the creative processes and important questions
around talc-dispensing tits.
So
with a largely sold-out stand-up tour, successful podcast and a family
does Herring still harbour greater ambitions? “I would like to write
sitcoms for TV - as budgets are too large for me to do it myself [many
of Herring’s projects are crowdfunded] and if the right thing came along
I would consider being on TV again. But it would be very difficult to
get the autonomy I now have and I also like the fact I am relatively
anonymous. At the moment enough people come to see me and they all get
what I am doing. TV might get me larger audiences, but at what cost?”
Whether
he is contemplating the nature of happiness, playing snooker against
himself (another, less popular internet-based project) or asking fellow
comedians if they’ve ever seen a ghost, fans can always rely on this
‘other 90s comedian’ to come up with the goods, no matter what the
intention behind it is. Driven by a desire to explore comedy in all its
form, Richard Herring will always be interesting and that’s perhaps the
one pre-requisite of any art form.
Richard Herring performs at the Epstein Theatre on Saturday 29 February.
http://www.coneysloft.com/#!Interview-with-Richard-Herring/c6aaq/56c2e25b0cf2fe0269b243d6
