Radio One’s Nick Grimshaw talks being broody, hating dating and embracing his thirties
Grimmy is one of the UK's most eligible gay bachelors and the definition of great company, but the radio host reveals finding love isn't as easy as it seems
NICK Grimshaw looks smitten as he cradles a small and sleepy bundle of joy in his arms.
“It’s like he’s my baby,” Nick proudly grins as he strokes his four-month-old pug-mix pup.
The Radio 1 Breakfast Show presenter, AKA Grimmy, is definitely getting a taste of fatherhood behind the scenes of his shoot today – he’s constantly chasing after the aptly named Stinky Blob – a rescue pup from Battersea Dogs & Cats Home – who’s leaving puddles of wee everywhere, and apologising for his, erm, wind issues.
It’s good practice for parenthood, which is handy, as Nick, 32, admits he’s definitely feeling broody.
“I love kids and all my friends are starting to have kids. I also have nieces and nephews. I think I would like to have a little gayby [a baby with same-sex parents],” he smiles.
“Or I would like to have a baby with one of my girl friends. I haven’t discussed it with them yet, but I would quite like it.
“I looked after one of my friend’s kids last week and it was full-on. It was a lot looking after two dogs, a kid and trying to do some work.”
Nick’s showbiz circle includes Daisy Lowe, Sadie Frost, Alexa Chung and Rita Ora.
So it’s fair to say that if he does get one of his pals to become his baby mama, the resulting offspring will have some seriously good genes.
How about asking pal Kate Moss then?
“Oh, that would be quite good, wouldn’t it?” Nick laughs.
“She would be like: [sarcastically] ‘Oh yeah’.
“Then I would become that person who would want something out of [my celebrity friends] just because they’re famous. ‘Let’s split the money Kate – pop £25million in my bank account for childcare!’”
There’s no denying Nick is one of the UK’s most eligible gay bachelors – so why has he always seemed to struggle to find love?
After confirming his sexuality in August 2012, his last official relationship – with Italian fashion stylist Nicco Torelli – ended in January 2014.
Meanwhile, his longest relationship lasted around nine months [Nick has never named him]. So has he ever been in love?
“Er, I have been in love, yeah,” Nick says before pausing.
“Maybe twice. I think nine months is quite long.
“I’ve been dating people but I’m single at the moment. I would like a boyfriend.
“I was seeing someone earlier this year, who I really liked. We got on great and he was round all the time, but it was tough because he worked a lot as well.”
Nick puts his relationship woes down to that age-old love-life interference: work commitments.
And it’s not hard to understand why, when life as The Radio 1 Breakfast Show host dictates bed at 9pm and waking up at 5am.
“I lead a weird lifestyle. People who go to work usually finish around 7pm and suggest meeting for dinner at 9pm. I’m like: ‘Oh god, that’s late!’ People think that I finish work at 10am and spend the rest of the day in bed.
“But after the show ends my team and I have to frantically plan what’s happening for the three and a half hours of radio the next day.
“Then at weekends I have DJ gigs. I never want to take someone I’m dating with me, because I don’t want them to see me in an elevated position.
“There have been people who I’ve gone out with who are easy-going. Then there are those who require attention or reassurance, and I don’t
have time to do that.”
And thanks to his A-list contacts book, Nick is sadly all too aware of having to be careful about which potential suitors he lets into his life.
“If someone hot says: ‘Do you want to go for a drink?’ I’m like: ‘Oh my god, yes, you look like James Franco!’ Then you wonder: ‘Actually, you look like James Franco… what do you want?’
“You think that if someone is that hot, then they don’t want to go out with [the real] me. They want to go out with me because of the radio, The X Factor and other stuff. You’re wary of that.
“You do have [to be careful], because you don’t want to invite people into your friendship group who just want you for that or who get too excited over it. That has happened before and it makes you think: ‘Why do you like me?’”
It’s easy to understand why everyone wants to be Nick’s mate – he’s the definition of great company, dancing along to his favourite soundtrack of Justin Bieber, Kanye West and Beyoncé, and leaving everyone in stitches with celeb anecdotes.
Like a recent interview with Jake Gyllenhaal, who was so alarmingly good-looking that it caused Nick to break out in a rash.
Funny, honest and warm, you can’t imagine that Nick will be single for long.
But he’s determined not to keep repeating the same mistakes when it comes to men.
“Every time my friends tell me not to rush it and then I always do. That’s always been my downfall,” he sighs.
“I hate first dates. I get conscious about whether I’m interviewing the other person, because my job is to question people. It’s the only time I’m not confident.
“So I have two dates and I’m like: ‘We’re in love!’ If I like them then I want them to enjoy my life.
“They find it pretty intense, as all my friends are mental. But I don’t like playing games, so if I like them then I just do it.
“One of my friends – who will remain nameless – is doing crazy things, like saying she’s busy and blocking the guy. She calls it ‘love management’ and says you have to make yourself more mysterious.”
Nick certainly isn’t one for being cagey, but there is still some mystery surrounding his professional life.
