She was a real vamp...

Reece Shearsmith has told of how he got to know his wife – in a coffin.

The pair were both part of an educational project, touring a play called Neighbours With Long Teeth to schools in Germany to teach people English.

‘The story was about acceptance and there were vampire neighbours,  and the people next door didn't like them. So, it was me meeting the vampire Filthia – that was her name – and that was Jane, she was playing the vampire. 

‘And we had a bit where we're in a coffin, so we— and we just got very close in that coffin. And then the next thing is I married it.’

Speaking to  Nick Grimshaw and Angela Hartnett on the Dish From Waitrose podcast, Shearsmith told how they kept the spooky theme up for their wedding.

‘We had a sort of pagan-like wedding in Highgate Woods,’ he said. ‘A little candlelit procession. And we did the vows in the woods, in the dark. 

‘It was very, very quick. Some people propose and then it's years before they do the thing. I proposed in October. And we were married in February. Just wanted to do it.’

While the Inside No 9 co-creator is fascinated by the supernatural, he confessed he doesn’t believe in ghosts.

‘I love the idea of it,’ he said. ‘I always have, and I'm obsessed with it. But I think no, I think it’s the power of the mind… You want to believe, and it obviously answers a lot of comforting questions doesn't it? To think, oh, everyone is there waiting. But no, I think it's, bullshit.’

He added that he didn’t believe in the afterlife either – ‘until I go to a funeral and I think, "Oh, it's nice this." I do want to believe it. But I think that's just a comforting thing. It's the same as like having a big  marshmallow or something.’

The comedian said he’s ‘big on Halloween’ adding: 'Halloween has already begun for me. It never really goes away. To be honest. I'm very big on it, but there are things that people would think are Halloweeny all year round in my house. Werewolf foetus. Vampire killing kit. That's just in there all year round. The house is a sort of museum to scary things.’

Shearsmith was on the podcast to talk about his book, Things I Took From the Dark: The Museum Of Me – inspired by his collection of artefacts and due to be published next Thursday.  

He also spoke about being in a 'gossip club' with Bob Mortimer and Matt Berry:

This episode of Dish from Waitrose is available now.

Published: 30 Sep 2026