Noel Fielding was once nearly arrested by Los Angeles police for drunkenly attempting to
break into Russell Brand's house. So why did they let him go? Keep watching to find out!
Long before he became a TV sensation for judging baked goods on "The Great British Bake Off,"
Noel Fielding was best known as a member of the British comedy troupe The Mighty Boosh. It all
began in the late 1990s, when Fielding met fellow comedian Julian Barratt while they were booked on
the same bill at a London pub. Deciding to work together, the pair first brought their weird,
eccentric brand of comedy to BBC's Radio 4. But it wasn't until comedian Steve Coogan
footed the bill to pay for the costs of shooting a pilot that The Mighty Boosh became a TV series.
A glam-rock "Monty Python's Flying Circus" set in the world's oddest zoo, "The Mighty Boosh"
was far from mainstream entertainment, yet became a cult hit around the world.
"We are all Vince!"
"I'm not."
"What? Who are you then?"
"Uh, Roger Black."
As anyone who's ever watched Noel Fielding on "The Great British Bake Off" will attest,
he does enjoy a nice piece of cake. According to a hilarious anecdote from his youth,
that affection for cake once cost him a job.
On an episode of "The Big Fat Quiz," Fielding
revealed that he got fired from a bakery for eating the merchandise.
"I did work in a bakery for one day.
But the boss went off, and when he came out, I was lying down eating cakes."
But there may be a genetic reason behind Fielding's appreciation of baked goods.
According to The Express, Fielding's paternal great-grandfather, William George Fielding,
was employed at a biscuit factory in London back in 1911. He likely
worked for Peek Freans in south London, which was then the largest manufacturer
of cookies and biscuits in the city, nicknamed by locals as "Biscuit Town."
Fans who know Noel Fielding from "The Great British Bake Off" or via his comedic adventures
on "The Mighty Boosh" may not be aware that he's also an acclaimed artist. In fact,
Fielding's paintings have graced the walls of numerous galleries, and fetch a pretty penny.
According to a bio at Hooligan Art Dealer, which reps his work, Fielding's first solo show,
titled "Psychedelic Dreams of The Jelly Fox," was sold out. Indeed, among those who collect
his paintings are artist Keith Tyson and legendary Beatles drummer Ringo Starr.
Fans of "The Mighty Boosh" have witnessed Noel Fielding do some pretty weird stuff,
but it's safe to say that he topped himself when he hit the
stage for the 2011 "Let's Dance for Comedy Relief" charity competition.
For his performance, which aptly combined dance and comedy,
he delivered a move-for-move recreation of Kate Bush's "Wuthering Heights" music video.
Not only was Fielding wearing a wig that approximated the singer's hairstyle circa 1978,
he even sported a replica of the flowing red dress she wore while cavorting in the woods.
Later that same year, Fielding made an appearance in one of Bush's videos.
Fielding and Harry Potter actor Robbie Coltrane appear together in a very strange scene in
her 2011 video for "Deeper Understanding," in which Coltrane's deranged character literally
strangles Fielding to death, grabbing him by the throat and pinning him to a wall.
How can someone profess to be avoiding sugar while starring in a televised
contest in which competitors bake the sweetest confections in all of Britain?
That's what fans of "The Great British Bake Off" couldn't help but wonder when they read
an introductory interview with the show's new on-air team in a 2017 edition of The Times,
where Fielding revealed he was on a sugar-free diet for an acting role.
"Sugar is a powerful thing, I get more work when I'm thinner. So I can't put on weight.
No one likes a tubby goth, is what I'm saying."
After being hit by backlash by cake-loving fans on social media, Fielding took to Twitter to clarify
his unwittingly controversial statement. In a tweet that was later deleted, he wrote,
"What I actually said (as a joke) in the Sunday Times was 'nobody likes a tubby goth'
I was taking the piss out of myself. I love cake."
Along with his hilarious comments, fans of "The Great British Bake Off" have become
seriously enamored of the unique and unusual shirts Noel Fielding wears on the show.
One in particular really struck a chord with viewers: a vintage sweater from 1990s alt-rock
band Dinosaur Jr., featuring the cover art from the group's 1994 album "Without a Sound."
For whatever reason, that shirt led to a tsunami of Twitter love for Fielding
as fans took to social media in droves to express their admiration for the shirt. One viewer wrote,
"Noel Fielding repping the Dinosaur Jr. jumper, he truly is my sweet prince."
For anyone looking to duplicate Fielding's sartorial choice,
be prepared to spend some time and money; Decider tracked down one of the no longer
available shirts on Etsy, where it was offered for the not-so-low price of $355.
A boozy evening in Los Angeles came to an inauspicious conclusion for Fielding when
he was nearly arrested. Fielding explained in an interview with Scotland's The Herald that
he was crashing at Russell Brand's house when he realized he didn't have any keys to get in.
So obviously he decided to just try and hop the fence. He said,
"It was an electric fence and the alarm went off and I was like, 'F---, this isn't going well.'
And the next thing there's a beam on my head and a policeman telling me, 'Sir, get off the fence.'"
Fielding informed the officer that he was staying with Brand.
And amazingly, the officer believed him.
"He said, 'Of course you are, sir. I'll escort you in now.' He took one look at me and said,
'He's not lying. If you think a thief in L.A. would dress like that...'"