Last year, he became the crème de la crème of telly land when he was announced as a judge on The X Factor alongside Simon Cowell, Cheryl and Rita Ora.
But the shine quickly faded when he found himself in the middle of a media storm, with complaints about a lacklustre panel and falling viewing figures.
Then Nick hit the headlines again in February when news broke that he’d be leaving after a year, despite finishing third with his contestant Ché Chesterman.
So did he quit or was he axed?
“It was my decision,” he says firmly.
“I remember finishing the show and thinking: ‘I don’t know if I want to do that again.’
“I made the decision when I was on holiday over Christmas in Miami with Rita. I think it was the right thing to do in the end, because both Rita and Cheryl thought the same [about leaving]. It was a good ending of that chapter.
“I naively thought it would just be Saturdays and Sundays, but it wasn’t. There was everything else during the week – meetings, mentoring, events, press, photo shoots and so many other commitments.
“It’s probably a great job if you’re not doing The Radio 1 Breakfast Show at the same time. It was difficult to do both.”
As a result of his 20-hour days, Nick’s body had a mini meltdown after filming and he developed a chest and throat infection.
He now admits the experience on ITV’s prime-time gig saw him reassess his work-life balance.
“It’s not me being work-shy, but there comes a point where you’re not in your house, seeing your friends or doing anything normal. Then you’re like: ‘Why am I doing this?’ It’s not like you’re a pop star and creating an album or product, which is a part of it.
“I think it makes you next-level famous as well, which I didn’t like. I thought it was weird and I had never really experienced anything like that before.”
While Nick hasn’t spoken to Simon Cowell since leaving the show last December, he doesn’t harbour any bad feelings of the experience.
“Not at all. It was one of those things I wanted to do. Loads of friends and family were like: ‘I don’t think you should do it.’
“I caught a bit of the show at the weekend and was thinking about it as I got into bed. I remember it being really fun and I made some great friends. It was a good learning curve about what I wanted to do.”
For now, it’s back to the day job at Radio 1 where Nick recently celebrated his fourth anniversary in the early morning hot seat, after taking over from Chris Moyles in 2012.
Plus, he’s tasked with presenting in front of 10,000 screaming fans at the station’s annual Teen Awards at Wembley Arena later today.
But unlike his X Factor gig, Nick is determined to stay for as long as possible after growing into his role.
“I actually can’t believe that I still love it. I think it’s rare to have a job where you’re learning all the time and the more you put into it, the more you get out. I love it more now than I ever have.
“Anything in TV is quite scripted and regimented and you have 10 seconds to say something, but radio is the complete opposite. It’s like therapy because you’re forced to be yourself and talk for three and a half hours every day.
“When you first start out you’re a little self-conscious, but now I’ve found my voice.”
His voice now goes out to 5.4 million listeners a week.
Reports say that the latest official figures are down 400,000 year-on-year but unchanged from the first three months of 2016.
“I don’t pay attention to the figures because they fluctuate a lot. Plus, in the modern world that we live in and the way in which we consume media, it’s a really archaic way they do it – they don’t count people who listen online or on their phone.
“A teenager is not going to have a radio in their bedroom are they? I judge it by if it’s been good and fun or if my bosses are happy.”
Despite working in a youth-obsessed environment, Nick has actually found himself embracing getting older.
“I definitely feel more confident, more relaxed and at peace with myself. Things don’t stress me out and I try not to have anxiety. In your 20s you’re figuring out what you’re going to do, where you’re going to live, how long your job is going to last on the radio and how you’re going pay the mortgage. But you waste time and energy doing that.
“I’ve become more present in my 30s and the people I gravitate towards are those who are very content with themselves.”
And Nick’s new-found focus has seen him embrace yoga and meditation.
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“I’m not sitting on the floor with my legs crossed, but I’m taking time to breathe and to think about myself.
“Listen to yourself and your body a bit more and be a bit more honest with yourself. Ask: ‘Do I really need to go to that party?’ I think it’s really important.”
Nick has also recently embraced working out again and now exercises four times a week (twice with a personal trainer), after a six-month break post-X Factor.
He’s also more than happy to embrace celebrity fads.
He’s tried cutting out gluten and went to a colonic juice farm (but glumly admits that he still looked the same afterwards).
Then there’s the 90-minute treatment costing £345 from Kate Moss’ facialist Anastasia Achilleos and every-other-day sessions of cryotherapy, which involves going into a freezing-cold room for three minutes and is said to aid collagen production.
He’s also just bought a house in east London and has embraced a new work chapter.
“I feel really inspired this year. I want to start directing music videos and to make the sets for tours. I’ve got a meeting this week about making
a video for a new pop star,” he says.
“I love radio and will never, ever give that up, but I want to do something visually creative as well, so I don’t become complacent.”
There’s little chance of that.
After our chat Nick catches up on his emails and schedules a meeting to pitch a new show he’s penned with a friend.
If bosses share an ounce of Nick’s endless enthusiasm, his takeover will soon be complete.
Listen to BBC Radio 1’s Teen Awards today on Radio 1, online, via iPlayer and YouTube.