Second Helpings - Jake Shears

0:00The market's uncertain. Revenue's tied and hiring on hold. That's why results-driven companies are using Upwork to keep work moving. Go to Upwork.com today and start hiring proven freelance talent fast. No bulky overhead. No rigid long-term contracts. Just the right expert right when you need them. Work smarter and faster with Upwork. Go to Upwork.com now and find your freelance expert. That's U-P-W-O-R-K.com. Post a job for free and get started today. If you're a smoker or vapor ready to make a change, You really only need one good reason. But with Zinn Nicotine Pouches, you'll discover many good reasons.

0:39Zinn is America's number one nicotine pouch brand. Plus, Zinn offers a robust rewards program. There are lots of options when it comes to nicotine satisfaction. But there's only one Zinn. Check out Zinn.com slash find to find Zinn at a store near you. Warning, this product contains nicotine. Nicotine is an addictive chemical. There's the part of me that everyone sees. I'm Howie Mandel, the comedian. Apparently, I know what funny is. Funny bought me a house, but I also know what isn't funny. OCD. I've lived with OCD my entire life, and people throw the term around like it's no big deal. But OCD is severe, often debilitating.

1:20It's a mental health condition that involves unrelented, unwanted thoughts that can make you question your character, your beliefs, even your safety. General therapy can help with some things, but for OCD, it can actually make things worse. That's why I want to tell you about NoCD. NoCD is the world's largest treatment provider for OCD and is covered by insurance for over 155 million Americans. Their licensed therapists specialize in ERP, the most effective treatment for OCD. If you think you might be struggling with OCD, go to NOCD.com to book a free 15-minute call. They are here to help.

2:04Hello and welcome to Second Helpings. I am Jessie Ware and I'm here with Mum. Hi. And we are serving up some of our wonderful guests from years gone by on the podcast. Well, this person's having a bit of a moment at the minute because Sissy's sisters reformed and have had an arena tour all over the world, it seems to me. from Europe to America. Are they still touring in America now? They just had a co-headline tour with Cashew, yeah. And they had probably the best Glastonbury set people have seen. They crashed the internet and the streaming for the BBC. And also, I heard that people, two hours before their set, people couldn't get into the Woodsees area, stage area, because it was just overwhelmed with people.

2:55It was very, very exciting. And you perform with them. I'm very lucky to. And he has his brilliant podcast, Queer the Music, with season three starting in the autumn. Jake Shears came over to my house, but mum schlepped over the food. I must have been working. Apologies. You served up a deliciously healthy turba and samphire for the main and with poached pears for pud. Jake had a new album out at the time. It's called Last Man Dancing. This was recorded at the end of May in 2023. three here he is jake shears on second helpings

3:42so jake shears has just uh said good night to my children told it um my son how much he loves Groot and Spider-Man. My mum is preparing the mains. How are you, Jake? I'm great. You are? You really are? I'm good. Yeah, I'm really, I'm very happy. I feel like you're an optimistic, positive person. I am. I mean, I try to be, see, you know, I have dark days sometimes, you know, where I get a little overwhelmed by things and, you know, but most of the time I try to, yeah, I try to look at the bright side of things. I try, you know. You're in the right camp with fascination. We've both got the same management.

4:17We do. And they are very positive, aren't they? Yes. But I also have, I love deeply, deeply cynical people. Do you? Is that why you live in London? Is that why I live in London? Yeah. I mean, do you feel like the city is full of... Do you think New York or London is more cynical? I don't, I've not, I don't feel like I know enough people in London yet to even answer that. Is it quite a new thing for you to live here? It is. I've been here for one year. I just kind of hit my one year mark. Happy anniversary. thank you it's been it's been great i really enjoy it i still feel like i haven't penetrated the city in what way just in all ways you you were with zachary quinto or you wanted to go to that disco the disco and he loves london no he wanted to go to the night that we saw each other yeah yeah and he was performing yeah but he was talking about how much he loved london he could live here yeah i could see that i love zachary he they ended up over at my house later that night yeah we went after we went to that because you and i went to this yes ray and your brother yes and which was super fun yes and then you went and did a dj set at your house or something i did Is this what happens on a Jake Sheard?

5:36Like, is that what happens? Everyone comes to your house and you do a DJ set. That's my favorite. That's so fun. That's my favorite thing to do. Are there nibbles or drinks? I did get invited, but I had children to look after. But do you, yeah, do you provide nibbles and drinks or is it just the music? You know, there's a lot of digging through the cabinets and seeing what's wrong. I'm such a bachelor. I'm like, you know, I'm very much like a, that kind, you know. I can adopt you and come and fill your cupboards for you. And bring chicken soup when you need it. I would love that. That's my favorite.

