Few people have lived as many lives as Richard Coles. In the 1980s he was the keyboard-playing half of the Communards, whose “Don’t Leave Me This Way” was the biggest-selling single of 1986 – taking him, almost overnight, from the dole queue to flying aboard Concorde and the full pop-star life. Then, the gay socialist atheist who set out, in all seriousness, to bring down the government through the power of pop, became, of all things, a Church of England priest. Then a celebrated broadcaster, a best-selling novelist, a Strictly contestant, and the inspiration for the BBC sitcom Rev. But behind the reinventions runs a thread of profound loss. As AIDS swept through his world in the 1980s, Richard watched a third of his circle die – the formative crisis, he says, of his adult life. At 17, before any of the fame, he survived a breakdown and an overdose he fully intended to be his last act. And decades later came the greatest loss of all: his partner David. In this conversation, Andy Coulson explores a life in which crisis has repeatedly been the doorway to transformation – and what Richard has learned about loss, faith, forgiveness, and how we begin again when the life we knew is taken from us. His latest crime novella, A Carol and a Killing, is out this month. POWERED BY KINGSLEY NAPLEY I know what it is to have the right legal support around you when facing crisis. Kingsley Napley are the kind of lawyers I wish more people knew about – there to help you make the right decisions, protect what matters, and build real resilience when the pressure is on. This episode is powered by Kingsley Napley. Visit www.kingsleynapley.co.uk for more details. FOUR LESSONS FROM RICHARD Sometimes you just have to step forward. You may be uncertain, apprehensive, but stepping forward, into the unknown, is how a new chapter begins. Crises are unavoidable; the opportunity is in not being defeated by them.When you get something badly wrong, face it, own it, make amends – and then let yourself be forgiven. Richard did a thing he remains ashamed of. What mattered wasn’t that he deserved forgiveness, but that he sought it, took his medicine, and learned to live with having been forgiven.Get less interested in yourself. The habits of self-loathing are hard to shake, but Richard found relief not through endless self-examination but through caring less about his own importance – and turning his attention outward, to other people. CHAPTERS 05:34 – Realising he was gay in a hostile world 12:10 – Seventeen, a breakdown, and the overdose he meant to be final 15:37 – Escape to London, and the friendships that still anchor him 18:26 – Bringing down the government through the power of pop 20:50 – The socialists who were, secretly, perfect Thatcherites 21:40 – Dole queue to Concorde – and the toll fame takes 29:35 – AIDS – the formative crisis 31:29 – The lie he told, the shame he carries, and seeking forgiveness 35:02 – The atheist who walked into a church and came out a believer 38:07 – Walking away from a life he loved to train for the priesthood 45:21 – Loving an addict 50:51 – Learning to live a life around the loss, not without it BUY RICHARD’S BOOK A Carol and a Killing – https://geni.us/ACAROLANDAKILLING FOLLOW RICHARD COLES Instagram – www.instagram.com/revrichardcoles/?hl=en FOLLOW CRISIS WHAT CRISIS? Instagram – www.instagram.com/crisiswhatcrisispodcast TikTok – www.tiktok.com/@crisispod This was a Crisis What Crisis Production – Rex Fisher (producer), Ioana Barbu (studio manager), Fred Sharp (research), Johnny Seifert (audio), Jasper Cullen (video), Gem Hall (video).
