Ruby Wax has spoken of how she once felt Louis Theroux had “stolen” her career, before she met him and found him to be “generous and kind”.
The American-British comedian and actor, 72, was once famed for her high-profile presenting work, interviewing figures such as OJ Simpson and Donald Trump on her BBC show, When Ruby Wax Met… in the Nineties.
Theroux, meanwhile, first rose to attention as an on-the-ground BBC presenter in the late Nineties and early Noughties, attracting praise for his engaging style of questioning that led to him landing a higher calibre of interviewee.
Wax has previously admitted to her resentment of the younger star, believing that he was muscling in on her territory while her own profile was seemingly diminished.
She was also dealing with issues in her personal life, having been diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 1993, she was then admitted to hospital with the condition following the birth of her third child, Martha.
In an interview with the Sunday Times, Wax spoke about her upcoming UK tour, in which she plays clips of her classic TV interviews then reappraises them. In a strange twist, the idea was first suggested to her by Theroux.
“Incredible, isn’t it?” Wax said. “Just hearing Louis’ name used to make me want to throw up or punch a wall. I really felt he’d stolen my career. But then I met him and he was so generous and kind. Louis, I’m sorry. I got you completely wrong.”
Wax previously discussed her feelings on The Adam Buxton Podcast in 2019, explaining that she had “evolved” from her earlier feelings but “there’s still a little bit of anger”.
Theroux addressed her remarks during the Edinburgh TV Festival that year, commenting: “I also feel like people resenting you is kind of a compliment, not to be glib about it. I feel bad for her. I feel bad about it. And, at the same time, a little part of me is flattered that she would be so annoyed.”
Wax then went on Theroux’s podcast, Grounded, in 2020, in which she told him how she had watched his ascent while her own TV work dried up. Wax didn’t hate Theroux, she explained, but hated “what you brought up, which is jealousy, envy, failure, my dad’s disapproval”.
In the Sunday Times interview, Wax also reflected on her friendship with the late Alan Rickman, whom she met when she moved to London and who first advised her to pursue comedy over acting.
“He really saw me,” Wax said of the British actor, who died in 2016. “He was very gentle, telling me I was barking up the wrong tree but sweetening it – he said, ‘Your stories, your delivery, they’re hilarious. Be a comedian.’”
She added: “He was the first person who ever truly listened to me. Alan was handsome, kind and so talented. Who isn’t going to be in love with someone like that?”
Wax’s Absolutely Famous tour begins on 25 March.
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