His mother abandoned him, his father fired a gun at him; but Richard E. Grant bears no grudges. How could he? His childhood in end-of-empire Swaziland gave him the material for a gripping film and book.

In a small, private cinema in Soho, Richard E. Grant is introducing Wah-Wah, the autobiographical film he has written, directed and, to all intents, produced (although that’s a long story).

“The audiences we have tested it on so far have both laughed and cried,” he says, baring his teeth in a smile that looks more like a grimace. “So no pressure.”

This might be a tougher audience than most: a dozen gnarled distributors who watch films every day. But the screening begins and they duly oblige with the odd chuckle and sniffle.

Afterwards, in his intense way, Grant seems pleased, his pale blue eyes slightly mad and stary. We find a dimly lit corner and the 48-year-old actor sits forward, straight-spined, as he talks and talks, earnestly and articulately, spooling out sentences like tickertape.

The film, set in Swaziland during the dying years of British colonial rule, tells the story of his parents’ divorce, as seen through his adolescent eyes.

It opens with a scene in which Grant’s mother (played by Miranda Richardson) has sex with his father’s best friend in the front seat of a car.

The 11-year-old Richard is pretending to be asleep in the back seat but sees everything. He is horrified. He tells no one.

Grant’s father (played by Gabriel Byrne) is the minister for education. Like all his peers in Swaziland he speaks ‘Wah-Wah’, Wodehousian English punctuated with phrases such as ‘toodle pip’.
Confronted with his wife’s adultery, his cheerfulness disintegrates. He turns to drink and, over time, becomes an alcoholic.

This article/interview with Richard appeared in The Telegraph’s “Seven” Magazine a couple of Sundays ago. To read more, just click here.

Thanks to Sue W for the news.