Table Manners with Jessie and Lennie Ware

This week we welcome the joyous Joe Lycett onto Table Manners. Cheering us up from his living room inBirmingham, the TV presenter and comedian talks to us all about how he became a comedian, his mum's faggots and mash, writing sitcoms in lockdown & his affinity for ‘stodge’. Formerly known as Hugo Boss (it's a long but excellent story), Joe cracks the cheesiest of jokes (courtesy of his big sister) and admits to having Eminem as his karaoke song. This was just what we needed, thank you Joe! X  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week we welcome back the wonderful & long time friend of the podcast, Chris Sweeney & his fantastic new Homo Sapiens co-host – the brilliant Alan Cumming. We hear all about the vegan actor, comedian, singer, filmmaker (he does everything!!) Alan’s upbringing in Scotland, eating mince & tatties as a child, having his own perfume and soap line, foraging & owning his own cabaret bar in New York ‘Club Cumming'. We hear about what both the boys are missing in lockdown and what the Homo Sapiens duo are most looking forward too when they are reunited! Homo Sapiens is back for Series 4 with a killer line up of guests, make sure you go and have a listen!  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

She was that voice we all knew, sung the songs that were always on the radio, her first support tour was for Usher and all at the age of 13. This week we talk to Boston born JoJo and hear her tough, frustrating and honest story about her dealings with the music industry that ended up with her not being able to be heard for years. Fast forward to 2020, she's won a Grammy, her current record was top of the R&B charts in the US and she's currently in lockdown with her mum. JoJo waxes lyrical about @dishoom, her penchant for drinking lemon mescal margaritas, tells mum about being in a ‘situationship’ and is basically a doll who we wished we could have had round for a curry in Clapham. Listen to her story, her struggle and her survival and fist pump at the end. Xx Please note: this episode contains discussion of disordered eating  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

After a dramatic start where a door-to-door salesman (not following social-distance guidelines!) threatened to smash through Lennie’s window, we welcomed our most-requested guest Ellie Goulding to Table Manners this week. Ellie shares her bio-hack veggie lockdown eating must-haves, how to prep for lockdown grocery store queues and her fears of the essential-item trolley police! We hear the origins of her romance with husband Caspar, her multiple wedding day outfits that saw the singer end up in Vogue for the first time, and missing out on trying her wedding cake or any of the food. Ellie, you've always been so generous and lovely to me in the old industry and it was a pleasure to chat to you (even with your shit wifi girl). We know our listeners will love you like we do xx Produced by Alice Williams  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In between his daily PE lessons, we managed to lock down the king of quarantine, Joe Wicks AKA The Body Coach to join us on Table Manners and what a joy it was! Straight out of A&E and onto the podcast, Joe chatted to us about his lockdown routine, his newly appointed teaching assistant (his wife!), his gin collection, nothing beating a burger and chips, his brand new book ‘Wean In 15’ & we discuss our shared mutual respect for the Moana soundtrack. And I reinvent the pronunciation of Quarantine as I've obviously been having too many Quarantinis !!!! To top it all off, he even serenaded us with his guitar! This is a good one, enjoy! X Produced by Alice Williams  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Lockdown you are spoiling us!! We managed to zoom in to the delightful British actress, Oscar nominated star of Little Women, Florence Pugh's Los Angeles garden studio for a chat. We talk about her sourdough starter 'Maggie', family and how her ma made the best dressed mum's list at the Oscars. We bond over Tiramisu and hear what's she growing in her veg patch, being the 'Queen of the cheeseboard’, lockdown Los Angeles and her new puppy finding a dildo in the backyard. I've been obsessed with her since I saw Little Drummer Girl (a good quarantine series btw) and she totally indulged my enthusiasm like a massive pro. What a star, god love her! Have a listen xxx  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Zooming straight in from LA, this week John bloody Legend joins us on Table Manners. The EGOT winner (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar & Tony award winner...mum didn't know what that meant either) sat down to chat to us whilst eating his wife’s home cooked chicken soup and dumplings. John talks about being in charge of breakfast in the Legend/Teigen household, growing up in Ohio, stockpiling A1 sauce, being a pro chair dancer and we get to the bottom of the ‘eating chicken wings before a show’ situation! What a Legend...enjoy!  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week we had our first guest zoom in from across the pond; American singer, songwriter, actor and record producer Josh Groban joins us on the podcast from sunny Los Angeles. Josh talks us through his musical journey, from starting in musical theatre, duetting with Celine Dion when he was only 16 to making a 4 year album with the master, Rick Rubin. Quarantine has awoken a new found passion for cooking; he makes a ‘mean’ beans on toast & has realised he enjoys singing in the shower, even with a puffer on. We talk about where to get the best sushi in LA, drinking mezcal & what he feeds his 15 yr old dog, Sweeney. Enjoy!  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We were SO thrilled to get the UK’s finest - the greatest and warmest comedic duo Mel & Sue on Table Manners this week, via our new friend Zoom. 'Perky' & 'Melly' as they call each other, dialled in – Mel live from inside her wardrobe – and made mum and I feel so much better about another week in lockdown. The fabulous two-some talk to us about their brand new Sky Originals/Now TV show 'Hitmen', they Mrs & Mrs each other's last supper, tell us what they’re eating in lockdown, what a ‘special purse’ is & they reminisce about their Bake Off days! Everyone needs a bit of Mel & Sue in their lives…especially right now. They are wonderful, witty and kind and we love them, a lot x  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In the midst of this lockdown we managed to have lunch with Dr Alex's favourite, award winning broadcaster and Newsnight presenter Emily Maitlis. We talk about Corona, of course, that Prince Andrew interview, being a flexitarian, the cake and cookie counter at the Newsnight studio and her love for a dirty vodka martini with 3 olives (my kind of woman). She hates a pud, her favourite food is Vietnamese and our Emily is insistent on having napkins on the dinner table. Emily Maitlis is on Table Manners!!! Lap it up.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

