Roman Kemp’s baby plans as he reveals cherished moments with famous dad Martin

Martin and Roman Kemp chat about their close bond, their family’s unusual parenting techniques, and the ‘morbid’ reason Roman likes working with his dad so much

Martin and Roman Kemp have become one of TV’s best-loved father-and-son duos. And when we sit down to chat with the former Spandau Ballet bassist, 63, and his radio DJ son, 32, they’re every bit as funny and affectionate (and somewhat sweary) as they are on Gogglebox. Their bond, they tell us, is built predominantly on mutual respect – and they share a very apparent and deep-rooted adoration, which is particularly evident on their weekly podcast, FFS! My Dad Is Martin Kemp.

In an exclusive chat with OK!, the pair open up about childhood discipline (or the lack of it, because it’s hard to be disciplined by a man who spent a decade living the life of a world-famous rockstar, Roman says), their ever-evolving relationship and the surprising reason why Roman loves recording his dad’s stories…

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You’re almost at the one-year anniversary of your podcast. Why do you think people love it so much?

Martin: All the messages I get are people saying, “Oh I wish I had that relationship in our family”, and I think with us it’s just that I’ve tried to bring them up with no embarrassment about anything. I talk to Ro as if I’ve gone down the pub with my mates, and people enjoy that. I don’t try to make things polite, I don’t try to hide things – life is life. He knows what I’ve been through, like my life in a band for 10 years, so there’s no point hiding anything. We just talk, like two blokes down the pub.

Roman: I still can’t understand the reaction really, because it’s just me and my dad having a chat. People will come up to me and say, “I heard you say such and such”, and I think, “I forgot people were listening!”

Has your relationship changed over the years?

Martin: I think we’re much like any other family. As a boy, Roman was really easy to entertain, he liked football and his Batman toys so it was easy. Obviously our relationship is slightly different now because we spend a lot of time working together, which I really enjoy. I know I get on his nerves but I enjoy it because Ro is ultra professional. And I know that if I didn’t work with him, I wouldn’t see him half as much.

Roman: I don’t think I’ve ever felt like we weren’t friends, which is probably a bit strange to some people. Football has been a big part of it. I’ll call my dad and speak about Arsenal in the same way I’ll call my friends and talk about Arsenal. Even as a kid it wasn’t, “Oh, my dad’s taking me out for the day”, it was just like going out with a friend.

Did you ever push that relationship too far as a kid?

Roman: Not really. They never really had to discipline me or Harley because I think we’ve always had that respect for the family unit. If they had friends over for dinner, it wouldn’t be, “There’s the kids table over there”, it would be, “Come and sit down here and engage in conversation.” And if we did something wrong, we didn’t get the, “We’re not angry, we’re disappointed”, speech, it was more a question of, “How do you feel that you’ve upset your mates?” I think it’s sad that nowadays people are far more likely to have frayed relationships with their parents because there’s a clear parent-child divide. For us it was more that we didn’t want to upset our friends.

Martin: It was one of the things Shirley and I both wanted when Harley and Roman were young, to make us feel like a gang, like we were all best mates. I think a lot of the other parents at school kind of frowned upon it. It wasn’t everybody’s cup of tea, but it worked for us.

Do you think your parents got it right when it came to rules and boundaries?

Roman: Of course they’d tell us when to go to bed and things like that. But at the key moments in life, like becoming a teenager, it wasn’t all “you can’t do this” and “you can’t do that”. All you have to do is read my dad’s memoir or read about what my mum was doing at 16 or 17 to understand that they know regardless of what they say, we’re going to go and live our lives anyway. And if they’re supportive, we’re much more likely to tell them about it.

Is there anything about each other that drives you mad?

Martin: That’s a difficult question, but yes! What drives me mad about Ro is he’s always late. It doesn’t matter what you’re doing or where you’re going, he’s 10 minutes late and always has a really good excuse. But I’ve learnt to live with it.

Roman: [Laughs] I don’t know how I do it because I’ve got an amazing team that organises everything really well for me. Maybe I overestimate or underestimate time in general? It’s like a sickness! Dad loves to people please, but that’s also something I love about him. Growing up, we’d have the same conversation, where I’d say, “Dad, have you seen this film?” And he’d say yeah so I’d start talking about it and it would become very obvious he hadn’t seen it. But it’s because he saw I was excited about something and he wanted to be part of it and have the conversation.

Martin: But look at how articulate you are now! That’s because we used to have all those conversations.

Roman: Oh, I know. But we still try to have conversations about movies on the podcast and he’ll say, “I love that one”, and I can tell he’s never seen it. But he’s so happy that I’m happy, or whoever he’s talking to is happy, and he doesn’t want to disappoint them.

You’ve just been on a family holiday together. How was that?

Martin: It was the first family holiday we’ve had in years so it was a real bonding experience. For me, holidays aren’t just about having a rest, they’re about making memories and telling each other anecdotes. I loved every minute of it.

Did you travel a lot when the kids were young?

Roman: I know I had the life as a kid that anyone would want, and we were able to go to some amazing places. Travel was so important to us. I mean, I wasn’t even born in the UK. [Roman was born when Shirley visited Martin on a film set in Los Angeles]. As kids, we were always fascinated by our parents’ stories about travel, like my mum being part of the first ever Western group to play in China. But I started working at about 16, so I haven’t had a family holiday since that age.

Tell us about cruise life. Is it for you?

Roman: We’ve never done one before and the thing I learnt is that everything you could possibly imagine can fit on a boat. It’s a phenomenon of its own.

Martin: There were even go-karts on the top, which I couldn’t quite believe.

Roman: I think lockdown made lots of people realise how important holidays are to us as humans. And I know money is so tight for so many people at the moment, but it was a reminder that if you have the capability to do it, go out and enjoy life a bit.

You recorded some podcasts on the cruise. Are you still loving doing it?

Roman: Yes, and the thing I like about working with dad – and I know some people think this is morbid – is that I’ve got so much footage and audio, so that when he isn’t here any more I can show my grandkids. We kind of built that off the podcast and off our relationship on Gogglebox and if we can carry that on, that’s amazing.

Martin: It’s absolutely my favourite time of the week, because it’s not like work. I get to sit down with Ro and we can chat and reminisce and tell stories – it’s the loveliest conversations.

Roman and Martin Kemp have teamed up with Norwegian Cruise Line to enjoy a multigenerational voyage with NCL’s ‘More at Sea’. Aboard Norwegian Encore in the Caribbean, they experienced the balance of relaxing and adventurous cruising – and where every guest can enjoy world-class dining, entertainment, and excursions tailored for all ages. Visit www.ncl.com to plan your next adventure to the Caribbean.

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