Lenny Rush: ‘I cannot be farting in front of Gary Oldman. That can’t be happening’

In Lenny Rush’s newest role there’s a moment his reluctant vampire escapes the ire of an angry mob by pretending he’s just innocently practising his kissing technique on a pumpkin. 

Did you go full method and practise kissing a pumpkin for the kissing a pumpkin scene? 

“I’m going to be honest, no, I did not practise,” he tells Big Issue. 

Just a natural then? 

“No, but it was my first on-screen kiss. I don’t think many people can say their first on-screen kiss is a pumpkin. So yeah, got to live that down…” 

At least now, I reassure him over a video-call, it’s October and the right month, if there is one, to be kissing pumpkins. 

It’s becoming more and more difficult for Rush to score screen firsts. Only 17, he’s already had a long and accolade-filled career. His TV debut came in 2017, appearing on CBeebies documentary Our Family that followed the everyday lives of children from various backgrounds and circumstances around the UK. Lenny caught the bug for being on camera and enrolled in acting classes. Roles in the likes of The Dumping Ground and Dodger, opposite Big Issue Ambassador Christopher Eccleston, followed. In both Jack Thorne’s adaptation of A Christmas Carol at the Old Vic then Steven Knight’s subsequent TV version, Rush played Tiny Tim. 

His biggest break came playing Ollie in Daisy May Cooper’s Am I Being Unreasonable?. Still only 14, Rush went on to win a Bafta for Best Male Comedy Performance. He’s since been in Doctor Who and presented Children in Need, sat on a Would I Lie To You? panel and won a special New Year episode of Taskmaster. 

Ahead of last Christmas he starred in the TV film Finding Father Christmas. Now he’s scored his first TV series lead, as Valentine in The Reluctant Vampire, which sits in a snug Sunday evening slot on BBC One between Countryfile and the Strictly results. It’s a rare, truly family-friendly comedy. 

“Sometimes things are labelled as a family show but really are aimed towards children but The Reluctant Vampire is actually for everyone,” Rush says. 

It comes from the highest calibre of comedy minds, based on books by Eric Morecambe and adapted by Neil and Rob Gibbons, best known for writing for latter-day Alan Partridge. 

“I’m a massive fan of Alan Partridge. It’s just totally my sense of humour. I think Steve Coogan is incredible,” Rush says. “Eric Morecambe, I knew his face but I’d never really seen his work. Doing this job, I found on BBC iPlayer something called The Lost Tapes – literally the lost tapes of Morecambe and Wise episodes. So I watched them and I loved them. They’re still really holding up. There’s stuff that Val says and does that is very Partridge-esque and a bit sarcastic, while sticking true to Eric Morecambe’s quite tongue-in-cheek humour.” 

Besides having a bit of Partridge about him, Valentine is not like other vampires. For one, he might not refuse if Eric and Ernie offered to bring some sunshine. 

Rush explains: “He’s grown up his whole life believing he is a vampire, but there’s some things that he’s a bit behind on, like his fangs haven’t quite come through yet, he’s still struggling to learn to fly. Ultimately he discovers that he isn’t a vampire, and now he’s got to keep up the façade. Otherwise his dad will quite literally probably kill him.” 

So Val has to pretend to be a vampire while also learning how to be human. 

“He’s completely stuck in the middle, basically,” Rush says. “It’s like in secondary school, that sort of middle part of secondary school, it’s a really odd moment where everyone is going through their own thing, everyone’s trying to fit in and people are getting awkward and overthinking.  

“A lot of people think they’re the only one overthinking it, but I think it’s everyone. The whole show, to be honest, is a metaphor. It’s about vampires but it’s so great that people are able to relate.” 

Besides the creators of the show, the cast boasts incredible comedy talent. Val’s parents are played by Tom Davis and Sian Clifford, and every scene brings another star turn. Bill Bailey and Ross Noble play a pair of gargoyles, Joe Wilkinson is werewolf Wilf, Asim Chaudhry the family butler. There’s Charlie Cooper, who I think has a sister… 

“Never heard of her,” quips Rush. 

Does being surrounded by proven performers add pressure? 

“At first, when you hear these big names, you’re like, ‘God I’ve got to live up to that’. But when you get on set and meet these people, they are so lovely, and it does turn to helpful. You’re literally bouncing off of each other, and it’s so fun.” 