6:10Is it? It's my favorite. I eat a lot of chicken soup whenever I can. Whenever I have access to good chicken soup. Where's your favorite chicken soup? There's this place. I don't know if it's like janky or if it's some chain or whatever. But I found... Coquette? Coquette? Coquette? Coquette? Coquette? Where is it? And you get a good chicken soup on it. I can look up with... Are you like the king of Deliveroo, Jake? I have been and I'm really trying to curb that. But it's not kosher chicken soup with nuts and balls. Yeah, no, I don't think so. But I do like having people over. I love hosting. But my hosting is much more late night.

6:49Okay. I like having people over. I love sort of an unexpected evening where everybody's just hanging out and dancing. So you're not going to be the one that's bright and early at Columbia Road Flower Market and you're putting on a brunch for everyone. If you see me out at Columbia Road Flower Market at like 8 in the morning, I haven't gone, 9 a.m. And it is brutal out there. If you've had a night and you walk out there. Do you live near Columbia Road? Right off of it. But the door that I have, I won't say exactly where it is, but the gate that I'm sort of amused and the gate that opens up, it really is, I feel like, on Sundays when you open it up it's like you're walking out on like a stage set.

7:36So it's like being in Notting Hill or something. Everyone like you know will. So if I've had a big one and I'm walking out at like 9am Oh it's rough. Yeah. Have you got any favourite spots that you go to? Are you a big patisserie person or are you kind of because you've got some you've got Lily Vanilli right there I love Lily Vanilli. I have a lot of their cupcakes They do a great sausage roll. Oh, do they? They do on Sundays. The people that work there are very nice. I get a wonderful four-shot cappuccino. Four shots? I do two usually every morning. Yeah. No, two four-shot cappuccinos. What's that called in the States?

8:16Is it called like a red eye? I don't know. A quad. I think a red eye is when you've got a... I think red eye is when you've got espresso and coffee, if I'm not mistaken. I only have two shots a day do you feel it when you have it? I feel it if I don't have it so you have eight shots of coffee in the morning yeah and then I have like my little like Nespresso machine and then I have like the little kind of instant things that I drink but it doesn't really would you say you love coffee Jack? I do I really do it should be in Greece I love Greece but it's not coffee I like it strong I like it to have like some kick there's nothing worse than just like when things get watered down like if you order an americano and like they just you know fill it up with hot water and just watered i watered down coffee like makes me sick to my stomach like maybe it's a little espresso in the morning yeah would you like my men but would you have it as a cappuccino or do you would you be that person that's sipping an espresso i can totally do an espresso but i do a cappuccino because it's just a little easier as far as like getting the milk in there without having to like direct around too much and if it's four shots then you know it's going to be strong enough you know i know it's not going to be some wimpy yeah no shit you know so where's your favorite place for coffee uh the people that allow you to order a four shot which i'm wondering how much do they charge you per shot they do i think or do they just kind of slip it in you know every once in a while they'll slip it to me my my favorite little spot which is i mean i i don't know if this is i love i'm just always go to the pavilion on columbia road it's really sweet and get my eggs there and stuff yeah it's delicious but i'll tell you so i live in new orleans part-time i have a house in new orleans how did you fall in love with that place then i when scissor sisters first started sort of touring around i got off the bus yeah and started wandering around the quarter that morning french quarter is just so special.

10:23It's this big sort of grid that's not changed in 200 years. You know, it's one of the oldest parts of the States. In the United States, you know, they tear everything down. It just doesn't exist like that in the States. But not in New Orleans. Not in New Orleans. You need to say New Orleans, not New Orleans as well. It's really important. It depends on what you're ramming it with. Really? I thought it was about, you know, I'll sing, I'll put it in songs a lot and, you know. You've changed it. In Take Your Mama, I refer to it as New Orleans. Okay, fine. Depends on how you sing it. Do you have a house then?

11:00Yeah. I'm so jealous. I've got a beautiful house. One of those beautiful houses. It's a double shotgun cottage. So it's just like one of those with doors on each side if you're facing it. I'm so jealous. And it's not like too fancy or anything, but I've like made it so cozy and nice to hang out. I've got a huge library in it. Do you go there a lot? I've not been able to see this last year, but I mean, yeah, I lived it. I lived part of my life there. I've been living there part-time for a better part of a decade. So it was New York, New Orleans, Virginia? It was New York to then Los Angeles. Then I started splitting Los Angeles with New Orleans.

11:42Now I'm saying New Orleans. Okay, fine. NOLA, we also call it. L.A. to New Orleans. And then I sold my house in LA And then I was just kind of like floating And then I was like I ended up buying a house in New Orleans I had a little condo there And right when I bought my house COVID just started happening So you were there for COVID? I was there for I had just started work on this house So I had to go to my parents With my boyfriend in Virginia How was that? Well it was great because I just bought them a house to get them off of their farm. They had this horse farm. And my dad's 94 now. My mom's 74.

