Rufus Hound as Francis Henshall
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Rufus Hound On ... Being the West End Man & hosting the Whatsonstage.com Awards

Actor and comedian Rufus Hound is about to take over from Owain Arthur as Francis in One Man, Two Guvnors at the Theatre Royal Haymarket, having played the role on the current UK tour.

The production will mark Hound's second London theatre role following Utopia at Soho Theatre earlier this year.

Hound, 33, is best known for his appearances on TV quizzes including Celebrity Juice, Never Mind the Buzzcocks and 8 Out of 10 Cats. His film credits include forthcoming comedy The Wedding Video.

The role of Francis was created in the National Theatre production by James Corden, in whose footsteps Hound will also be following as co-host (with Mel Giedroyc) of the Whatsonstage.com Awards Concert on 17 February.

Rufus Hound: One Man, Two Guvnors is a very exciting show to be a part of. A lot of people were coming to see it on tour who’d heard how good it was but hadn’t been able to, or couldn’t necessarily afford to, get down to London to watch it. And doing it in their own backyard meant that people were really up for it.

Playing the role in the West End is a thrilling thought, partly because the prospect of doing the show every night is exciting, but also it endorses the feeling that I’m doing a pretty good job with the role. I’ve enjoyed lots of things I’ve done and been pleased with how they’ve turned out but I haven’t really felt as much pride as I feel about this. To feel pride you have to put in some real graft; if you throw things together at the last minute, even if they turn out incredibly well, you can’t really be proud of them. With this, I know that I work my backside off every night when I’m on that stage to get it that good.

I’ve rehearsed with the new West End cast over the past couple of weeks and they’re absolutely phenomenal. It’s a real lesson for me, as I’m fairly new to the theatre game, to see what different casts bring. I think there’s a temptation to think that if you’ve got the same direction, the same outfits and the same script, then there’s not really much that’s going to be different, and yet seeing what different actors are capable of with those moments, with those beats, with those set ups, is really thrilling.

One of the things Edward Bennett, who plays Stanley Stubbers on tour, really instilled in me was to never lose sight of the fact that it’s a privilege to be able to get the reaction that this play gets. Almost every night he walked off stage and said to me, “aren’t we lucky?” An added bonus of working with Ed is that if he ever fumbles over his words, or if I can make him corpse, which has happened once or twice, I get to have this wonderful moment where I get to explain to the audience that he went to RADA and should basically be better than me. I just look at him and say “Hamlet, ladies and gentlemen. Hamlet.”

If I do corpse on stage, I like it to be genuine. As somebody who’s earned a living as a professional comedian, it offends me to pretend that something is funny. I spent ten years of my life actually making people laugh in the spur of the moment, and to pretend that we’re doing that is an affront. So I’ve tried to take some of the more ‘false’ bits out of the show in favour of creating more genuine laughs.

In terms of endorsements of One Man, Two Guvnors, I can think of no higher than this. My mum’s husband has never been to the theatre, he’s a concrete engineer in Halifax. As far as he’s concerned, theatre is not for the likes of him, but there was no shadow of a doubt that he would be dragged by the ears by mum to come and see me in it. At the end, he wiped tears from his eyes and said to me that it was the best night out he could ever remember having. That’s the strength of this play. If you’re just someone who wants a really good night out and a good laugh, it’s the closest thing you’ll get to The Lion King... only without the songs or the puppets.

On hosting the Whatsonstage.com Awards

I’m an enormous fan of Mel Giedroyc. I totally, totally love her and have done for most of my post-pubescent life. When she was on Late Lunch she saw me through many a long day at college, and we watch The Great British Bake Off religiously in my household. We’ve worked together once or twice, and the idea of continuing to do so is a delight. I’m really looking forward to it though I can’t pretend I know exactly what I’m doing. I’m sure that between me and Mel we can keep it entertaining.

There are some great nominees this year, and Owain Arthur is rightly nominated for the Whatsonstage.com Best Takeover Award this year. However, if he wins it then that will surely gazump my chances of winning it next year as it can’t just be handed from Francis to Francis. The theatre wouldn’t know where to put its tiny binoculars. It would implode. So we’ll have to see what happens on the night...

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Booking Tickets & Show Listings
	One Man, Two Guvnors Listing Page

Internal Links
	Michael Coveney: So, who wants to run the National Theatre after Hytner? - 11th Apr 2013 blog
	1st Night Photos: Rufus Hound joins One Man, Two Guvnors - 13th Feb 2013 photos
	Show Pics: New cast for One Man, Two Guvnors - 30th Jan 2013 photos
	Brief Encounter with ... Physical comedy director Cal McCrystal - 10th Jan 2013 interviews
	Rufus Hound to star in West End One Man, Two Guvnors - 9th Nov 2012 news
	One Man, Two Guvnors extends at Haymarket, Tom Edden returns - 28th Sep 2012 news
	Cast: Harry Melling in Camera at Southwark, new Guvnors - 27th Jul 2012 news
	WOS Radio: Bean & cast share Guvnors thoughts at Q&A - 14th Jun 2012 news
	Morpurgo’s Private Peaceful fills gap at Haymarket, 18-29 Sep - 18th May 2012 news
	Boss Blog: WOS 15th birthday: Reporting on the Oliviers over the years - 24th Apr 2012 blog
	WOS Radio: Bean's Guvnors gets more giggles at Q&A - 12th Apr 2012 radio
	Arthur & Co. serve up more laughs at One Man, Two Guvnors Q&A - 12th Apr 2012 blog
	Live Tweeting: Last night's Club Outing to One Man, Two Guvnors - 11th Apr 2012 news
	Matilda, Guvnors & Constellations compete at South Bank Awards - 2nd Apr 2012 news
	Wyatt & Garcia front dance Revolution, Sundays at Haymarket - 2nd Apr 2012 news
	WOS Award winner Richard Bean joins Heart of the West End panel - 20th Mar 2012 news
	Matilda, Guvnors & Ladykillers lead the field at 2012 Oliviers - 15th Mar 2012 news
	One Man, Two Guvnors (Haymarket) - 14th Mar 2012 reviews
	1st Night Photos: S Club party at One Man Haymarket opening - 14th Mar 2012 photos
	Hannah Spearritt: Why You Should Come & See ... One Man, Two Guvnors - 12th Mar 2012 interviews
	Show Pics: New One Man, Two Guvnors photos, royal visit - 7th Mar 2012 photos
	Photos: New cast rehearse One Man, Two Guvnors - 14th Feb 2012 photos
	Prenger & Spearritt join Haymarket cast of One Man, Two Guvnors - 20th Jan 2012 news
	Nothing On Noises Off - 12th Jan 2012 blog