British interviewers’ rivalry eased as Ruby Wax apologizes to Louis Theroux
Thursday at 9: 14 a. m. ET — Ruby Wax told audiences that hearing louis theroux’s name once made her “want to throw up, ” and that meeting him later changed how she sees their past rivalry; the revelation comes as Wax prepares to reopen her archive of interviews on tour.
Ruby Wax: how her admission affects her public image
Ruby Wax, 72, said the resentment toward a younger peer had followed her for years and shaped how people talked to her about her career. She described feeling that her profile had diminished while another presenter’s work drew higher-calibre interviewees, and she admitted that the name alone provoked a visceral reaction—”want to throw up or punch a wall. ” That frankness frames Wax’s current project, in which she plays clips of her old interviews and reassesses them for live audiences.
Louis Theroux’s suggestion became the trigger for Wax’s tour
Wax said the idea to play and reappraise her classic TV interviews was first suggested by Louis Theroux, and she acknowledged that her earlier judgment had been wrong after she met him. She called Theroux “generous and kind” and offered an apology: “Louis, I’m sorry. I got you completely wrong. ” Theroux had previously addressed Wax’s resentment in public comments, saying that being resented can feel like a compliment and that he felt both bad and a little flattered by her reaction.
Alan Rickman, health struggles and the material Wax will revisit
Wax has tied the professional tension to personal strains she experienced in the Nineties, including a bipolar diagnosis in 1993 and a hospital admission after the birth of her third child, Martha. She has said those challenges fed feelings of envy and failure that the other presenter’s rise seemed to spotlight. Separately, Wax recalled the late Alan Rickman as the first person to recognize her comic delivery and encourage her to pursue standup; she will include reflections on those career moments in the new show.
Wax has previously discussed evolving from anger toward the other presenter while retaining a small measure of resentment, and she has appeared on his podcast to confront those feelings directly; on that program she described hating “what you brought up, which is jealousy, envy, failure, my dad’s disapproval. ” Her decision to reexamine archived interviews on stage is presented as part confession, part creative reassessment.
Wax’s Absolutely Famous tour begins on 25 March. If the tour follows the format she described—playing classic interview clips and reappraising them—audiences will hear those reassessments starting 25 March.