So it may be week 2 of lockdown but we have something to celebrate. We have been trying to get this star for aaaaages and finally we did! Popstar sensation Dua Lipa shares a virtual dinner with mum and I whilst she is stuck in London quarantine with her excellent second album Future Nostalgia just out. We talk stockpiling hot sauces, Nutella sandwiches in her lunchbox, Pez rider requests, where she goes for good sushi dates in NYC and mum and Dua bond over gel nails. But even though we have probably the hugest popstar we have ever had, it doesn't stop mum interrupting our chat for her Ocado order. We loved chatting to Dua and absolutely adore the new record which is out now go and listen x  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

It's lockdown. But that isn't going to stop us serving you Tables Manners, even in special circumstances. I've moved the family out to an Airbnb to make sure Corona can't get her mitts on Lennie, Dr Alex is on the frontline, so it's a quiet (and clean) house for mum and means this is our first episode recorded remotely. Via the internet the wonderful, funny and gorgeous Grimmy joined us for a virtual dinner with mum and I. We talk bulk buying Hobnobs whilst in isolation, growing up in Manchester, eating luxuriously late now he isn't on breakfast radio and living on Freddos when he made it to London. Although gutted to not have him over and give him a kiss, cuddle and chicken soup it was a Zoom revelation and a welcome relief from a heavy week! X  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

It was our biggest delight to cook a Monday vegetarian risotto for one of this country's absolute treasures, actor, musician and all round excellent person, Riz Ahmed (even if he then did tell us he had chicken for lunch). We elbow bump and discuss growing up in London, school, PPE at Oxford, his mum's Nihari being on his last supper, Naughty Boy being a good cook and Asma Khan's Darjeeling Express being one of his favourite London restaurants. I want to know everything about his break up album with Britain 'The Long Goodbye' and the incredibly powerful short film (shout out Aneil Karia) and despite proclaiming to 'not be much of a pudding person' we watch dear Riz have two helpings of roasted rhubarb and stem ginger Eton mess. Our new critical topic of the school lunchbox continues as we delve into his; penguins, jam sandwiches and 'no pork’ stickers in school. Riz we love you, you're amazing and it's bloody frustrating that people are going to have to wait a little longer to see the live show for The Long Goodbye. Enjoy  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

A little something for the weekend! Last week we celebrated the publication of 'Table Manners: The Cookbook' with an 'In Conversation' at Waterstones Piccadilly, we met some of our lovely listeners, for those who couldn't make it here is a chance to listen in... enjoy!  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We welcomed the beautiful and brilliant Zawe Ashton to ours last Friday with an unexpected guest, Fresh Meat co-star Charlotte Richie (who Jessie used to babysit back in the day!). The author and actress devoured mums sticky short ribs (even kindly put them on her last supper meal!), spoke all about being a child actor, being bullied, The Handmaids Tale and her new book Character Breakdown. We chatted about the go to places to eat after you've stepped off stage on Broadway, how savoury porridge saved her life, the thrills of cheap red wine and being a devotee of Terry's Chocolate Orange. She shares with us her mum's Ugandan cooking, what was in her lunchbox and Lennie’s love of Margaret Atwood. This has SO MUCH GOOD STUFF IN IT! Enjoy and thank you Zawe for being so wonderful x  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.