Richard Madeley delivered his most gloriously “accidental Patridge” moment yet while describing the zany plot of his new crime novel on the radio.
The TV host, 68, initially opened up about the “back to front” book on BBC Radio 2 by explaining its opening chapter, which would have likely been enough to whet readers’ appetites.
But after explaining that the book begins with a brutal killing that leaves the reader wondering who has been killed and why, Madeley proceeds to give away the entire plot of the novel.
“It’s no plot spoiler for me to tell you that the man is a 40-something internet troll,” he adds.
“He’s in his 40s, he was in his 40s, he lives with his parents, he’s never left home, and his thing is to go on the internet and gatecrash into teenage girls’ chatrooms under the guise of being a teenage girl.
“He calls himself Rosie and says he’s 15. And he is brilliant at it.
“He’s brilliant at impersonating online teenage speak, girl speak, and all the rest of it, and his thing is picking the most vulnerable girl in the group and developing a one-to-one relationship over the weeks and months to come.
“He gets her to do two things: self-harm, he gets his kicks from that, but his big kick is if he can get her to kill herself.”
This went down a storm with Twitter (X) users, with one describing it as “the most accidental Patridge thing I have ever heard.”
“Richard Madeley explaining the plot of his new crime novel on Radio 2 just now is two minutes of pure joy, and the most @AccidentalP thing I have ever heard,” they wrote alongside a clip of the blunder.
Richard Madeley explaining the plot of his new crime novel on Radio 2 just now is two minutes of pure joy, and the most @AccidentalP thing I have ever heard pic.twitter.com/DkBez9vWyp
— Nicholas Guyatt (@NicholasGuyatt) May 26, 2024
Reacting to the clip, a second Twitter user joked: “No plot spoilers” *explains the full plot*”
“No plot spoilers”
— Tom Davenport (@TomDavenport) May 27, 2024
*explains the full plot* pic.twitter.com/L7Om75eJ1d
A third joked: “Thank God he clarified that the victim’s parent’s home was in Bristol. I couldn’t have slept tonight without that information.”
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days
New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days
New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled
“I was listening to this yesterday and nearly crashed the car,” wrote a fourth while a fifth added: “Madeley proving everyone has a book in them but most people, especially celebrities, should leave it there.”
Meanwhile, a sixth said of the Patridge comparison: “He even sounds like him these days, not just the turns of phrase but the way of over pronouncing things!”
The book in question is called Father’s Day and Madeley gave a much more brief synopsis when promoting it on Twitter last week.
“Father’s Day is my gripping new revenge thriller, publishing in hardback today. It explores the power of paternal love, the evil of online trolling, and the morality of extrajudicial punishment. I hope you like it,” he wrote.
Father’s Day is my gripping new revenge thriller, publishing in hardback today. It explores the power of paternal love, the evil of online trolling, and the morality of extrajudicial punishment. I hope you like it.https://t.co/4hgfPpLDsd pic.twitter.com/QIo2qW8qz6
— Richard Madeley (@richardm56) May 23, 2024
Hot on the heels of the subjects in his new novel, Madeley also called for smartphones to be banned for under 16s.
“I am 68 and I’ve never seen any images of someone being beheaded, on film, television or social media,” he told the Daily Express.
“Yet up to half of young children have seen actual beheadings on their phones. They’re being passed around in the playgrounds of primary schools. They’re watching actual beheadings and real torture.
“What is that doing to our kids? We’re having a debate now, but I think there are some serious conclusions we’ve got to reach about how we protect children. The obvious one is that they don’t have smartphones until they’re 16.
“Their brains are so vulnerable as they approach puberty and early adolescence – they’re forming, they’re shaping – and we’re allowing this stuff to get in there to pollute and corrupt. We’ve got to do something about it.”
