Richard E. Grant has revealed he cut some long-term friends out of his life over the way they handled his wife's tragic death. The actor, 69, was married to dialect coach Joan Washington for 35 years until she passed away in 2021 at the age of 74, following a battle with lung cancer.
The actor was left heartbroken at the loss and said he was left in further turmoil by how certain friends reacted to the news, claiming some stopped speaking to him and even crossed the road to avoid speaking to him about his grief.
Friends Crossed the Road to Avoid Him
“Subsequent to her death, I have had people cross the road rather than talk. Whether they think you’re going to fall apart and you’re an emotional wreck, I don’t know. But I will never speak to them again.”
The actor said a couple who’d lived near to his and Joan's Provence holiday home ignored him when he waved. “As I walked towards them they both turned their heads,” he said. “I thought, ‘F*** you.’ I felt I was being punished because Joan had died. They had never acknowledged it. Maybe they didn’t know how to deal with it.”
“You are essentially saying to the person who is bereaved that person didn’t exist, or they have been cancelled,” he added.
An 'All or Nothing' Approach to Friendship
The Academy Award-nominee said he had an "all or nothing" approach to friends following the passing of his wife, adding: "I’m very unequivocal, black and white."
Speaking to The Times, he added: "I’ve tried to go for the grey areas but it’s not succeeded for very long. There are people that have been edited out of my life and I will never see them again. If I had done that to them, I wouldn’t be able to look them in the face."
In early September, Richard paid tribute to his wife, who was a dialect coach, as he marked the fifth anniversary of her death. In an emotional video posted to Instagram, the Hollywood star opened up about the heartbreaking milestone, explaining that he is not ready to move on romantically.
Tribute on Fifth Anniversary
He said: "Five years ago today, my beloved wife Joan died at 7:30 in the evening. We were holding each other's hands when she drew her last breath."
As Nat King Cole’s When I Fall In Love began playing in the background, the Hollywood icon continued: “In one sense, five years seems incredibly long, and simultaneously, blink of an eye. Reflecting back on what it's like to grieve somebody, I feel unbelievable gratitude that I had almost four decades with her.
“More than anybody in the whole world that I have ever met, she got me, and I got her. That seems to be the holy grail gift that I never anticipated I would find in my life. But I sure did with her. She was feisty, challenging and hilarious … all sorts, the whole thing, but she got me, and I got her.”
Richard began his career as Withnail in the comedy Withnail and I, and went on to receive an Oscar nomination for the role. He went on to appear in films such as Can You Ever Forgive Me? and the Spice Girls movie Spice World. On television, he has also starred in How to Get Ahead In Advertising and A Christmas Carol on the big screen, as well as Game of Thrones and A Series of Unfortunate Events.
On stage, he has appeared twice in international productions of the classic musical My Fair Lady and is currently appearing opposite Mamma Mia! star Christine Baranski in a new version of Hay Fever in London's West End.
Joining The Celebrity Traitors
In joining the lineup of The Celebrity Traitors, he will be seen alongside EastEnders icon Ross Kemp, Coronation Street legend Julie Hesmondhalgh and Little Mix star Leigh-Anne Pinnock, amongst a host of others.
Speaking ahead of his first appearance on Claudia Winkleman's hit BBC game show, he said: "Jerry Hall and I are the geriatrics of the great group. So, I’m rather hoping there will be some leeway about whether we're expected to bungee jump off the castle's wall.
"I would love to be a Traitor! You have no control in real life over anything. Any chance for that would be welcome - and a little bit of mischief is always welcome."
The Celebrity Traitors starts on Thursday 1st October at 8pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
