The tower of London has over two million visitors per year – despite this, almost no-one in the present day can claim to have lived in it. Tom Houghton is one of these lucky few aristocrats whose flatmates include Anne Boleyn’s ghost and at least six ravens. However, as he is quick to point out, Houghton is not there on his own merit – instead, his odd accommodation is due to his father, Baron Houghton of Richmond, a man who never cries and is so unused to driving himself to places that he gets in the backseat of a car automatically.
Houghton is taking a gamble, here; listening to someone talk about their incredibly privileged lifestyle and incredibly rich family for an hour can definitely begin to grate if the talker isn’t prepared to poke a bit of fun at themselves too. Luckily for us, he is more than willing to do this, and immediately launches into a description of the three kinds of rich person he’s met thus far (boring, social climbers, and alcoholics) which has the audience in stitches. From there, it’s plain sailing (or perhaps plain skiing, depending on the kind of rich person you’ve encountered).
He insists that most of his anecdotes aren’t relatable, but a lot of them are when viewed through a different lens. Everyone knows the feeling of starting at a new school, even if that school is actually the House of Lords and the new pupil in question is your dad. Houghton guides us through all manner of topics – his friends, his gothic/demonic sister, the three times he was arrested – with complete ease, gradually segueing into more serious material before ending the show by relaying a very sweet exchange between his parents that encapsulates his family in all its absurdity. And although Houghton may not be the most honourable of men, he’s definitely one of the most hilariously self-aware.