Richard Coles: From Broke to Flying Concorde, Madonna & Elton John
4/28/202643 min
This week on A Night In with Sally Lindsay, Sally sits down with author, pop star-turned-priest and host of Catching Up With The Royals, Reverend Richard Coles - a man who’s packed several lifetimes into one.
From growing up in Kettering to heading to London in search of a 'liveable life' as a young gay man, Richard shares how music and identity shaped his early years and how meeting Jimmy Somerville led to the chart-topping success of The Communards.
One minute Richard was broke and on the dole, the next he was flying Concorde, rubbing shoulders with Madonna and dining with Anna Wintour, all in the middle of a wild 80s pop whirlwind.
But Richard’s life took a very different turn - he also opens up about finding faith, becoming a priest, and the personal loss that changed his life.
Funny, honest and full of brilliant stories, this is Richard Coles at his finest.
Listen to Richard on Catching Up With The Royals every Thursday wherever you get your podcasts and on YouTube!
New episodes drop every Wednesday on Spotify, Apple or wherever you get your podcasts - plus you can watch each episode on YouTube!
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Transcript preview
First 90 secondsSpeaker 00:00
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Knox0:07
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Jamie0:21
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Knox0:38
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Speaker 00:44
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Richard Coles· Guest0:55
[upbeat music] You know, sex and drugs and rock and roll. Not often found on the CV of a Church of England vicar. [laughs] Um, it was another life.
Sally Lindsay· Host1:06
Do you do confessions with that?
Richard Coles· Guest1:07
I had a go at it. It was so long, my first one, that we stopped for sandwiches in the middle. [laughs] That's how you pick up a vicar.
Sally Lindsay· Host1:14
Wasn't it a funny place?
Richard Coles· Guest1:16
So there was me and this Love Island finalist sharing a bed on the first night. And my agent said, "That's a bit like giving a pork pie to a vegan."
Sally Lindsay· Host1:23
You were the inspiration for the character Tom in Bridget Jones.
Richard Coles· Guest1:27
That's true, actually. [laughs] Yeah.