12:28And it was just too much of a handful, this big-ass farm that they'd had for like 20 years. Where was this farm? It's on the Virginia-Tennessee border. So it's in Bristol, Virginia, Tennessee, which is the birthplace of country music. It's where the first country record was cut. and so I got them a place to coax them off of the farm, which eventually, it took a long time, but eventually they moved into this house. So it's basically like, if I get you a really sweet house, 15 minutes away from the farm, at your leisure, we can get in there. So did you grow up on a farm? I did not grow up on a farm.

13:04I grew up, I was born in Arizona and when we were eight, we moved to an island in the Pacific Northwest, like a couple hours out of Seattle. Oh, wow. Like a two-hour ferry ride in like an hour drive. So it was like a big deal to go. We called it going off island. So is that like kind of the equivalent of like Isle of Wight or something like that? Probably, yeah. I think that's probably a good comparison. So then? It's a tiny little place, but it was beautiful. And we had 20 acres on the water. Like we lived on the ocean and had orcas, you know, going by every day. And it wasn't like, back then the island wasn't like super fancy or anything.

13:44It wasn't bougie. Is it bougie now? Oh my God, like around the millennium, like, you know, sort of Microsoft. When Microsoft exploded, all the big Microsoft billionaires basically discovered it and like started building gigantic garish houses everywhere. And I do feel like the place lost a little bit of its soul over the years. So what were you growing up eating? If you were by the ocean, were you eating loads of fish? everyone would you know we would do crabs uh and we would pull crabs we had a a boat that we would you know get you know put crab traps out um which i liked all right but we also had muscles that we could just pick right there um but i was scared of muscles i only learned to like muscles way later i mean usually i kind of like have always been a little bit skittish about things without backbones and like eating.

14:37That's what I put out. I was like, usually not things without backbones, but mussels I've really learned to like love the broth and I think they're delicious. And especially like down in New Orleans, oysters are something that I really have a tough time with and I'm trying. Don't try. Mom's like, don't bother. What do you think? I hate them. You hate them. It's like eating snot. It feels, the texture of it is, I grew up with a phobia of slogs. Oh, okay. snails and we had banana slugs on the island yes we had worms basically that grew up to like a foot long that would like be crawling everywhere what?

15:15it was horrific look up like a banana slug a banana slug? yeah they're big and now that I look back on it I'm like actually they're kind of sweet and I was just being you know I was really being they're disgusting and they can grow up to a foot long those are the ones Those are the ones. They're like a, they're kind of a, what colour green is that? Kind of like an olive green? It's like one of those chilies you get in the fancy places for a gas martini. That looks delicious. And then I'll get the other one once you, once you. But I don't want dinner lady problems. That looks wildly delicious. Oh my God.

15:58I hope so.

16:09So, Mum has just made dinner. This is crazy. I just had my first bite of it. It's delicious. It's too much faff. Too much faff? It would be okay if it was in my own kitchen. Wait, what about the potatoes? Do you like those? They're so good. Good. And the fish is so good. The fish should be good. I'm about to try it. So what did you... What is the green... I thought there were green beans when they came to the table, but... Samphire at seaweed. Let's see. Mmm. Your nutritionist will be so thrilled. I think it needs more lemon. I've never had anything like this. Neither have I. That's delicious.

16:48This stuff is really cool. I love the texture of it. I was imagining you shucking your oysters on the island, eating samphire. No? Did you ever have samphire? No. This is the first time I've ever had this particular vegetable. This is so good. Are you sure? I love it. It's very nutritious. I'm telling you, to have a home-cooked meal like this is so special and so rare in my life. Darling, you can come every week. I treasure this. But so many people would like, I'm sure, Jake, lots of people would like to cook through a home-cooked meal. Wait, what? Tell me what, I just, there's another vegetable in here.

17:30What is it? Fennel. Fennel. Do you like fennel? I mean it tastes great I don't really know what it is Mary, that's the tattoo Mary and after your song after my friend it's about a real person oh I didn't know that tell me about eating out with Mary about eating out with Mary oh my god so Mary I met on a phone line when I was 15 years old I was in Arizona we met on a party line this is like pre internet and where this kid at school gave me this phone number. You're now in Arizona. Yeah, I went back. I moved in with my art teacher from junior high. It's such a convoluted, crazy story. Jake, I can't keep up.

