Richard Herring's Leicester Square Theatre Podcast (RHLSTP)

RHLSTP Book Club 23 - Murder at Crime Manor -  Richard talks to comedian and actor about this hilarious and surprisingly gripping novel (badly) written by his comedy alter-ego Martin Fishback. First though there is a real life mystery to try and solve. Then Fergus explains how the character of Fishback was born and how in turn Fishback’s character of Detective Roger LeCarre came to...

#406 Rolf Harris’ Creepy Toes - Richard is back for a 25th series, but unfortunately pretty much nothing has happened in the news so there’s nothing for him to talk about. His guest last appeared on the show almost exactly a decade ago, it’s the comedy genius Reece Shearsmith. They chat about his excellent new film “See How They Run”  https://www.searchlightpictures.com/see-how-they-run/...

#405 The Black Hands of Doom -  It’s a bonus episode to end series 24 with the world class stand up Doug Stanhope, recorded over zoom from Dublin just an hour or so after Doug arrived on a TransAtlantic flight for his UK tour where people are about to lose their minds due to the death of our beloved monarch. They chat about authenticity in comedy, the self-destructive natu...

RHLSTP Book Club 22 - Femina -  It’s a return to RHLSTP for the infectiously enthusiastic historian and academic Janina Ramirez to talk about the medieval women who have been written out of history. It’s a fascinating chat that embraces DNA technology, the chance discovery of texts whilst looking for ping pong balls, the first description of the female orgasm and the surpr...

#404 Colin Firth Lap Dance - It’s Richard's last day at the Fringe and controversy over a cancelled show (not this one) is just taking off. Richard is chatting to comedian and movie star, Omid Djalili. They discuss the films that he got cut out of, how he got cast in The Mummy, some surprises from the set of Sex and the City 2, the late, great Sean Lock, performing for the Queen and the...

RHLSTP Book Club 21 - The Skeleton Key - In this first episode of series 2, Richard chats with acclaimed author Erin Kelly about her gripping gothic thriller, the Skeleton Key, the influence of the 1970s treasure hunt book, Masquerade, the madness and confidence of conspiracy theorists, how you research the decomposition of a body, how to plot...

#403 Testosterone - Richard has been to see his best friends in Edinburgh again and disappointed that any problems he has can’t be blamed on anyone but himself. His guest is actor and writer Sanjeev Kohli. They talk about how Scotland welcomed his family, why he went to University in the city he grew up, how he got distracted from the wonderful world of mathematics, stalking Prince, the...

#402 Magic Flute - Richard has just watched the equivalent of Shakespeare performing Hamlet, and now has plans to make a cartoon with his latest guest timkey. They perform a play, recite poetry and there’s some asexual tension and hand holding throughout, plus what it’s like to watch a quiz show where no one knows who you are, winning the big Edinburgh Comedy Prize, writing a poem a day to ge...

#401 Pompeii Sixty-Nine - Richard has a problem with a couple of Edinburgh posters (though one of them is for a restaurant) and has been mainly watching Monty Python. His guest is Taskmaster loser (though I’d be surprised if that’s even mentioned) Ed Gamble. They discuss how they would have got on with life 1000 years ago, sending Greg Davies into space, whether emergency questions are g...

#400 The Spark That Lit the Big Bang - RHLSTP has hit an important milestone, but what number exactly and why is Scotland so hot right now? Richard’s guest is legendary stand up and actor, Janeane Garofolo. They talk about the tangential nature of Janeane’s comedy, being mistaken for a homeless person, why she doesn’t have a podcast (or any social media), working with Gary Shan...

#399 No Knees - Richard has a son who has gone over to the dark side, but is delighted to welcome back the wonderful John Robins for his 7th RHLSTP appearance. They talk about a headphone heist, how you have to want to act in order to act, the dangers of a Fringe that is ever more expensive and ticket prices that have hardly changed, whether a long term relationship is a success or...

#398 Stump - Richard is still obsessing over the Cat in the Hat, though his greatest moment of theatre happened in bed. His guests are the singing spinsters, Flo and Joan aka Nicola and Rosie Dempsey. They talk about whether musical comedy can ever be cool, the perils of dating apps, who will be the first person to have sex with an alien, being made of stone, whether sex w...

#397 Stump - Richard has been to the Museum of Scotland and knows which exhibit he’d like to be gifted. He’s also bemoaning how left wing the Fringe has become. His guest is the indestructible force of nature that is Janey Godley. They discuss their somewhat different experiences of cancer and chemotherapy, how having cancer doesn’t make you brave, writing a love letter to the 1970s women of...

