Paul F. Tompkins (Tasting Menu)

Ed Gamble (0:00)

Hello, it's Ed here from the Off Menu podcast that you are listening to right now. You'll know that I'm doing a brand new standup comedy show on tour next year, Fresh Hell. And we are delighted to announce that we are doing two more shows at the London Palladium, Friday the 19th of March, Saturday the 20th of March. You got to come to these shows. They're going to be great. They're on sale now. edgamble.co.uk for ticket details.

Welcome to the Off Menu Tasting Menus.

James Acaster (0:41)

We get a fan favourite back on the podcast. We give them the menu of another fan favourite and they react to it. This week, our returning fan favourite guest is Paul F.

Ben Williams (0:50)

Tompkins.

Ed Gamble (0:52)

Paul F. Tompkins, I remember the first time we had Paul on James. I was so excited. I love Paul F. Tompkins' work. We interviewed him in America. It's fantastic that he was over in the UK to record this.

James Acaster (1:02)

Yeah.

Ed Gamble (1:02)

Delighted to have him back on. We'll be giving him the menu of another fan favourite.

James Acaster (1:06)

This feels like the second part of a foreign exchange student, kind of like pen pal situation. You go and visit them where they live, and now he's come into our home.

Ed Gamble (1:16)

Learning all our little ways.

James Acaster (1:17)

Yeah, that's exciting.

Ed Gamble (1:18)

Did you do foreign exchange when you were a kid?

James Acaster (1:21)

No, we had pen pals with just another school in England, and we went to their school at one point, and obviously, my one kind of didn't want to hang out with me when he met me in person, and he kind of ditched me for this other... He kind of hang out with his friend and his pen pal from my class, so I was kind of just drifting around on my own at this other school for the day.

Ed Gamble (1:39)

But look at you now. That kid is going to be gutted right now. You could have been friends with James A. Castor.

James Acaster (1:45)

That kid's David Beckham.

Ed Gamble (1:48)

Very excited to speak to Paul, of course. Listen to Spontaneanation, Paul's podcast. He's got another podcast called Threedom as well. Listen to that one. He's on all sorts of podcasts. He's brilliant.

James Acaster (1:57)

Always funny, always a pleasure to talk to. Let's see how he reacts to this menu, Ed.

Ed Gamble (2:01)

This is the Off Menu Tasting Menu of Paul F.

James Acaster (2:04)

Tompkins.

Ed Gamble (2:14)

Welcome back, Paul, to the Dream Restaurant.

James Acaster (2:17)

Hi Paul, it's good to see you.

Paul F. Tompkins (2:17)

Hi, thank you. It's good to see you, fellows.

Ed Gamble (2:19)

We were just chuckling there at Ben's clap.

Paul F. Tompkins (2:21)

It was fun.

Ed Gamble (2:22)

Ben does a little clap to... The clap though, what does that actually do?

Paul F. Tompkins (2:26)

It syncs up the sound of things.

Ed Gamble (2:27)

Shouldn't it be in front of the cameras, though, to sync up the sound with the audio? Okay.

James Acaster (2:32)

Oh, he's telling you it's boring.

Paul F. Tompkins (2:34)

Wow.

James Acaster (2:34)

That's the earliest Ben's ever said to us this is boring in an episode. Is that wrong? No, no, no, that's not wrong.

Ed Gamble (2:39)

It was a genuine question from me, Paul. That was just my actual personality.

James Acaster (2:44)

Only time that Ed's ever shown an interest in Ben's life.

Paul F. Tompkins (2:48)

I'm telling him he's probably doing something wrong.

Ed Gamble (2:50)

Oh, it was wrong?

James Acaster (2:51)

Shouldn't they be in front of the camera?

Ed Gamble (2:53)

So everything we're saying now, they will have already heard it. And our faces are doing it right now.

James Acaster (3:00)

Yeah, our faces are doing it right now.

Paul F. Tompkins (3:02)

Our faces are doing it right now.

James Acaster (3:04)

Yeah, but they've already heard it.

Ed Gamble (3:06)

Yeah, they've already heard it.

James Acaster (3:08)

Yeah, but our faces are doing it right now.

Paul F. Tompkins (3:11)

I should not have gotten high before this.

Ed Gamble (3:13)

This is hard for me.

James Acaster (3:14)

Listen, man, this is different territory now.

When you came on this podcast, those early days, we were boys. We're men now, you can't push us around like you did the first time.

Paul F. Tompkins (3:22)

You know what? I respect that. I respect that.

Ed Gamble (3:25)

Do you remember being pushed around by Paul?