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Coinciding with The Reluctant Vampire, Rush is also starring in the sixth season of prestige global smash Slow Horses as Reece Nesmith, the son of an assassinated former MI5 agent. 

“I was getting through early drafts of The Reluctant Vampire whilst shooting Slow Horses. It would be fun little jokes, and then I’d go onto the Slow Horses script, and I’d be effing and jeffing. The characters are quite different. I guess you could say they’re both trying to fit in a little bit, on their own terms.” 

One of the ways Reece tried to fit in is by having a fart-off with famously flatulent and foul-mouthed Jackson Lamb, played by Gary Oldman. If acting opposite established comedy stars wasn’t intimidating, how about Hollywood legends? 

“It was the same thing where you hear Gary Oldman and you’re like wow. It’s big. But he is just the most lovely man. I’m a massive fan of the show, so I was in my element completely.” 

Did you go full method when it came to your farting competition? 

“You know what? I didn’t. But right, there’s this really weird thing where when you’re pretending to fart, you feel the urge to actually fart. I’d say in my mind: I cannot be farting in front of Gary Oldman. That can’t be happening.” 

I think he would respect your commitment to the craft. 

“I think he would. If I just went, ‘Look Gary, I’m method. You don’t mind if I let one or two drop?’” 

Has spending time watching, then being on Slow Horses given you an idea about who you think should be the next James Bond, given it stars one of the favourites to get the role? 

“There are two people I think would be great. Obviously, number one, Jack Lowden. I think it would be cool to see Jack play him because they’re kind of similar characters. But the good thing is, in James Bond, you’d be able to see Jack doing a good job of being a spy. Another person: I’ve become obsessed with is Theo James. I just watched The Gentlemen and I think he’d be a great Bond. They’re my two.” 

I saw some pictures of you rocking a tuxedo at the Baftas earlier in the year. You were looking very Bond-like. 

“Oh yeah! Imagine that. ‘Is it Jack?? Is it Theo James?! No, it’s Lenny.’ 

“I hadn’t seen a lot of Bond until recently when I watched all the Daniel Craig ones. I’d genuinely love to play M. That’s a great role. They change every so often, you have Ralph Fiennes, Dame Judi Dench, that’d be quite fun. And obviously I’d love to play a Bond villain. Maybe Mini-Me.” 

In an interview a couple of years ago, wise beyond his years Rush spoke about not wanting to “get typecast as something because of your disability”, referring to people with dwarfism often being cast as “magical creatures”. But maybe it depends on the magical creature. 

In the second series of the new Harry Potter TV series, Rush has been cast as lovable house elf with a fondness for socks, Dobby. He’s not allowed to say much about the role, so what little can he say?  

“What I will say is that I’m so excited. The only stuff I’ve seen is what everyone else has seen, the trailers for the first series.” 

You’re probably not even able to tell us whether Dobby is a make-up job, motion capture, or just
the voice…? 

“Oh no! Sorry, I can’t. But I’ve seen the route they’re going down and how we’re gonna do it together and yeah, Dobby’s gonna look great. I’m really pleased with him.” 

Are you a fan of socks? 

“Do I like socks? Yeah, though I’m not wearing any at the moment. But who don’t like socks?” 

From the lead in a BBC One comedy to a part in the biggest series being made at the moment, Rush has achieved a staggering amount by age 17. He still has unfulfilled ambitions.  

“I’d love to have something that’s my own,” he says. “I’d love to write or direct. Acting you have creative freedom, which is great but directing and writing, it’s limitless.” 

Just a short time in Rush’s company has proven him to be contagiously enthusiastic and positive, modest and self-deprecating, supremely polite and above all, very sharp and quick-witted. 

When did you realise you were funny? 

“Thank you,” he modestly and politely begins. “Um, I don’t even know if I have realised. Not to get too serious, but I’ve got dwarfism – I don’t know if you could tell. 

“Growing up, if you can say growing – getting older – I’ve noticed that sometimes having a conversation with people, it could be awkward. They’re so worried of saying the wrong thing. I’m not like that at all. I’m totally up for a laugh. Otherwise it’s a bit of an elephant in the room. Humour is great because if done right it can completely get rid of awkwardness, basically. So I think I’ve always been trying to find the funny side of things.” 

Lenny Rush stars in The Reluctant Vampire on BBC One on Sundays and iPlayer, and in the current season of Slow Horses on Apple TV

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