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19th Nov 2019

Jack Whitehall on dealing with the “posh guilt” that came with his upbringing

Rudi Kinsella

Jack Whitehall

Whitehall discussed being friends with a number of students from Eton College, a school that has educated 20 British Prime Ministers.

Jack Whitehall is very much at the forefront of British stand-up comedy at the moment, with his career seemingly showing no signs of slowing down.

Tours, Netflix specials, movie and television roles to beat the band and millions of fans… he’s a star.

But Whitehall is perhaps best known for his over the top posh guy persona that many people love him for. Although he plays up to the act while performing, it does come from a very real place.

He was born into a wealthy family – his mother is an actress and his father a successful television producer – and recognises that there is an odd sense of what he describes as “posh guilt” that comes with this sort of life.

Speaking to Dion Fanning on a recent episode of Ireland Unfiltered, Whitehall discussed the British upper-class culture and how bizarre it can be.

He said: “I know Etonians and I met a lot of Etonians and just the problem is they are literally, you know, they’re bred to think that they are made to rule. 

“I’ve met a lot of Etonians that are really nice and they would admit to it, like at school there’s just something about it where because it has that history and it has all those people. Obviously that doesn’t mean everyone who went to Eton thinks that they’re going to be Prime Minister…

It’s insane, they have like 12 Prime Ministers who went to that school so I guess it’s quite hard not to be at that school and think ‘I could be Prime Minister one day, I probably will be Prime Minister one day.’

“It’s crazy. It’s so weird that that is the case. I’m allowed to say that by the way as well because I tried to get into Eton and they didn’t want me.”

Check out Jack Whitehall’s conversation with Dion Fanning in full below.