Why Rufus went into acting

Rufus Hound has said he’s moving into acting after finding that he was no longer challenged by his comedy career.

The stand-up – who will star in Soho Theatre’s play Utopia from next week – says he was driven by doing things that interested him, rather than following a predetermined career plan.

He told Radio 5 Live: ‘I’ve worked with people a lot who have a very fixed career plan and I see what that does to them, It’s only the very best who remain totally uncontorted by it, frankly.

‘Once you say. “I have this brand and I have to represent myself as this brand”, it means you can’t leave the house in the morning without spending two hours making sure the brand is intact, and that just seems like the most horrific way of living possible.

‘It does mean I might never be the richest man in the world, and I might not be invited to every premiere. But you know some, I’ve been to premieres, and it’s like going to the cinema but with a lot more pain in the arse.

‘So I thought I’d just stick to things I enjoyed – or at least challenged by.’

He said that was partly why he left hit ITV2 show Celebrity Juice, adding: ‘When you start asking yourself “What are you in this for?”, you start possibly taking a dim view of the thing you’re already in.’

Hound said that he had wanted to be an actor since he was a small child, but that he was put off his dream by a bitter teacher ‘a failed actress’ who left him feeling utterly uninspired.’

Utopia, which opens next Wednesday, is a series of scenes exploring the idea of a perfect world, written by a series of writers including Dylan Moran.

Hound added: ‘My bank manager said I definitely couldn’t do it, as it turns out there’s no money in experimental theatre, you do it because it’s the right thing to do, and that’s how I choose to live my life rather than worrying about a career or brand.’

Rufus has pointed out that this article misrepresents his views, and written more about it here

Published: 13 Jun 2012