Bill Bailey

The comedian and actor discusses the creative power of walking, the necessity of a thermos of tea and his grand plan to tour the Thames by paddle board 

The physical act of walking is essential for the creative process. It’s a great time to think. You’re taking lungfuls of air, you see the way the countryside works, you get a better handle on your own thoughts and you get ideas. When you’re in a house, there is a lot of domestic responsibility and always some mundane issue – having to deal with bills, with this and that. After walking for a few hours, thoughts settle in a much more ordered fashion. It’s a way of resetting. More and more these days, I find that I need that. It’s a great balm for the soul.

My most treasured piece of outdoor kit is my thermos from John Shuttle worth. He presented it to me at a show I did with him at the London Palladium, and it’s a constant companion. Tea is the most restorative drink. When you do long distant walks, tea takes on a mythical quality. I believe my thermos has staying power. I could pick it up a couple weeks later and the tea would still be tepid.

Gliding on a flat water – on a river, canal, lake or estuary – on a paddle board is one of my favourite things to do. Next year, I hope to paddle board down the Thames. The full length is 200-plus miles from source to sea, so I may just do a section, perhaps the upper Thames. Tidal Thames is tricky, you feel quite vulnerable on a flimsy little paddle board. The upper Thames is wonderful; maybe I’ll take in a few pubs on the way.