Pointless host Richard Osman has said he was asked about appearing on BBC’s Celebrity Traitors, but would only do it if he could be a traitor rather than a faithful
The author Richard Osman has confessed that he would only consider participating in Celebrity Traitors if he could play the role of a traitor rather than a faithful. Celebrating his 55th birthday today (Friday, November 28), Richard told The Chipping Forecast podcast that he had been invited to join the BBC series, which captivated audiences and saw Alan Carr, one of the traitors, emerge as the ultimate winner, reports the Express.
When questioned about his potential participation in the upcoming season, Richard replied: “I said to them, they did ask, I said I could only do it as a traitor.” Explaining why he could only take on the role of a traitor, Richard suggested it was all about how he would react during the tense moments around the big table when contestants are attempting to figure each other out.
He elaborated: “And the reason I could only do it as a traitor, I think, is if I am sat around that table and someone accuses me of being a traitor and I am a traitor, I don’t mind, of course, that’s fine and I’ll fight for myself. If I’m around that table and someone accuses me of being a traitor, and I’m a faithful, I would lose my mind. I would, honestly, I would not be able to deal with it in anyway whatsoever.
“I just couldn’t, just the injustice of the thing it would drive me insane. I don’t think I could do it unless I could be a traitor and they cannot guarantee that.” Richard Osman, author of The Thursday Murder Club, has also opened up about the fear he experienced at various points in his career, including his first time hosting Pointless.
Speaking on The High Performance Podcast, Richard shared: “The first time that I really had fear was sitting in a makeup chair and hearing my first live audience. I could hear the audience out in the studio, and that’s the first time I just thought… Because I’ve sat in studios and heard a live audience a thousand times, I hadn’t heard it when I had to go on and talk to them, that’s just not something I had (done).”
When asked how he managed this fear, he responded: “You have to live with it. You have to go, ‘there’s two choices here, either feel that fear or go home.’ And you’re not going to go home, because look where you are. So I sat there, I went out there, I felt slightly uncomfortable.
As well as opening up about his career as a presenter, Richard has also spoken about his career as an author and how this has been affected by a health condition that has affected him for most of his life. In an interview, this time with Saga, he spoke about the unique challenge he faces when writing his books, including the aforementioned The Thursday Murder Club, that has been turned into a film.
He said: “Compared to a lot of jobs, you wouldn’t call writing ‘hard’, but these books are fairly big beasts and nystagmus, a condition that affects vision, means that even with large font sizes, I have to sit no more than five or six inches from the screen. It’s an intense process.”
Richard also discussed how this affects how he writes because his home is where everything he needs to write is set-up as he needs it to be. He added: “Nearly all of my writing is done upstairs at the house, where I have everything set up as I want it.”
The condition Richard has, Nystagmus, affects around one in every 1,000 people and is often found in early childhood. The RNIB (Royal National Institute of Blind People) explains what it is and what it means for the person experiencing it, reports WalesOnline.
They said: If you have nystagmus, your eyes are always moving, although it may not always be obvious to you or others. The way that nystagmus affects vision varies from person to person; however, it doesn’t lead to total loss of sight.”
On how the condition is can be treated the NHS added: “Nystagmus cannot be cured. Some underlying conditions may be treatable which may affect the nystagmus. Researchers around the world are looking at different aspects of nystagmus with the aim of developing treatments.”
