For Richard Osman, there are some less desirable aspects to fame — particularly when it comes to having his private life discussed publicly — but there’s at least one surprising upside
Richard Osman has become a well-known figure in show business over the years — not only for his work on hit TV game shows such as Pointless and Richard Osman’s House of Games, but as the bestselling author of The Thursday Murder Club series. He’s also a respected industry voice, co-hosting The Rest Is Entertainment podcast alongside Marina Hyde.
However, it seems there are some less desirable aspects to fame — particularly when it comes to having his private life discussed publicly. Yet, he says speaking openly about his struggles with food addiction has had a surprisingly positive impact.
He said opening up has encouraged others to talk more candidly about their own experiences. Speaking recently to The i Paper, Richard explained that being honest can help break what he described as the “doom loop of shame.”
The Thursday Murder Club author observed, however, that sharing his experiences had prompted women to approach him about their husbands, who subsequently opened up about their own difficulties.
He said: “I don’t want to talk about these things, I really don’t. It’s not comfortable. People… well, no, women come up to me and tell me their husbands heard me talking about it and then opened up about their own issues.”
Richard says that if he can “talk honestly about these moments when I’ve felt awkward and embarrassed and appalled at myself”, he can “stop the doom loop of shame”.
He suggested it often compounds the problem: you can end up worrying about the fact you’re worrying. He added that depression can follow a similar self-perpetuating pattern.
“If they made heroin gummies, I’d get hooked – but to the sweets and not the heroin.”
Back in 2021, Osman told BBC Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs that he began therapy in his 30s in an effort to get a handle on his eating issues. He also noted that, compared with substance misuse, compulsive eating isn’t viewed with the same “doomed glamour”.
“But if an alcoholic came to my house, they would be shocked to see bottles of gin and bottles of wine, completely untouched. Because an alcoholic couldn’t have that in their house.
“And if I came to your house and there were crisps or chocolate bars untouched in the fridge, I’d be like ‘What? How are they untouched?’ – if I’m going through an episode.”
Yet he says his addiction is “identical”, highlighting the “secrecy of consuming” and the “shame” that comes with it. “And food is a tricky one, because booze and drugs you can just give up. [It is] unbelievably difficult but [with] a zero tolerance policy.”
However, when you’re dependent on food or other essentials that are “sustaining”, people still require them to survive. He explained this makes it “quite a hard one” to break free from.
Discussing his challenges further, including those surrounding food, Richard revealed: “I’m either controlling it or not controlling it at any given time, and these days I control it more often than I don’t, but it’s actually quite hard and sometimes you do slip, but I try my best and I certainly have no shame about it now.”
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