18:14No, I know. I wrote a whole book about it. It's a very, you know, I ended up back down in Arizona, like on my own. My parents let me leave the house at 15 and moved in with an art teacher of mine. It's like, no, no, no, no, no. She was a beautiful Christian woman who's still like my sister, Jennifer LaBerre. Moved in with her husband. She was having a baby and lived with her and her husband and this baby and was also kind of getting away with murder. I came out at school. But anyways, I got this phone number and started calling it, and it was this party line. It was kind of like an internet chat room, but on the phone.

18:51And I met this woman who went by the name Deja. I went by the name Barbie's Nightmare. Yeah. What can this is us? was a Deja and This Is Us a TV show oh you were Barbie's Nightmare I was Barbie's Nightmare she was Deja and then we you know it was interesting because she was 21 and we decided to meet up and she said to me before we did we had a phone conversation she's like there's something I haven't told you I have I have a weight issue that I've had all my life. And she was a really, really big woman. And had a lot of shame about it. And, you know, I think being in public was really hard for her.

19:40She had developed kind of an agoraphobia. What's that? Like not wanting to go out. Go going out. Okay. Out, you know, out into public. People would be very cruel. and it sort of opened my eyes to the cruelty of people and we would go to so we met up, I remember our first date was at a restaurant called Fuzi this like kind of bad Italian sort of in a parking lot of a mall I think and we just hit it off and we had a great we had such a great time finish that drop and then it's a different one That's a different one. And she's still your friend. I mean, it's a sad story. It's a sad story. No, but I'll talk about it.

20:29We were, you know, she became my best friend. And, you know, I was 15, she was 21, and we developed this gorgeous friendship, and she ended up, I went back to Seattle and then moved to New York. She loved Seattle visiting me, so she moved up to Seattle. And I'd moved to New York, and I had a phone, a landline, that only she had the number in my apartment. So when that phone went off, it was basically her. We talked every day. And I was making the first Scissors record and she got really upset at a certain point. And she was like, you are, you know, you're living this glamorous life. You don't, you know, your life is so fabulous now.

21:17Why are you even my friend? And I went and I wrote the song Mary on the first record. And I... Did she hear it? Yeah, I put it on a CD and sent it to her. And basically this song was me saying... It's a beautiful record. It was me saying, like, don't ever say that you're not my best friend. You know, like, you can never say that again. Like, we're never having that discussion again. That's what that song was about. And, yeah. And then it went on from there. Where is she now?

21:52She loved this song. And so when it came out, basically she and I made a deal that she really wanted gastric bypass surgery. So we made a, yeah, if the song ever made any money, I was going to get you this operation. And the album was such a success. She came over to London. We had a great time. She came to shows. We were at Albert Hall together and, you know, got to, you know, show her such a good time. And, you know, she went in and had the surgery and it, and yeah, she passed away. No. Yeah. It's a very sad story. But, you know, our friendship was, was incredible. And it just, it, it just shows you like what life is so strange.

22:42You know, these weird like paths that, that happen. And you never know when you meet somebody what that relationship is going to be and how you can, you know, how people affect one another. And, you know, it's that sort of like the wings of a butterfly causes a, you know, a monsoon on the other side of the world. It's kind of like that. And, you know, she was so funny. And we loved like a diner. To answer your question, we loved a diner. and we would go out late and we would What's your food that you choose to do? Oh, we'd eat grilled cheese sandwiches and fries and we just had so much fun together.

23:31She really was an amazing person. I'm so sorry, Jack. That's such a tragic story. But I feel so fortunate to have shared I've gotten to have her in my life and that we were there for each other. And such a strange pair. I was a 15-year-old weird gay boy. She was this 21-year-old woman. You know what I mean? We were an odd couple, but just found this amazing common ground. And we were in each other's lives for just over 10 years. You know, it was amazing before... Is this the saddest table man? no before before she went and had the surgery she told me i'll never forget the conversation she said i just want you to know that this is my decision and if anything happens you need to know that this is my decision for her to have the foresight for that you know like i don't think if we'd not had that conversation like i don't know if i could have lived with myself you know And when she said that, I thought it was so ridiculous.

24:41I was just like, that is astute. I was like, shut up. Like, what are you talking about? Like, no. Any surgery has a wrist, isn't it? Yeah. Oh, fuck. But I'm thankful that we had that, you know, that conversation. And I'm thankful that there's this song. Yeah, it's a beautiful song. That I get to get up. You know, I just did it on Radio 2 recently. And it was stunning. And it surprised everybody. I was like, I just want to have this orchestra, and I want to get up and sing Mary. to celebrate her yeah and and just even in that moment you know it's just like it's so special that like there's this i can sort of pay her tribute you know a lot on you know in a concert or there's this there's this song that's still there and i think we'll live on for a long time you know and it's about a real thing it's about a real person it's not you know it's not some made up story it's all real oh Jake thank you for sharing that I know I told you it's like this is a story but it's also I think it's like there's something beautiful about it too you know this life is short and friendships are dear and family is dear and you just you can't take any of it for granted Jesse

26:00Can I just talk about food? Yeah. New Orleans. Yes. So the food there is particularly special, I think. So we had... Beignets. Beignets. So we had Randy Jackson, who comes from New Orleans. Does he? Yeah. You remember nothing. And he talked about that bean thing that his grandma used to make with green beans. and he says the food is really special. Like a bean casserole or something. He said the food is really special in New Orleans. It's one of the food capitals of the world. Yeah, I think we need to go. Have you been? I've been. I played to pretty much nobody, but I ate well. Where? I think I was in the House of Blues.

