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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Neve Dawson

Richard Osman says he used to feel ‘awful about being tall’

Bestselling author and TV presenter Richard Osman has opened up about how he used to feel “awful about being tall”.

Speaking to Gyles Brandreth on the Rosebud podcast, the 54-year-old, who is 6ft 7in, said: “I always felt I looked awful. My self-image was terrible, and of course, you look back at pictures of yourself and you go "Oh my God, you look great, you look so good".

Despite being self-conscious about his appearance, Osman revealed that he never had trouble dating as a result of his height and quick wit.

“I always sort of did ok in that area. I was quite shy. And I was always funny and people like that,” he said. “I felt awful about being tall, and actually people like that. If you're funny and you're tall and you've got a bit about you.”

Richard Osman at the Bestseller Awards in central London (PA)

When asked by Brandreth how he felt being seen naked for the first time, Osman replied: “Tall doesn't look bad naked - I'll say that. It looks unusual on the tube, but in a room where it's just in context it all seems to fit together.”

It comes after Osman revealed in February that he was taken to hospital for surgery after waking up in agony. The TV presenter and author was taken to Charing Cross Hospital in London where doctors discovered he had a kidney stone.

He added: “It is the single most painful thing that has ever happened to me. The doctors kept saying it's more painful than childbirth but I'm not sure I can buy that.”

Speaking on The Rest Is Entertainment podcast, Osman said: “I've had quite the week of it. I woke up the other night in pain and I had a kidney stone.”

Best known for his book series, Thursday Murder Club, and his role as the present of Pointless, Osman made an appearance in the Royal Box alongside his wife, Ingrid, on day one of Wimbledon.

Osman alongside his wife, Ingrid, at Wimbledon day one (PA)

The series follows a group of pensioners who solve crimes in the fictitious village of Fairhaven, Kent.

The Impossible Fortune, the fifth book in Osman’s Thursday Murder Club series, is set to be released on 25 September.

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