Matt Richardson

Comedy

Richardson began doing stand-up from the age of 18, with his debut performances being in November of 2009.^[4] He appeared in the finals of So You Think You're Funny and the Chortle Student Comedian of the Year in 2010.^[5] Richardson's first solo show, Hometown Hero, won Best New Show at the 2012 Leicester Comedy Festival and was taken on a 54 date national tour from September 2013 to June 2014.^[6] His second show, Slash, debuted at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2017 before going on a UK Tour in Autumn 2017.^[7] After a run at the 2019 Edinburgh Fringe Festival he went on tour with his show, Impostor, in early 2020 ^[8]

Television and radio

In 2013, Richardson replaced Olly Murs as co-presenter of the ITV2 spin-off show The Xtra Factor with Caroline Flack, airing immediately after the main ITV show.^[9] On 4 June, both Richardson and Flack announced that they would not return for The Xtra Factor for series 11.^[10] Richardson was also a regular panelist and presenter on Channel 5's Big Brother spin-off show Big Brother's Bit on the Side. In 2014, Richardson was a regular panelist on the ITV2 panel show Viral Tap presented by Caroline Flack.^[11]

In 2016, Richardson became the drive time presenter on the digital radio station Virgin Radio UK. In 2018 his show on Virgin was nominated for a Radio Academy Award for Funniest Show^[12] He left Virgin Radio on 2 August 2019. In October 2016, Richardson co-presented Celebrity Haunted Hotel Live on the W channel, alongside Christine Lampard and Jamie East. He also presented the spin-off show Celebrity Haunted Hotel: Do Not Disturb. On 29 May 2017, Richardson presented the final episode of Just Tattoo of Us: The Aftermath. In February 2018, Richardson co-presented Celebrity Haunted Mansion on UKTV's W channel with Christine Lampard.^[13] He also presented its spin-off show Celebrity Haunted Mansion: High Spirits.^[14]

On 13 May 2020, he launched When No One’s Watching, a podcast he co-hosts with Matt Willis.^[15] Guests have included, Ricky Wilson, Tom Fletcher, and Keith Lemon.^[15][16] On 3 February 2021, it was announced that Richardson would be a contestant on the thirteenth series of Dancing on Ice, as a replacement for Rufus Hound who had been forced to withdraw from the competition after testing positive for COVID-19. Richardson was paired with Vicky Ogden and joined the show in week 4, however was eliminated in the same week.^[17]

From March to October 2023, Richardson presented the breakfast show on Jack FM, a radio station in Oxfordshire, where he replaced Iain Lee.^[18]