26:46Yeah. I'd say go back now. Do you think? Mm-hmm. Maybe, yeah. Yeah, no, I think people would be very excited. Thanks, Jake. You're just so cute and nice. um okay so tell me but wait really quick before we go before we go on i want to say the new orleans food so when i first moved down there yeah i just wasn't thinking about it but the food was so good and i was going out to eat all this time and i remember pretty early on i went to this place called okra was the name of it and i had this incredible dinner and i just kept eating and you know I just had a couple drinks but I just ate so much and the food was so rich and I remember I got home and I was like it was the only time I've ever like I was like I've got a bar you know you're over eating I over ate and you know but it's like the food is that good that you have to like watch out for like because you could just you can it's some of the best but it's very rich yeah it's very very rich so where do you get your po 'boy from when you're there can I tell you something funny yeah I've never had one but isn't it a po 'boy it's one of the main things a po 'boy is like a it's a it's like a giant piece of bread that is filled with like you can put shrimp and all these you know all these different fillings into it it's kind of like New Orleans' version of a of a submarine sandwich okay um but i've they look so overwhelming they're still to share it with three people yeah i've never had one and they look so messy um but i have i do eat sweet breads there a lot um which i never thought i would be into no i don't think and are you now i love them how do you eat them they just fry i mean you would you would you would love them they're so tasty I kind of trust that you may if he doesn't like an oyster but he likes a sweet bread we've got to give it a go mum you've got to know where they come from darling where are they from the innards it's the lining a sweet bread is the lining of the cow's stomach I don't think it is it is yeah I think it's brains oh there's brains as well that's another one I think it's brains too mum but I ain't gonna eat brains you thought it was what testicles oh my god and I thought it was the stomach lining.

29:21But it's so... Or is that trite? It's very tasty. That's trite. I'm telling you, you would love it. It's a gland of sorts. It's one of those things where I was like, I would never eat that. And I was like, you know what? I'm going to try that. And I was like, they could serve this at McDonald's. But what about the spicing? It's really clever in New Orleans, isn't it? So many spices. There's just like loads of like, you get like gumbos and like jambalaya. It's like, yeah, it's Cajun food. It's very spicy. I was drinking the Mardi Gras. People drink there. Yeah, it's a drink in town. What do they drink?

29:56Anything. Anything. And like sugary, you know, these like sort of hurricane. We have a special drink there. We have a very special drink called Purple Drink, which is sold at the, it's at the oldest bar, I think, in the States. It's called Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop. And it's on the far end of Bourbon Street. and if you stand across the street from it I mean it looks like the place is sort of sinking into the ground and they do a it's like a daiquiri it's a dark purple daiquiri it's not sweet it's a distant grape and no one really knows what's in it it's very cold and it's just like a tonic basically that we have on Sundays that cures your hangover.

30:48If you're not feeling good on a Sunday morning, you have a purple drink. And it's the main local drink there. I love that. The tourists drink these big hand grenades and stuff, but the locals drink purple drinks. And it really is a magic... The only way I can describe it is sort of like our magic tonic of the city. How's the coffee there, Jake? I was going to talk about that earlier. Because I think I know about this. When we were talking about, it's an incredible coffee place. There's a little market that every morning I get up and go and have a, it's called Coast Roast. It's local coffee. And I go and I get a big iced cold brew, which they haven't really figured out how to do over here.

31:32No. They don't. And there, every morning I will get it. I'm telling you, it will put hair on the back of your neck. So is it without milk? It's like nitrate. No, it's like a frappe in Greece. No, it's fucking not, Mum. All right. That's all. I love that you're lensplaining to me about good coffee. Isn't that with Nescafe? Lensplaining. That's with instant Nescafe, Mum. That's true. You're joking. But it's very strong. It's very strong. I mean, I like to put straight up cream in it. Just a little bit of cream and then some dark, dark chocolate syrup. Dark chops are like a mocha cold brew. Yes. And I have that basically every morning there.

