logo
episode-header-image
Aug 2024
50m 16s

Rob Delaney, actor and comedian

Bbc Radio 4
About this episode

Rob Delaney is a comedian, writer and actor who is best known for the television series Catastrophe, which he co-wrote and co-starred in alongside Sharon Horgan. He has also appeared in Hollywood blockbusters including Deadpool and Mission Impossible.

Rob was born in Boston, Massachusetts and grew up in Marblehead on the north shore. He studied for a degree in Musical Theatre at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts and began writing comedy material after he graduated. In 2014, he moved to London to co-write and shoot the first series of Catastrophe and has been in the UK ever since. The series won Rob and Sharon a BAFTA and a Royal Television Society Award for comedy writing.

In 2016 Rob’s one-year-old son Henry was diagnosed with a brain tumour and after undergoing surgery and intense treatment Henry died in 2018. In the throes of his grief Rob wrote his best-selling book A Heart That Works which was a tribute to his son, his family and the NHS.

Rob lives in north London with his wife and three sons.

DISC ONE: Galician Overture - The Chieftains DISC TWO: This Is To Mother You - Sinéad O’Connor DISC THREE: Chopin, Nocturne No 11 in G minor. Composed by Frédéric Chopin and performed by Maurizio Pollini (piano) DISC FOUR: Bluer Than Midnight - The The DISC FIVE: Hey - Pixies DISC SIX: Fire in the Hole - Steely Dan DISC SEVEN: Plainclothes Man - Heatmiser DISC EIGHT: Rock Lobster - The B-52s BOOK CHOICE: The Collected Works of Alice Munro LUXURY ITEM: A piano CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: This Is To Mother You - Sinéad O’Connor

Presenter Lauren Laverne Producer Paula McGinley

Up next
Today
Professor Sue Black on the mysteries of the human body
In 2015, the forensic anthropologist, Professor Dame Sue Black, was cast away by Kirsty Young.Brought up on the west coast of Scotland and in Inverness, she fell in love with biology at secondary school and read Human Anatomy at the University of Aberdeen. After graduation, she w ... Show More
3m 27s
Yesterday
Lemn Sissay on his foster family
The poet Lemm Sissay was cast away by Kirsty Young in 2015.As a poet, writer and playwright, much of his work tells the story of his search for his birth parents. Born to a young Ethiopian woman who wanted him temporarily looked after while she completed her studies, he was with ... Show More
3m 48s
Oct 7
Jill Scott on her start in football
The former footballer Jill Scott was cast away by Lauren Laverne in 2023.Jill was part of the Lionesses’ winning team at the Euros 2022.When Jill was starting out in her career, the women players had to settle for second-hand kit and miserly wages.She spoke to Lauren about the ch ... Show More
5m 4s
Recommended Episodes
Apr 2023
Rob Delaney and a braised leg of lamb with mint, parsley & almond pesto
Dish is back! Season three kicks off with US comedian, writer and author, Rob Delaney. Twitter launched Rob Delaney’s career in comedy and in 2012 he was named Funniest Person on Twitter by Comedy Central. In 2014, Rob and his wife Leah moved their family from Santa Monica to Nor ... Show More
31m 29s
Mar 2024
Ken Loach
Ken Loach is one of the greatest film directors of all time and a true British icon. He is known for his powerful, socially engaged films including ‘I Daniel Blake’, which won him a BAFTA for outstanding British film. At 87 years old, Ken’s career spans nearly six decades and his ... Show More
38m 57s
Jul 25
Charlie Kaufman | I'm Thinking of Ending Things
Charlie Kaufman is one of the most celebrated screenwriters and directors, known for movies like “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” and “Anomalisa.” Three of his scripts appear in the Writers Guild of America’s list of the 101 greatest movie screenplays ever written. He’s re ... Show More
41m 11s
Aug 11
Peter Sellers at 100
Peter Sellers was a comic genius who changed British comedy forever. With this year marking his centenary, Samira is joined by Dick Fiddy, curator of an new season of his films at the BFI, and comedy historian Robert Ross to discuss his films and legacy.The Edinburgh Internationa ... Show More
42m 17s
Jan 2025
513. Hollywood Undone and the Return to Comedy | Rob Schneider
Jordan Peterson sits down with actor, author, and comedian Rob Schneider. They discuss the unpredictable changes to both major political parties during the last presidential election, the fall of Hollywood and celebrity culture (by their own hand), how new and independent media f ... Show More
1h 36m
Jul 24
2025 Update: Dina
It’s the last Heavyweight encore before our new season begins on September 18th! This week, we talk to Jonathan's mom about life in the years since her appearance in #15: Dina. During a visit back home, Jonathan’s mother Dina inadvertently admits something that forces him to ques ... Show More
42m 3s
Sep 3
Fashion Neurosis with John Malkovich
John Malkovich is an award-winning American film star, theatre actor and director. After ten years in Chicago as an original member of the legendary Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Malkovich made his Broadway debut in 1984 as Biff in Death of a Salesman. He appeared in many highly a ... Show More
1h 14m
Dec 2022
Zadie Smith on The Wife of Willesden, David Tennant on Litvinenko and Rick Wakeman's stolen gear
Zadie Smith talks about her play The Wife of Willesden, a modern re-telling of Chaucer’s The Wife of Bath starring Clare Perkins in the title role at Kiln Theatre, London. David Tennant discusses playing Russian Alexander Litvinenko in a new ITV drama based on the real life event ... Show More
42m 34s
Jan 2024
S2 EP2: Baz Luhrmann on his iconic ‘Red Curtain’ Trilogy, living in Graceland, and his enduring love of clubbing
In this episode, Louis meets Baz Luhrmann, the iconic director, auteur and self-described ‘Stanley Kubrick of Confetti’. Dialling in from the Gold Coast in Australia, Baz tells Louis about his remarkable life and career, including trying to reinvent the musical, living in Gracela ... Show More
1h 23m
Feb 2025
Chris O’Dowd, sticky pulled pork and a pickled salad and a whisky
Nick and Angela welcome another Irish guest to Dish HQ. Chris O'Dowd is an award-winning actor, writer and director. He was born in Boyle, County Roscommon, and studied politics at University College Dublin, later enrolling at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. Chris p ... Show More
36m 16s