#396 Dubbed - Richard has seen a piece or theatre that has made him question everything, but also a fantastic stand up show by today’s guest Vir Das. They chat about how a passionate speech at the Kennedy Centre led to Vir being in danger of arrest in his native India, how the world is split between those looking to the future and those wanting to stay in the past, the dif...

#395 Koch and Ball - Richard is still trying to come to terms with the fact his first Fringe happened 35 years ago, as well as how much his landlord is making from the show. Never mind - his guest(s) today are Conrad Koch and his little friend Chester Missing. They talk about what makes a normal human being turn to ventriloquism, how a puppet can be the best medium to discuss huge political i...

#394 What’s The F****** Point - Richard’s children are being exposed to the artistic posters of the Fringe, whilst Rich is wondering why anyone is bothering (already). His guests are Rachel Fairburn and Kiri Pritchard-McLean. They chat about how podcasts are rubbish now everyone is doing them, dodgy tummies, Gollum’s suit case, whether you can eat a rescue chicken and whether the working class hav...

#393 Vibrator Kettle Mum - The King of Edinburgh is back for his 26th Fringe and another dirty dozen shows at the Edinburgh Fringe. His first guest is bipolar comedian and nearly Big Brother contestant Harriet Dyer. They talk about her fantastic autobiography Bipolar Comedian, turning terrible events into comedy and channelling mental illness into something positive, poisoning a contesta...

#392 Pegged  - RHLSTP has travelled to Yorkshire to be part of the Deershed festival and is taking place at the unGodly hour of 11.10pm, but at least it’s Gareth’s birthday. Richard’s guest is Malawian comic and bronze medal winner of Britain’s Got Talent, Daliso Chaponda. They discuss the weirdness of performing at festivals, what it’s like to play a Royal Variety show with no...

#391 Where Did We Get Our Porn? - Richard has surprisingly found himself being bigged up by a Ukrainian MP for his humanitarian efforts, which is very exciting. His guest is circuit veteran, ex-celeb stalker and writer Meryl O’Rourke. They talk about the comedy scene of the 90s, writing for Frankie Boyle, waiting for your break, scaring Stephen Fry, why it’d be nice to have a Tinder for...

RETRO RHLSTP #50 A Fan Who’s Won a Competition - It’s the last show in series 7 and there’s an end of term atmosphere and a lot of good natured heckling from a slightly inebriated crowd. Richard’s final guest is Peter Dickson impersonator and product of 1988, Joe Lycett. The podcast largely turns into the vehicle for a RHLSTP clips show as Joe quizzes Richard about his favourite and least favourit...

RHLSTP Book Club 20 - The Ruin of all Witches Richard talks to academic Malcolm Gaskill about his incredible and fastidiously researched history of the Springfield Witch Trials. A period of a clash of cultures and ideas and a doorway from a world of superstition to one of science (and let’s face it a fair amount of superstition), why losing a trowel might be a witch’s curse and how confo...

#390 Paperboy - Richard can finally reveal the greatest achievement of his (or anyone else’s) life and had decided to think about making a change to his attitude to the job. His guest is the mysterious, crude, offensive and hilarious Kunt from off of Kunt and the Gang. They chat about how this incredible act gained traction, why he retired in 2016 and what brought him back, the...

RETRO RHLSTP #49 No Man Is Faster Than a Cheese - Richard has just had his third sixteenth birthday and has returned from Amsterdam with a hangover that might just last two weeks. His guest is former milk-maid, fellow West Country cheese enthusiast and Russell Brand lookalike, Bridget Christie. They discuss webbed toes, being the responsible one in a gang of Hell's Angels, John Inverdale's slip of...

RHLSTP Book Club 19 - Don’t Forget To Scream - Richard chats to journalist Marianne Levy about her new book of essays about motherhood, Don’t Forget To Scream. They discuss intrusive thoughts and the awful things they imagined happening to their own children, the way children destroy the parents’ identity, difficult birth stories, how parenting isn’t as innate as many might think and why...

#389 Kiss - Richard is mourning the loss of his best friend, but he has to carry on working through his grief. His guest is Strictly love rat, Seann Walsh. They discuss his incredible new stand up special and whether people overreacted to his admittedly selfish behaviour and why people are so keen to judge and don’t seem to care if they will be judged themselves. It’s a powerful con...