View from my sofa: Sue Perkins
The presenter and comedian on how her dad and ADHD fuelled her love of chess
- Laura Rutkowski
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What’s the view from your sofa?
My rescue dog Tiggy. I’ve just done a DNA test on her; she’s mainly staffy with a bit of whippet. She has abandonment issues, so she’s never more than three feet away. She’ll be hoovering up any crumbs, jumping up and down on the sofa until, eventually, she’ll find purchase next to me under a blanket.
What have you been watching recently?
I rewatched The Queen’s Gambit to prefigure the question, “Did that make chess sexy?” The answer is, “Um, yeah!” It’s exquisite. Above and beyond the engaging chess, it’s an outsider story. A lot of chess players are socially awkward, or their brain doesn’t work quite the same as other people’s, yet they find this incredible mastery and command over something when they play chess.
Have you ever felt like an outsider?
We all feel like outsiders. But being diagnosed with ADHD very late [in 2022] is one reason I felt that way.
Was an official diagnosis validating?
It was useful to have. I now understand why some things make me very upset and stressed. I understand why I lose everything, why I can’t prepare for things, why I don’t like repetition. I live in a world where those things are expected, so it’s not about going, “I can’t and I won’t because I’ve got a certificate.” I don’t weaponise it to make excuses for things that I do that aren’t optimal. I want to be the best version of myself.
David Howell, Sue Perkins and Anthony Mathurin in Chess Masters: The Endgame. BBC / Curve Media / Alistair Heap
In what way?
In the way that I treat other people. Doing Chess Masters was great, because I met people from the neurodivergent community. On The Great British Bake Off, I’d hurl myself at everybody and hug them. I’m much more aware now. With Chess Masters’ contestants, I said, “Are you a hugger, a handshaker, or a ‘Get away from me as far as possible?’” Not everyone wants to be gripped by me.
What’s your experience of chess?
I’m really bad at it. I didn’t play as a kid. My dad was incredibly good. He could be quite an anxious sausage and he was really empathetic. Sometimes the world probably got a bit too much for him, so he took huge solace in playing. Before he died, he got the board out and absolutely whipped me in about 15 moves. I have this bittersweet feeling towards chess; I’d have loved to have learnt from him, but I proved to be too feckless when I was young. Because I loved him so much, I have such a fondness for it and people who are drawn to it. I’ve become fanatically driven to learn more about it from doing this show. With ADHD, I’m never going to be able to play a long-form game. It’s bullet chess all the way!
Starting in 2026, your first live show in over a decade is called The Eternal Shame of Sue Perkins. Tell us more…
I’m unpacking what would have overwhelmed me when I was younger – the endless failings, awkwardness and difficulties of life. It’s a lot about living half of my life on TV, and half of my life away from it, and how the two don’t always coexist happily. The older I get [Perkins is 55], I don’t even read the news. I just want to be a vessel for being decent and having fun where possible.
Is it scary to get so personal in your material?
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Yeah, but it’s also very liberating. The great thing about television is it’s very democratic. I try to do my job as sincerely and as well as I possibly can. People can just turn off if they don’t like me, and that’s OK.
Authors
Laura RutkowskiCommissioning Editor
Laura Rutkowski is a Commissioning Editor at Radio Times magazine, where she looks after the View From My Sofa slot, and the "What it's like to…" column, which spotlights behind-the-scenes roles within the TV and film industry. She loves finding out how productions are made and enjoys covering a wide variety of genres. Laura is half-American and half-British and joined Radio Times in 2022. She has a degree in Psychology and a Master's in Magazine Journalism.
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