Everybody thinks I'm a shoo-in for Love Island

The Reverend Richard Coles tells HANNAH STEPHENSON about his new love, new book and new beginnings

- HANNAH STEPHENSON

THE Reverend Richard Coles, affable, entertaining broadcaster, author and former pop star, is in an upbeat mood when we meet.

He’s promoting his new cosy crime caper, A Death in the Parish, following the runaway success of his debut novel Murder Before Evensong, is loving life in Sussex, where he moved after the death of his husband, David – and has found a new partner.

“The big personal news is that I’ve met someone and am now in a relationship, which is lovely. We met just before Christmas – it was my first go on a dating app and it’s worked very well.”

His new partner is actor Richard Cant, son of the late actor and children’s TV presenter Brian Cant.

“He’s lovely, he’s kind, funny, thoughtful, interesting – and he likes me!”

They haven’t moved in together yet, but Richard, 61, reflects: “If you’re dating in your golden years, you don’t exactly cut to the chase. You’re not looking for a rollercoaster – you tend to be looking for a smooth limousine, so things are sort of steady and nice, which I like.”

When they get time off together, he says: “We walk and we talk, we sing songs around the piano and I help him learn his lines, which I really enjoy – although at times he gets me to stop, because I’m enjoying it a little too much.”

Richard wrote about the loss of his husband David, a former vicar who died from alcohol addiction in 2019, in his bestseller, The Madness of Grief. At the time, Richard couldn’t see a romantic future with anyone else. “After David died, I went into a sort of hibernation without realising it, “ he recalls.