Louis Theroux:“I've Always Enjoyed Hiding”

Britain’s favourite documentary-maker reflects on happiness, his family and dealing with his complicated connection to Jimmy Saville

- Anna Walker

The internet is obsessed with Louis Theroux. Each time I log into Twitter, I’m greeted by a tweet from “@NoContextLouis”, an account solely dedicated to posting screencaps from his documentaries, devoid of any context, which boasts 133,000 followers. Facebook is home to the 312,000-strong “Louis Theroux Reactions” page, which creates Louis-themed-memes.

Homemade e-commerce site Etsy is where the memefication of Louis Theroux reaches its zenith. For less than £20, fans of the boy from the BBC can purchase sequined cushions, phone cases, birthday cards, jewellery, Christmas jumpers (“dashing Theroux the snow”), candles or wrapping paper, all adorned with Louis’ Weird Weekends-era face—complete with round spectacles, floppy hair and bemused expression.

“I don’t fully understand it, and I think that’s the point. Maybe if I did it would short circuit itself and no longer exist,” Louis muses, baffled. “I’m sort of interested to see whether you have any theories on it…”

And herein lies the problem. Interviewing Britain’s favourite interviewer comes with a unique set of quandaries. Though kind and generous with his answers, the man who answers the phone with that signature “Hello, it’s Louis”, is far more comfortable asking the questions than he is answering them.

We’re together to discuss his new memoir—aptly named Gotta Get Theroux This in a nod to the prevalence of memes that riff on the French surname he shares with his writer father (Paul) and brother (Marcel), and American acting cousin (Justin)—but it’s clear he’d probably prefer that I just read it, and then spent my time discussing something not quite so intimately related to him. Video games, perhaps, or scary movies—his two self-professed guilty pleasures.