32:19And it really will get you. Talk about getting revved up. You need to bring this over here. I just don't understand why. Well, first of all, no one over here likes ice. Everyone, it makes me crazy. We never like ice. We hate ice. Do you want some ice in your water? No, no, no. We hate ice. I don't understand. Tell me why you hate ice. I don't hate it, but I find it really unnecessary. I don't think it's annoying and unnecessary. In fact, if people offer me a drink, I say, don't put ice in, please. Really? Yeah. I just don't. When there's like one cube sort of floating in the top of something, you know what I mean?

32:55You get like a whole thing. Are like my cocktails to be strong? What's your best cocktail? I love a Mezcal Negroni. Oh, God. I've never had one of those. You're hardcore, Jake. I am pretty hardcore. You know what? But I think you might have just summed it. I am, you could describe me as a hardcore person. I'm pretty like. You look good for it though, babe. Thanks. When I say hardcore, I'm not even referring to substances or anything. I just definitely, whatever. You like to party. Well, I just live life to its fullest. And it's not even in a party way. Just in a, I love, you know, I love life.

33:32And I try as best as I can to explore it. Did that ever get too much in the Scissor Sister days? Like where you lived life to the fullest and it kind of was problematic? The opposite. Oh, really? We were like a nunnery. Stop, this is your rebellion. Oh my God. Like when, after like, after our last album, after the fourth record, like I went, my LA years when I went to LA, those were like, I sort of, that was my time of, you know. celibacy. No, not celibacy. Just like going off the rails or whatever. Yeah, when we were in the band, I mean, you know, I think when you're working so hard as you and I, you know, in this business and we love it, you can't, if you're in the thick of it, you have to really be on top of it and be focused.

34:26And Scissor Sisters would never have happened if that's what I was doing. I mean it was such a huge thing the whole I mean it was you were huge yeah I got I mean it there was there was some pretty bonkers moments yeah it's weird it's like such a it's a sweet thing to look back on sometimes it's like whoa that actually that happened is are you enjoying being I mean you've been are you enjoying being a solo artist yeah is it scary not having anyone else to kind of is it scary having your name up there or is it okay it's I mean yeah it's fine I yeah I can I can I can definitely swing it um I am so happy that all of that happened when it did in the timeline of the world I don't think I would ever want to go through anything like that in this moment I'm not interested in anything like that in this sort of moment in time with how everything operates.

35:27And so I'm thankful that I lived in it, that I was successful at a time where we were selling CDs. It's so cool. It's old school. Where does the name come from, Scissor Sisters? Is it because you're... Oh no, because it's... I thought, because his name... I don't know. No, because his name is Shears. You're absolutely... I thought Shears are scissors. They are. Okay, you're laughing at me, Jessie That's not fair Mum, do you know what Sizzazista's means? Oh, that Bumping I didn't know that You know Bumping Badger to hold the record, probably. Thank you.

36:39smarter and faster with Upwork. Go to Upwork.com now and find your freelance expert. That's U-P-W-O-R-K dot com. Post a job for free and get started today. If you're a smoker or vapor ready to make a change, you really only need one good reason. But with Zinn Nicotine Pouches, you'll discover many good reasons. Zinn is America's number one nicotine pouch brand. Plus, Zinn offers a robust rewards program. There are lots of options when it comes to nicotine satisfaction. But there's only one Zinn. Check out Zinn.com slash find to find Zinn at a store near you. Warning, this product contains nicotine.

37:18Nicotine is an addictive chemical. There's a part of me that everyone sees. I'm Howie Mandel, the comedian. Apparently, I know what funny is. Funny bought me a house, but I also know what isn't funny. OCD. I've lived with OCD my entire life, and people throw the term around like it's no big deal. But OCD is severe, often debilitating. It's a mental health condition that involves unrelented, unwanted thoughts that can make you question your character, your beliefs, even your safety. General therapy can help with some things, but for OCD, it can actually make things worse. That's why I want to tell you about NoCD.

37:56NoCD is the world's largest treatment provider for OCD and is covered by insurance for over 155 million Americans. Their licensed therapists specialize in ERP, the most effective treatment for OCD. If you think you might be struggling with OCD, go to NOCD.com to book a free 15-minute call. They are here to help.

38:25I'm interested to hear what your last supper is, Jake, because you've eaten all over the world. you have lived in so many places that are so different Jake you don't have to finish it it's been delicious I think I just did I think I just took the last bite Jess you've got to beat cream up anyway last supper I just have my like I love comforting food and I would my last supper would be like my the thing the only thing that I cook which what is it? it's like I make you don't have to oh is this your because it's very good. I just love it. It's my favorite. Okay. I make just very suburban American gringo tacos.

