Harry Enfield, 64, reveals he is going deaf as the comedy legend opens up about the challenges of ageing
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Harry Enfield has revealed he is losing his hearing as he candidly opened up about the challenges - and unexpected perks - of growing older.
The comedy legend, 64, best known for his Kevin the Teenager, Loadsamoney and Tim Nice-But-Dim sketches, said his hearing has deteriorated so much that he now struggles in public places.
Speaking on The Third Act podcast, he said: 'I'm deaf. I'm getting very deaf and I just cannot hear in restaurants.'
He added that being hard of hearing means he often asks venues to turn off their background music - noting that in today's 'rights' culture, anyone can use that as an excuse.
'These days, of course, you're allowed to say, "I'm deaf, could you turn the music off?"' he said.
'And then they're almost infringing on your human rights if they don't, aren't they? Because you've said, I've got a disability.'
Harry Enfield has revealed he is losing his hearing as he candidly opened up about the challenges - and unexpected perks - of growing older (pictured 2023)
He has a long-standing reputation for skewering British manners, social trends and changing attitudes, from 'new money' culture to middle-class politeness.
When asked if there were any advantages to getting older, the star admitted he exploits pensioner perks - despite being two years shy of official pensioner status - during his daily wild swimming sessions in north London.
'I swim every day in Highgate ponds. I take my cap off and go, "old age pensioner", put it back on, and that means I go in free until nine o'clock,' said the multi-millionaire.
'If I'm late, I pay £2.90, whereas young people have to pay £4.50. That really pleases me.'
The ponds on Hampstead Heath have long been a magnet for famous locals - including Harry Styles - hardy year-round swimmers and north London eccentrics.
The performer also reflected on how his industry has changed since his heyday, revealing he has deliberately stepped back from the relentless schedule that once made him a household name.
He said: 'What's so nice is not feeling you have to be driven. I remember once someone saying success is 10% talent and 90% drive. I thought, yes, that's definitely the case. That's how I felt.
The comedy legend, 64, best known for his Kevin the Teenager, Loadsamoney and Tim Nice-But-Dim sketches, said his hearing has deteriorated so much that he now struggles in public places (pictured 2022)
He added that being hard of hearing means he often asks venues to turn off their background music - noting that in today's 'rights' culture, anyone can use that as an excuse.
'As soon as my drive went, and I was no longer doing anything, it wasn't that I wasn't funny anymore. I just wasn't particularly interested in doing stuff like that, or fighting for it and pitching.'
The comedian praised the late BBC executive Alan Yentob, who commissioned his most successful shows during the corporation's golden era of comedy in the 1990s.
'It was one of the great things about Alan Yentob - when he was the head of BBC One and Two, which is when I did my big Harry Enfield shows, he was like the curator of an art museum,' Harry recalled.
'He'd say, I want this, Harry, will you make me a show? So you then produced your show and he didn't interfere, and no one from the BBC interfered. And then you gave them your show.
'Whereas [now] people say, "Would you do us a show and here are all our thoughts about it, and here are our notes, and what is this, and what is this?"'
He continued: 'It's like an art gallery going to Damien Hirst: "Would you do a show?" And then go, those spots should be a little longer, and those butterflies should be a slightly different shape.
'So we were lucky then. We were curated rather than managed. And I think when it started to get like that, I thought, I can't be bothered anymore.'
