Richard looked very dapper as he prepared to announce the winners of the 2003 Empire Awards last night. Wearing a warm-navy blue high buttoned suit with purple windsor-knotted tie, he read out the auto-cued welcoming speech and introduced each nomination.

Hugh Grant stepped up to accept his Best British actor award – blowing Richard a kiss before delivering an amusingly flippant speech.

It wasn’t until Johnny Vegas came up to accept the Best Actress on behalf of Kristen Dunst that the evening moved into territory few award ceremonies reach – real, tear-inducing laughter. Johnny even admonished Richard for rattling though the words before adding “Even if someone else wrote them you give them magic!”

By 11.50pm the final award, the Lifetime Achievement Award was announced – the award going to Dustin Hoffman for his work. Dustin shook Richard’s hand and told the audience “This guy was brilliant in LA Story.”

Mr Hoffman was obviously quite taken by Johnny Vegas inviting him up on the stage before giving a rather anarchic acceptance speech. Other actors were also invited onto the stage – Christopher Lee, Hugh Grant, Samantha Morton and Sir Ian McKellan (who was vesting the rest room).

At 12.30 Richard rounded up the proceedings with a line from Withnail, “We’ve been in here too long. We must get outside.”

For more information on the event – including full acceptance speeches, quotes, video clips and a gallery, go to http://www.empireonline.co.uk/awards2003.

There’s an 8 minute trailer on the sky website containing Richard at both the beginning and end. It’s worth viewing for those who haven’t seen the show and want to see a little of the evening’s festivities.

http://www.skymovies.com/skymovies/article/0,,1079322,00.html#.

Thanks to Denise for the report and SueW. for the additional info.

Denise informs me that Arabelle Weir was promoting tonight’s Posh Nosh on BBC Breakfast this morning. They also showed some snippets of the programme.

Arabelle explained that the 10 minute slot was deliberate in that the viewer watching should have that element of uncertainty as to whether the show was a spoof or if it was real, and that it wouldn’t have been sustainable over a longer period. Although she admitted that having bagged a star of Richard’s status producers were tempted to extend it.

Denise also adds that if you want to create your own “Architect’s fish and chips” you can check out http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/poshnosh/.

Sky Magazine – Wednesday 5th February, 2003

The Sony Ericsson Awards 2003

Sky Movies Premier

The great and the good of cinema will be at Dorchester hotel in London tonight hoping to nab an award. Withnail himself, Richard E Grant, helms proceedings, which include the award for best British film voted for by Sky viewers. Catch the highlights again tomorrow at 8pm.

Denise informs me that there is a small picture of Richard with Joan and the Lloyd Webbers at a promotional for Mauritius in this week’s OK! magazine (with Vic Reeves on the cover).

TV Magazine – 1st February, 2003

Richard E Grant and Arabella Weir take TV chefs with a pinch of salt.

By James Rampton.

Celebrity chefs Minty and Simon Marchmont are on a mission to teach us all how to strip-search a cabbage, bamboozle a parsnip and relax an avocado. Arabella Weir and Richard E Grant star as the culinary couple in Posh Nosh, a new BBC2 comedy of eight 10-minute episodes which sends up the likes of Nigella, Jamie, Delia and the rest.

The husband and wife team run The Quill And Tassle restaurant in Buckinghamshire. Or to be more accurate, Minty puts in the hard work in the kitchen while her husband practises his strokes with his tennis coach – and love interest – Jose-Luis.

Both Richard and Arabella admit that the snobby attitude of a lot of TV chefs is a ripe target for comedy.

“They seem to be begging for it,” says Richard, 45. The Withnail And I star says he can’t believe that a cookery show spoof hasn’t been done before.”

“But I suspect the real TV chefs will love it,” he adds. “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. The only danger is that the real ones become so ridiculous, they’re impossible to parody any more. But we’re not there quite yet.”

So could Posh Nosh spell the end for our obsession with real-life celebrity chefs?

Richard, who lives in west London with his voice coach wife Joan Washington and has two children, stepson Tom, 26, and daughter Olivia, 14, laughs ruefully: “Fingers crossed.”

Actress and writer Arabella, 45, who co-wrote Posh Nosh, agrees with Richard. “TV chefs are always telling you what kind of chestnuts you must use, saying, ‘there’s no point in making this if you don’t have my fancy cookbook full of words you’ve never heard of.'”

As mum to Isabella, five, and Archie, three, Arabella, who lives in north London, knows that life isn’t always like the cookery books.
“They all pretend that cooking their recipes is incredibly simple, and you’re supposed to feel like a complete idiot for not finding it easy,” says the actress, who has appeared in many guises on The Fast Show, including the ‘No offence’ cosmetics saleswoman.

“As if everyone has got fresh scallops in the fridge. I haven’t. All there is in my fridge is a half-pint of off milk!”

“These makeover shows all serve to make you feel your life is not good enough and it will only be good enough if you hang about with some bloke in leather trousers cooking divine dishes.”

“It’s a similar thing with celebrity magazines. You sit around reading them and think, ‘I don’t match up because I don’t hang around with Brad pitt and wear Gucci trousers.'”

To see a scanned copy of the actual article, click here.