39:10Oh my God. I can't make a taco. Like old El Paso, like fajitas. I'll use El Paso refried beans. Okay, I like that. Yeah. And chopped up black olives and shredded extra sharp cheddar cheese. Yeah. And then do like kind of a beef, fry some beef up with some sort of store bought taco seasoning so you like beef beef but like the real old school taco seasoning I don't know I thought you were going to go like Frenchman Street no this is my favourite meal and iceberg lettuce chopped up so you get all that out and then you take the corn tortillas I fill a thing up with vegetable oil and I fry the tortillas.

40:00Oh my God. And all of that together is just, to me, it's the tastiest thing. It's heaven. I love it because I can do it at a party. I bring a lot of, you can have a lot of people over. It's quite fatty. So? Uh, I'll get like, you know. He's frying his tortillas for God's sake. Well, in like vegetable oil. Can't you buy the little baked ones? Isn't vegetable oil okay? No. It's meat out of vegetables. Do you have people over? You'll cook this. I'll do like 15 people, 10 to 15 people. and everyone hangs out. And they help themselves. Yeah, and then I just stand at the thing, make it all, and then I just fry the tortillas.

40:35And that makes you happy. It makes me really happy. But can't you buy the taco shells? That's the secret of this thing. Okay, so when you do your tortillas and you fry them, do they go crispy and hard? They do, but I do them just at the right. It's a mixture of crispy and chewy. Okay. So it's like, it's almost like a cookie. Just the texture that you get from it. Because people are so used to getting the store-bought shells, right? And so when you fry up the shells with good corn tortillas, it just makes it taste so delicious. Is that how taco shells are made? Fried tortillas? Authentic tacos, I know, well, in California, they'll heat the tortillas, but they don't necessarily fry them.

41:24My version is very, it's not authentic in any way whatsoever. So how big are your tortillas? They're like, they're little. Little small ones. They're small, yeah, yeah, yeah. Where did you get those from? I found them. Mexico, mom. No, here. I have, I do see them here every once in a while. You can, I did on my, on my birthday this last year, I made a batch of them. And yeah, it's just one of my favorite things to make. I like it because it's like sort of what, you know, what we're doing now. Yeah. And also it's just like a community. You hang out with everybody and, you know, it's easy. And that's my favorite meal.

42:04And I think if I was to have a last supper, that would be it. So would you have a starter before that? God, a starter. Jesse, maybe put the pears in a bowl, darling. Or serve one up in each bowl. I go straight for the I go straight for the tortillas I'd make some really good guac oh some great guac that you can eventually put on the on the tacos what's your secret? I don't have one I always have somebody there that actually does the guac but what about dessert? you're not a big dessert this is just brutal this is all very embarrassing I want to tell you something I make very quite nice desserts sometimes don't I unless Jessie's on a diet and she said oh that's a pretty bowl I knew that we were both looking after ourselves so I thought about us and our physique and we're going quite light great it's a poached pear yeah I I love pears okay yeah I guess my favourite dessert if I was going to if I could transport it into my house would be a churro from Disneyland oh yeah what dipping with chocolate?

43:29no not with chocolate they do just like a sugary churro from Disneyland that they usually sell right off of the main in front of the what's that? it's the happiest damn place on earth and it really is look at that yeah it's on my arm it is I love Disneyland so much do you stay for the parade? I do yeah I just I just went to Disneyland this last January I just went to Disneyland Paris and stayed for a couple days how was it? did you enjoy it? I had a great time oh my god you're not putting them on the table like that no I fucking don't just pour them into that Jessie it's gonna be so good oh my god we love you Jessie and I would have made you something really delicious but she said this oh wow Like, he's happy.

44:15You happy? He probably isn't. He probably wanted chocolate pudding. I'm so happy. Or what's that banana cream pie that everyone loves in the States? I do like a coconut cream pie a lot. I like a coconut cream pie and I like a key lime pie a lot. I like a key lime pie. Oh, my God. But I've never made coconut cream pie. Coconut cream is like, mm. Have you got a good recipe? I can't cook worth two shits. So when all your people come for tacos, do they get a dessert? Ice cream? I would just use my ice cream probably, yeah. Oh, wow. It's just cream, guys. Is it like a mascarpone? No, it's just got a bit of icing sugar in it.

44:55It's called chocolatey cream. That looks good. It's like sculptural. We haven't even got on to Tammy Faye yet. This is like how much fun we're having. We're not even like on Tammy Faye. Can we talk about that? Yeah. Congratulations for your Olivier's They're two You know Their Their Actors won You know Katie Braben Zubin Barla won Olivia's Because you You know Helped them It's your baby They They were They were amazing And Yeah no Tammy Faye was like One of the Joys of My life It looks like it's gonna I mean I can't Is it gonna move It's gonna Because I missed it I do have some Yeah there's There is some News coming down the pipeline pretty soon.

