Richard Osman has gushed over his wife Ingrid Oliver, as he admitted meeting her was ‘the best thing that ever happened to me’.
The author, 54, met the actress, 48, in 2021 when she appeared as a guest on his BBC quiz show House of Games, going on to tie the knot in 2022.
Opening up about their romance to Saga Magazine, Richard said: ‘Meeting Ingrid was the best thing that ever happened to me.
‘This job has allowed me to see so much of the world and, although I don’t mind travelling on my own, it’s loads more fun with my wife – sharing those experiences with her, all the different people and places.’
While he revealed that Ingrid had ‘cried’ after finishing reading his latest novel in the Thursday Murder Club series, The Impossible Fortune.
He said: ‘Ingrid does read the books, but refuses to pick one up until it’s all been tweaked and proofread. She likes the idea of being able to concentrate on the story, not worrying about the missing comma on page 57.
Richard Osman has gushed over his wife Ingrid Oliver, as he admitted meeting her was ‘the best thing that ever happened to me’ (pictured in 2022)
The author, 54, met the actress, 48, in 2021 when she appeared as a guest on his BBC quiz show House of Games, going on to tie the knot in 2022
‘She actually just finished The Impossible Fortune earlier this morning and rang me up in tears. Happy tears. She enjoyed it.’
Richard’s Thursday Murder Club books have turned into a runaway success story, selling more than 10 million copies globally.
While the first novel was recently adapted into a Netflix film, starring Helen Mirren, Pierce Brosnan, Sir Ben Kingsley and Celia Imrie.
The Impossible Fortune – the fifth in the series – is set to be released on September 25.
However, Richard admitted that suffering from nystagmus has caused him some difficulty when it comes to writing his murder mysteries.
Nystagmus is an involuntary eye movement condition, which can cause reduced or limited vision.
Speaking about how the condition impact him, Richard explained: ‘Compared to a lot of jobs, you wouldn’t call writing ‘hard’, but these books are fairly big beasts and my nystagmus means that even with large font sizes, I have to sit no more than five or six inches from the screen.
‘It’s an intense process. I often see people tapping away at their laptop on planes or in cafés, but that would never work for me. Nearly all of my writing is done upstairs at the house, where I have everything set up just as I want it. Including my go-to snacks: mint tea and slices of dried mango.’
While he revealed that Ingrid had ‘cried’ after finishing reading his latest novel in the Thursday Murder Club series, The Impossible Fortune (pictured together last month)
While the first novel was recently adapted into a Netflix film, starring Helen Mirren , Pierce Brosnan , Sir Ben Kingsley and Celia Imrie (pictured)
Opening up about their romance to Saga Magazine, Richard said: ‘Meeting Ingrid was the best thing that ever happened to me’
It comes after Richard admitted he pined for Ingrid Oliver over a protracted 12-month period before finally meeting her for the first time on the set of House Of Games.
‘I was aware of Ingrid from social media and thought she was very funny, but beyond a single tweet we’d never communicated,’ he told The Sunday Times.
‘I asked our mutual friend, the comedian Lou Sanders, to check if Ingrid was available. She wasn’t. Twelve months later, in 2021, Ingrid was a guest on my quiz show House of Games.
‘This time Lou told me Ingrid was available, so I spent a long day in front of the cameras desperately trying not to flirt. I made eye contact less with her than any other guest ever.’
Already a father of two from a former relationship, Richard had turned to therapy in an attempt to address an addiction to food and confront his negative body image, but remained hopeful that ‘the right person was out there’ before finally meeting Ingrid.
‘I got to a point where I was happy in myself and my work but my therapist said, “You won’t finish your journey until you’re in a relationship.”’ he recalled.
‘He was right. I’ve always wanted to be part of a team.’
Richard and Ingrid moved in together just weeks after meeting on set, but the actress admits she was initially reticent about the prospect of exchanging vows after seeing her parents marry ‘eight times in total between them’ during a tumultuous childhood.
However, Richard admitted that suffering from nystagmus has caused him some difficulty when it comes to writing his murder mysteries (seen in 2022)
She said: ‘I’d seen marriages not working, so I never wanted to make that commitment unless I knew for sure.’
Unbeknownst to Richard, the actress had also embarked on a failed IVF journey the year before they met.
‘When Richard first asked Lou if I was single, I was. I was aware of him from Twitter and the telly, and I thought he was a lovely, kind, clever man, but I’d decided to try IVF and thought, I can’t do this if I’m dating,’ she recalled.
‘But even then — and I don’t want to sound stalkerish — I had an inkling we’d get together later. I tried IVF three times (it was brutal) before accepting defeat. When Richard got back in touch, I’d made my peace with that process and was ready to move on.’
Richard previously told HELLO magazine of their meeting: ‘Ingrid came on House of Games. I knew who she was through social media. We’d never met – I had never met her. I had a little twinkle in my eye, I’ll admit that.
‘She came on, we filmed that day together. Our first date is completely on camera. After filming, I was thinking, “How can I ask her for a drink, this is difficult.”‘
Appearing on the Christmas Day edition of Desert Island Discs in 2022, he said: ‘I’m happy with myself, I’ve got these beautiful kids, I’ve met the woman who I’m going to be with for the rest of my life.
‘That thing of competition and ambition, you soon realise that rocket fuel disappears and it’s about happiness and my kids bring me happiness and Ingrid brings me happiness.’
