Having moved to the UK in the 1990s, heâs consistently stormed the stand-up game with thoughtful material about sex, race and politics. Reginald D Hunter is back and in mischief-making form with new tour Bombe Shuffleur. In our Q&A he tells us which voice soothes him and who heâd like to haunt, before sharing his controversial theory about the long-lost pilot Amelia Earhart . . .
Who should play you in the movie about your life? Either Edward Norton or AndrĂŠ Holland. Who do you think the casting people would go for? Itâs always about the money for them,
so theyâd probably go for Norton. The world is getting more non-traditional every day. If you were to return in a future life as an animal, what would it be? Iâm having a hard
time choosing between a bear and a moose. In fact, if it was possible, Iâd come back as a bear-moose. Iâm very slow and loping and ranging, friendly but hungry. Thatâs the bear part. The thing about the moose would be having great headgear.
Name two other people youâd recruit to help you get out of an escape room? Steve
Irwin and Amelia Earhart. I was obsessed with her story when I was nine or ten; I was given a few books about her and I was captivated by that mystery for a while. My over-riding theory is that . . . she dead!
When was the last time you were mistaken for someone else? Two years ago, I had
arrived in Gatwick and this older white guy came up to me and says, âI just want to thank you for impacting my life in a positive wayâ. And then he said, âdo you have any new sauces coming up, Mr Rootsâ? And I said, âyes, I have a mayonnaise and cranberry sauce coming out nextâ. He left there thinking he was the guy in the know. But, you know, it doesnât cost much to make people happy.
Whatâs the best cover version ever? The one that sticks in my mind was when I saw an episode of Knight Rider and a cover of âBeat Itâ was in there. Whose speaking voice soothes your ears?
Orson Welles. If I had to be an obese white man, I would be Orson Welles. Tell us something you wish you had discovered sooner in life? Indian food. I
didnât try it until about ten years of living over here. And lately I just canât get enough of lamb chops; that wasnât something I ever had when I was growing up. If you were a ghost, who would you haunt?
If you were a ghost youâd only want to drive someone crazy who deserved it. Someone like Henry Kissinger. If I was a ghost and haunted him, I wouldnât drive him crazy, Iâd be a vague annoyance to him because heâs already so evil.
WITH REGINALD D HUNTER
Which day in your life would you relive? I met Sidney Poitier once. There was a film that he did that is almost never listed in his credits, a little independent film called Brother John, with music by Quincy Jones. I went over and spoke to him and asked him about the film. It felt like he hadnât thought about it for a long time but it seemed like it was a very fond memory; he was just about to answer my question on that but something like a gust of wind took him away from me. Did you have a nickname at school? Some of
the older kids were bullying the smaller ones and I jumped in front and gave them a telling off. I said, âevery Sunday youâre in church praising the lord with your parents and you come out here and push these kids around: thatâs the way to go to hell!â And the bullies thought this was hilarious and started calling me Church.
What most recently astonished you? I watched the first two episodes of series two of Star Trek: Picard and it was a vomitus experience. Iâm blaming Patrick Stewart to a certain extent because he had to approve all of this. And I started to wonder how much he actually really liked being in Star Trek. What tune do you find it impossible not to get up and dance to? EMFâs âUnbelievableâ. Which famous person would be your ideal holiday companion? Probably Edward
Norton. He has an intensity in his work that De Niro had in the 70s and early 80s. If you see his name in something, you know it has a chance. He can make bad material average. Maybe Billy Bob Thornton as well. He seems like an interesting cat. As an adult, what has a child said to you that had a big impact? I was talking to my sister
one day while her granddaughter was there watching TV, and my sister was talking about the difference between shame and embarrassment. And this 14-year-old said, without looking back, âthe difference between shame and embarrassment is that with embarrassment you need other peopleâ. When did you last cry? 2006. My mum had
died and I nearly descended into weeping despair but I stopped myself because my mum always held her death over our heads as kids. I felt my nose had been rubbed in that all my life, so when she died I refused to cry. But I make up with that now with laughing and farting.
Whatâs the most hi-tech item in your home? I got to say my laptop but itâs on its last legs. Letâs say it has been dropped. A lot. Whatâs a skill youâd love to learn but never got round to? Coding. By decree of your local council, youâve been ordered to destroy one room in your house and all of its contents. Which room do you choose? Frankly, I would wonder about the
councilâs power to enforce that. I would have to call a lawyer first: âhey, the council are getting a little unrulyâ.
If you were selected as the next 007 where would you pick as your first luxury destination for espionage? I also have
difficulty with this question because I donât think MI6 works like that. You can quote me on that. Reginald D Hunter: Bombe Shuffleur, Whitehall Theatre, Dundee, Friday 29 April; Perth Theatre, Saturday 30 April.
NEXT TIME May is the month with a true spring in step and so it made sense for us to get our dancing shoes on for features about the pioneering Nederlands Dans Theater and Strictly star Oti Mabuse. Star Wars fans can get over-heated too as the TV spin-off Obi-Wan Kenobi takes us back to a galaxy far, far away, starring Ewan McGregor, Indira Varma and Hayden Christensen. You can also read about shock cinema, Aye Write, Black Scot Pod, Michelle Collins, C Duncan, Catherine Bohart and whisky. n Next copy of The List will be out on Friday 29 April.
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