45:39How was it working with Elton? I mean, I made the memories that I have of us making all these songs. It's just so special and the fact that he asked me to do it with him and the fact that we have this body of work together. We've got this show that we've made together. Yeah, they're memories that I'm going to cherish forever. That's quite a feat to create a musical. It's my second. I mean, you know, I did Tales of the City into a musical. When? It ran in San Francisco 2010. No, it was not. It never came over here. I feel like it could have a life someday. Maybe it could. So I'd seen a theater thing, Tales of the City at the National, and then they did a kind of television thing with What's It, Linny.

46:26Laura Linny. Yeah. The Budokakis. I really, really enjoyed it. I love Tales of the City so much. Yeah, it's wonderful. So, but yeah, I want to keep doing, I want to keep doing them. I just they take forever. They're full of heartbreak. You never know what's going to happen. You could work on them all your life and you never you just you never know. But when you see the curtain go up and the lights go down. Why are they not bringing it to the West End here? It was a huge sellout. They will. Timmy Fay will ride again in London. I can tell you that. How many times did you go? Me? I went every night all the time and when it closed there was like a kind of relief a bit it ran for six weeks i kind of couldn't stay away from it i loved being i love the almeida i love the almeida such a great and watching katie braben like just in the cast everyone just tear it up my mom came for the opening.

47:29Yeah, my mom and, you know, Auntie Gabby, a family friend. And, like, I remember when they... I had never been so exhausted in my life. No. I remember I sat down on the couch. I was so tired that I... I just remember my body ached just laying on the couch. I was so tired. That was after we opened. And then... But exhilarating. Exhilarating. I love doing it Would you do any theatre yourself? I've done Kinky Boots on Broadway Of course, but would you do any more? Yes Jesse, you would You can't speak about anything I can't And I can't wait to do some more theatre I'm very excited to do more theatre So the record comes out You're probably going to do some more theatre You're probably going to write a new musical You're going to go back to New Orleans for a bit you'll just for the way i just want december january february new orleans that's such a great january february march in new orleans i just need like winters i'll work here and i can go chill out there when it gets oh sounds like a good balance i think so i think so i do like warmer weather and yeah and i like to be down there so it's trying to set it up i still feel like i'm a I've been dating and it's been great.

48:55Who knows what's going to happen in that side of things. But it's like I really would love to set up. I'm in here and I look around and I see a home and a family. And that's just what I want. I think you'll get it, Jake. I think you'll get it. You deserve it. I'm so emo. Oh, Jake! Don't you make me cry now. No, but I do like that it's very special. It's not all it's crap.

49:31Oh, Jake Shears, you are like an absolute diamond. You tell a brilliant tale. And also, like, you're vulnerable and wonderful and talented. And I just can't wait for everyone to hear the record, which is amazing. By the way, we haven't even talked about, you have Kylie Minogue on it, Big Freedia, you kill it, it goes from this. Jane Fonda. Fuck off. Jane Fonda, yeah, she's got a big moment in it, yeah. You're doing all right, aren't you, Jay? Life is good. Life is good. I'm very lucky, and I have a great time, you know? It's not perfect, but it's like, it couldn't be any better. Well, I'm just, best of luck with it.

50:13Last of all, I just want to thank you for such an amazing dinner. and it's just such a pleasure meeting you and such a pleasure getting to hang out with you. Oh, I love seeing you. Likewise, likewise. And hopefully we'll get to do some more. But you can come for dinner when we're not podcast, yeah. I would love to just like come hang out and like, you know, sit on the sofa and help out. You know what? If you ever need a bit of chicken soup after a big long week, you need to just call Lenny. And I'll Uber it. That's what she does. She'll do an emergency chicken soup. If you need that, Jake. Thank you, but I would need a little bit of you too.

50:47Okay, I'll bring you in. I would need a little bit of, I would need some hang with you as well.

51:05I loved hearing about the food in New Orleans, how he grew up, his very traditional family for a very untraditional man. And I loved hearing about his best friend, Mary. Mary's wonderful. That song is so beautiful. It's even more special now I know the story behind it, really. Scissor Sisters, can't wait for new music from you. Yes, please. And Jake Shears, I really want to see you on stage again too. Since then, had he done cabaret at that point? He hadn't done cabaret. That was so good. I think he just found out that he might be starring in it. We'll see you next week for the last Table Manners second album.

52:08We'll see you next time.

52:11discover many good reasons. Zinn is America's number one nicotine pouch brand. Plus, Zinn offers a robust rewards program. There are lots of options when it comes to nicotine satisfaction, but there's only one Zinn. Check out Zinn.com slash find to find Zinn at a store near you. Warning, this product contains nicotine. Nicotine is an addictive chemical.