Wake-up time? Our two Schnauzers bounce on me at 8.30am. My wife, Lauren, is a costume designer who works longer hours than me, so she’ll have a lie-in, while I take the dogs out. We’ll head north to Trent Park in Cockfosters, or south to Hampstead Heath and walk for an hour or two. I use that time to go over my lines out loud, so often get odd looks from other dog-walkers.
Breakfast? We’ll have coffee from our fancy bean-to-cup machine and Lauren cooks amazing poached eggs – I call them advert eggs, they’re that perfect – while I read the sports pages. Then I’ll tidy the kitchen, listening to Desert Island Discs, and prep dinner – a belly of pork or shoulder of lamb, cooked low and slow for four hours.
Sunday afternoon? I’m a season ticket holder at Tottenham Hotspur, along with Mat Baynton, Jamie Demetriou and Paul Whitehouse. It’s quite a collective of comedy performers. If Spurs aren’t playing at home, Lauren and I walk to our local. It’s a proper boozer that doesn’t serve food, but they come round with a tray of sandwiches. One time, I helped myself to a buffet that turned out to be for a wake. Rest in peace, sorry for stealing your sarnies.
What are you drinking? I’ll have two pints of Guinness and salt-and-vinegar crisps to tide me over. We’ll dig out a battered pile of Trivial Pursuit cards from the games corner and ask each other a few questions. Once we’ve got that warm, fuzzy Sunday feeling, we’ll stroll home, put the roast potatoes on and enjoy a succulent dinner at 5.30pm.
Is there pudding? A meal isn’t complete without a pudding. Breakfast needs a couple of Hobnobs afterwards. An apple will do after lunch. Sunday needs a cold dessert, like a slice of Viennetta.
Sunday evening? We’ll either watch a boxset – I’m excited about the new series of True Detective – or a film. We’ll have a bowl of popcorn with Revels or M&Ms in it, and put our feet up with the dogs snuggled between us. Lauren’s great at making martinis – dirty with three olives and a cocktail stick, the works – so we’ll sip those, too.
Most memorable Sunday? Last year, the TV Baftas were on Sunday and it also happened to be my birthday. So I got all my presents, cards and kind messages, then got dolled up. We spent the day drinking free booze, eating free food and hanging out with our heroes. We didn’t win but in a certain way, we did.
Childhood Sundays? Hated them. The weekend was finishing. School was looming. Because I was the youngest in the family, I had to bathe in my sister’s water. Bullseye and the Top 40 were the last things you could enjoy. By the That’s Life! theme tune, it was truly grim. Now it’s probably my favourite day of the week. Sundays are about doing something disguised as nothing.
Jim Howick stars in Here We Go on Fridays at 8pm on BBC One and iPlayer