These days, Noel Fielding is happily hosting "The Great British Bake Off" and reveling in domestic
bliss after he and partner Lliana Bird welcomed their second child in October 2020. In fact,
Fielding would be the first to admit that his life is far different than the wild days of his youth.
In an interview with The New York Times, Fielding recalled those years, when he ran with a crowd
that included singer Amy Winehouse, who tragically died of a drug overdose at age 27 back in 2011.
"I used to hang out with her. It's so sad.
God, if I'd died at 27, I would have missed out on so much."
Those hard-partying days are light-years from the life he went on to lead,
and he wouldn't have it any other way. He said,
"It kind of gets better as you get older, in a weird way."
"We partied for a bit, but I've got too much work to do, so... I'm getting too old."
Some fans of the show were uncertain about the addition of a comedian like Noel Fielding to "The
Great British Bake Off" — and that included the show's producers. In fact, as Fielding revealed
in an interview with The Express, this led to a very unorthodox audition in order to prove
he'd be good at talking to contestants on the time-tested U.K. television hit.
"One of my tests for the show was to go into a garden centre and chat to people.
At the end of the test, they were like, 'You've got to stop now,
we've got to finish, it's dark.' I'd made friends with two ladies, it was brilliant."
Fielding also respects "The Great British Bake Off" and its format enough to tailor
his comedic impulses to suit the show, and not vice-versa. He told The New York Times,
"You can't push your vision onto something that already has a tone. You have to respect the tone."
Becoming a part of a television institution such as "The Great British Bake Off" is something that
Noel Fielding never could have conceived of during his "Mighty Boosh" days, and sees that
as part of an evolution toward maturity. Likening himself to Peter Pan, he told The
New York Times that "The Great British Bake Off" has been, quote, "the realest job I've ever had."
If Fielding was surprised by how well he fit into the show,
so were viewers and critics. The Radio Times wrote,
"Far from being the odd addition to the mix, his quips, asides and bizarre references have
become the best bits of 'Bake Off,' the nuggets you turn the volume up for and
rewind if you miss. 'Bake Off' never took itself seriously, but who knew you could
handle heaps more irreverence and silliness and still produce such entertaining results?"
A November 2020 episode of "The Great British Bake Off" celebrated the 1980s,
leading Fielding and co-star Matt Lucas to joke about a vintage TV show from
that decade that wouldn't make any sense unless you were a British kid in the 80s.
"That joke works better if you're over 45." "If you're under 45, just carry on with TikTok."
The exchange apparently sent viewers rushing to Google,
where they discovered that Fielding was 47 years old at the time, as he was born on May 21, 1973.
Fans were seemingly rocked by this information, and took to social media to express their shock
that Fielding was far older than they'd imagined he was. One twitter user wrote,
"Finding out Noel Fielding is 47 had shaken me to the core.
I thought he was late 20s or early 30s this feels wrong."
Added a different Twitter user,
"Goths truly don't age."
While viewers of "The Great British Bake Off" may have been surprised
when they learned that Noel Fielding was in his late 40s, he admitted he's just
as surprised that his fans are so much younger than he is. He told The Music,
"I do get a lot of young people, weirdly, I don't know why, but young people seem to like what I do.
Maybe young people are quite interested in more conceptual,
fantastical stuff. I don't know why, maybe when you get older you want
your own life sort of reflected back at you to prove that you're alive."
Fielding also discussed an odd phenomenon he'd been witnessing during a comedy tour.
"As I'm getting older my audience are staying the same age, they are quite
young. It's like a science-fiction film where I get older and no one else ages.
I'll be like 80, and my fans will still be 17, it'll be really weird."
For loyal viewers of "The Great British Bake Off," it shouldn't be surprising that Noel
Fielding's taste in music is as quirky and eclectic as his comedy. Fielding proved that
when he revealed the 10 albums that changed his life to Metal Hammer. Among Fielding's
faves are the KISS classic "Destroyer" and two Motörhead albums, "Bomber" and "Ace of Spades."
Oddly enough, Fielding's list also includes an album that he absolutely loathes,
Coldplay's "X & Y." He explained,
"I get a lot of energy out of music. I want to get pumped up. I love bands that are visual too, so
Coldplay fail on all counts. You never see Chris Martin and think, 'Ooh, I must get that jumper!'"
The album in his collection that he thinks would surprise most people is ABBA's Arrival. He said,
"I've got a few ABBA records. People say, 'Why have you got that?' I just like a nice
cry when I'm on my own sometimes. They make me cry and then they make me feel better."
One of the most unexpected pleasures to emerge when Noel Fielding joined "The Great
British Bake Off" was his hilarious rapport with co-star Sandi Toksvig.
When she announced in January 2020 that she'd be leaving the show, Fielding shared some
sweet sentiments on Instagram, comparing their chemistry to other famous duos in pop culture.
"I feel like Tom without Jerry! Mick without Keef! I'm gonna miss you Sandi and our strange
and magical double act. It's been a joy to hang out and muck about in the Tent with you."
"You and Noel have a great relationship. It's really funny."
"Crying. Crying with laughter. He refers to me as his little Danish wife."
Here's hoping Noel continues to bring joy to bakers for many more years to come.
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