James Acaster previously joked he was a 'goddam saint' for sitting on the fact his wife 'left him for Mr Bean', as he opened up on how he found out about their relationship.
Acaster has drawn headlines after a recent appearance on Saturday Kitchen went viral as he destroyed the set. Acaster, best known for the
podcast Off Menu, went viral after his comedic overreaction to losing a public poll to his co-host Ed Gamble, destroying the set in the process.
Prior to this, many who aren’t fans of Off Menu or Taskmaster may know Acaster for another far more unfortunate way, for having revealed in a stand-up special that went similarly viral on social media that his girlfriend had ‘left him for Mr Bean’.
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Acaster made the relationship revelation in his 2019 stand-up TV special Cold Lasagne Hate Myself 1999.
During this, Acaster spoke about previous failed relationships he had, including alluding to a girlfriend he dated in 2013, Louise Ford.
The comedian revealed that Ford at the time had been cast in a West End play and that, while he was happy for her, he felt they had become more distant from each other.
Acaster stated that, due to his poor mental health, he began ‘plucking things out of thin air’, including that she had fallen in love with Rowan Atkinson whom she was starring in the play with.
The comedian said that he didn’t find out until ‘a year later’, saying: “I found out a year after we split up. I opened the newspaper and there’s a photo of the two of them walking arm in arm down the street together and a full story about how they were a couple now.
“It was the first time in my whole life when I’ve discovered why someone left me without any period of mourning whatsoever, just immediately gone ‘well that is f*cking hilarious'."
Despite being able to recognise the humour in his girlfriend leaving him for Mr Bean actor Atkinson, who was over 25 years older than her, he stated that he had sat on the news for six years in part due to the fact they are a ‘great couple’, and he and Ford weren’t.
Acaster reiterated in his routine that it was not intended to be construed as him criticising either Atkinson or Ford; however, he stated: “I'm a goddam saint to have kept this in the back pocket so long.
"It's my job to say things that are funny, and the funniest thing that's ever happened to anyone happened to me, and I put it on the back burner out of respect.
"Until you get left for Mr Bean, you don't realise how frequently he pops up.
"There's a shop two streets from my house that sells masks of his face.
"There's nowhere where I'm going to go that he's not there."
He stated that due to Atkinson’s success, it’s impossible not to notice his billboards and face everywhere.
This is ironically especially true in the week Acaster has gone viral, with Atkinson’s new Netflix series Man vs Baby releasing later this week.
Topics: Rowan Atkinson, TV and Film, Celebrity
Michael Slavin