Gyles Brandreth on his love affair with Yorkshire and why he can't stop talking

“It was my wife’s idea,” says Brandreth of the show which is currently touring after a stint at Edinburgh fringe.

“It turns out that I’ve not stopped taking since I came out of the womb.

"In fact I came across some boxes the other day that my parents had kept since the 1950s and there there was a letter from my three older sisters from when I was bout ten pleading for my parents to send me to boarding school as I wouldn’t stop talking and they couldn’t stand it any longer. My parents must have agreed as off to boarding school I went.”

After boarding school Brandreth went to Oxford, was President of the Oxford Union and MP for the City of Chester. His career has ranged from being a Whip and Lord Commissioner of the Treasury in John Major’s government to starring in his own award-winning musical revue in London’s West End.

A prolific broadcaster, he has appeared on QI, Have I Got News For You, Would I Lie To You?, Pointless and is a reporter and presenter for The One Show (BBC 1), as well as Dictionary Corner’s most frequent resident on Countdown (Channel 4).

As a result he has a lot to talk about but don’t worry the show lasts for two hours rather than the record breaking nine hour after dinner speech he reportedly once made.

Gyles Brandreth Can’t Stop Talking sees members of the audience spin a wheel to decide which aspect of his 40 year career they want him to talk about, from his relationship with Royal Family to his love of garish jumpers. And there’s plenty to talk about.

“There are hundreds of stories – political stories, theatre stories, royal stories and I tell them all from memory. It is a great way of keeping those memories alive and it means that every show is different. I’m used to the unexpected and I find it a great deal of fun and I hope the audience does too.”

On stage he has appeared recently in Hamlet and The Importance of Being Earnest. He is the Chancellor of the University of Chester, a columnist for The Oldie and the author of seven Victorian murder mysteries featuring Oscar Wilde as his detective now published in 22 countries around the world.