A biography for Richard Herringhasn’t been written yet.
“I was into Simon & Garfunkel before my friends got into punk and laughed at me for liking Paul Simon.”
“I have a lack of practical skills. I can't mend anything or do anything manly; I don't understand how anything works.”
“I watched the whole of 'How I Met Your Mother.' I wanted to see how they could stretch it out for so long and if it was any good, but it just seems like a sitcom from the 90s.”
“I've long been obsessed with the fantastical and sometimes unbelievable story of the life and death of Rasputin.”
“If you are a stand-up you can hone your material over successive performances, based on the audience response. Changing a single word or altering the pace or emphasis can make a previously failed witticism work.”
“The gay community has a strength and identity that has been lost by dispossessed, guilt-ridden, straight men.”
“As I remember it, we pitched 'Fist of Fun' as a sort of adult version of the kids' show 'Why Don't You?' We wanted to overload it with information, really pile it on.”
“I was religious probably until I was about eight but I always questioned stuff very early on.”
“Whoever said having children makes a comedian safer and less dark is an idiot. Having a baby has filled my whole life with fear, and totally destroyed all illusion that the world is safe or fair.”
“I am increasingly excited about the artistic possibilities of the Internet.”
“People tend to be surprised when they realise I'm only 5ft 6in. Now I tell them on my website. I think you have to point out your own deficiencies if you're emphasising everyone else's for a living.”
“I wonder if Shakespeare ever had to write a play in 10 days while suffering from jet-lag? Probably. It would explain why his comedies are so crap.”
“Sometimes my jokes are meant to be tasteless.”
“I've said on one of my shows that I'd like to marry the character Amy Pond, not the actress who plays her.”
“It is rare for a joke to emerge fully formed and it is worth grafting away until it is absolutely right. Though perversely too much work, too much thought, can destroy a gag completely.”
“I'm not interested in telling people what to think. I'm interested in making people think.”
“It's a weird thing, having a double act - I think Stew puts more energy into his solo stuff than I do, and tries to establish his independence more.”
“I went to the career adviser when I was 16, and tried to explain that I wanted to be a comedian or a writer. That was not on the list.”
“I am reasonably nice-looking and have quite an expressive face, which is good for comedy.”
“Most jokes are based on surprise. They take advantage of a confusion of language, or a twist in logic, or a contradiction of some perceived truth, or sometimes just saying something so shocking and offensive that the audience will gasp and then (hopefully) guffaw.”