5 hours Ago By Harriet Gibsone
Born in Nottinghamshire in 1978, Mathew Horne is a comedian and actor. He studied drama at Manchester University, where he and Bruce Mackinnon formed Mat and Mackinnon – a duo who would be headhunted by Catherine Tate in the early 00s. Horne has since appeared in TV shows such as Teachers , Bad Education, Gavin and Stacey , and Inside No 9 .
On stage, he has starred in Entertaining Mr Sloane, The Homecoming and Rain Man. Gavin and Stacey: The Finale airs on Christmas Day on BBC One and iPlayer. He lives in London with his wife and son.
This photo was taken on mufti day at primary school. We didn’t have to wear school uniform, and as I was very interested in Captain Pugwash I went dressed as him. I was also very into the Cure; they were an important band to me, even as an eight-year-old.
That drawing in the background, the gold cobweb on black paper, is a homage to their song Lullaby . I was a happy kid, but given my artistic inclination, there was clearly a bittersweet goth in me too. In hindsight, it would have been cooler if I had dressed as Robert Smith.
The photo doesn’t entirely show it, but I was really pretty around this age. My eyes were very much the main feature of my face. Adults would often comment that there was something special about them.
That sparkle has now completely vanished, but my two-year-old son has inherited it. I get to see what all the fuss was about, and also feel deeply, deeply jealous of him. My childhood was quite provincial and stress-free.
I grew up in a detached two-up, two-down on the outskirts of Nottingham in Burton Joyce, a quaint place with three churches, three pubs, and a river running through it. Living in a small village was brilliant, as everyone knew everyone and the community supported us. My brother is severely disabled, he has learning difficulties and autism, and required an enormous amount of care growing up – he still does.
My parents did their very best to make it work, allowing me to have as normal a childhood as I could, so that his needs wouldn’t hold me back. I was no newcomer to the stage – I was playing King Herod by the age of five – but it wasn’t until I was nine and my primary school hosted some live performances in the assembly hall that I realised how much I loved acting. I wrote and starred in a comedy sketch about a man watching the World Cup; the joke being that the doorbell kept going, and every time he went to answer it his team would score a goal.
I’d do a funny version of an angry reaction every time he missed one. I remember that feeling of being on stage so clearly; the sensation I got from hearing people laugh in the audience, and thinking, “Oh, I like that. That feels really good.
” How did the sketch end? I have no idea. The waves and waves of hysteria from the audience possibly created so much adrenaline in my body that my memory has been marred. The transition to secondary school was quite challenging.
The state comprehensive was away from my village and my mum, who worked as a teaching assistant in my primary school. It took some adjusting to being the new kid, but I quickly found my tribe: the drama clan. I loved comedy, too – to the extent that at university I wrote my dissertation on Steve Coogan and how his comic characters reflected the sociopolitical movements of the 90s.
Somehow I got a first. In my second year of doing Mat and Mackinnon at Edinburgh, Catherine Tate came to see us. Her agent approached us and said Catherine needed an emergency replacement for an actor in her fringe show, and asked if we would we like to join the cast.
We said yes, obviously, and had to learn her show in just a few hours, but we pulled it off. That Edinburgh run ended up getting Catherine a sketch series – The Catherine Tate Show – and that’s how I wound up getting one of my biggest roles, Jamie, the grandson of her character Nan. Being on such a popular show meant I’d get recognised.
Shortly after it first aired, I was walking across a zebra crossing in London and someone started shouting quotes from the show at me. I turned to see who was sitting in the front seat and, to my surprise, it was Robbie Williams. I waved, carried on walking towards Carnaby Street, and thought, “Well, that’s odd – and cool.
” Sign up to Inside Saturday The only way to get a look behind the scenes of the Saturday magazine. Sign up to get the inside story from our top writers as well as all the must-read articles and columns, delivered to your inbox every weekend. after newsletter promotion Joining the cast of Gavin and Stacey was a big turning point in my life.
At first I found it really strange when people would approach me and confuse the character of Gavin with who I am in real life. But after a while, I realised I had done my job; the Essex characters in particular are meant to be quite naturalistic, and I had made Gavin as authentic as possible. Being on the show was, and still is, an absolute gift.
When I got the job, I called James Corden to say thank you. I’d always been a fan of his, from watching him on the telly and on Broadway. We spoke for about an hour that day, and I knew straight away that there was the foundation of a good friendship and a lot of love.
In 2009 [after the backlash against Horne and Cordon’s comedy horror film Lesbian Vampire Killers], I experienced a total character decimation in the press. Being in the eye of the storm was chaotic, both emotionally and physically. Very overwhelming, incredibly anxiety-inducing, and really hurtful.
I’m only human. Skin can only grow so thick. I can laugh about it now, but at the time, the response was horrible and upset me.
I had to hold on very tight to weather that storm. While it was awful, I am so grateful that I have experienced both ends of the spectrum. My CV has seen the good and the bad, the highs of the reception to Gavin and Stacey and the lows of that year.
It taught me that nobody knows for sure if a project is going to be a success, and that has allowed me to have a bit more peace with the direction of my career, because nothing is in my control. All I can do is my very best in whatever job I’m blessed to be offered. Having a bit more balance , a bit more perspective, makes my life a lot easier.
Especially as I’m getting old. I don’t want to be living in a hectic, insecure state of mind, to be overwhelmed. Now, in the run-up to the new Gavin and Stacey, it doesn’t matter so much what people write about me.
I’ve got more important things to think about. I’m a husband and I’m a dad. I am also still a goth.
The last time I saw the Cure was just 10 days ago. Am I still bittersweet? I’m leaning more towards sweet than bitter these days..
