'Podcasting about fatherhood was life-changing'

Comedian Darren Harriott has said reflecting on fatherhood, following the death of his own father by suicide when he was 11, has been "life-changing."

In 2024 he became older than this father was when he died in prison, aged 35.

Realising he had overtaken him in age led Harriott, from Oldbury, West Midlands, to explore what it meant to be a dad, and whether he wanted to become a father, as part of a wider BBC Radio 4 series.

"It's easily the most thoughtful and deep thing I've made and been part of," he said, and looking into his father's background had hit him "like a tonne of bricks."

His father was a drug dealer and addict, who was "in and out of prison for multiple crimes with some severe mental health issues."

In the five-part series the comedian and BBC Radio WM presenter talks to family and friends, as well as psychologists and campaigners.

"It's all about can you break the cycle of bad dads," he said, "it's a very full-on show, but it's been life-changing for me."

'Different life'

Harriott got into comedy at the age of 18 because of the loss of his dad, and said he always knew he would do material about him.

He described his early jokes as "admittedly dark, but they just weren't funny" and it took years to work out the right balance.

He also did not want to be too disrespectful, "as at the end of the day, I still love my dad."

His father being the man he was had shaped his career, the way he thinks, and the way he is.

"If my dad was still alive and was a very different man, I would have a completely different life, a completely different career, I think."

A list of organisations in the UK offering support and information with some of the issues in this story is available at BBC Action Line.

Darren Harriott: Father Figuring on BBC Sounds.