Five Minutes With: Brian Sewell

In a series for the BBC News website, Celebrities and news-makers are grilled by Matthew Stadlen in precisely five minutes.
In this video, Matt talks to Brian Sewell.

[@AnthonyMonaghan]

I once saw him, from the top decker of a London bus, going along Kensington High Street. Even from that distance, at speed, in a crowd, Mr. Sewell stood out. He was standing at a pedestrian crossing, holding an umbrella and a newspaper.

[@thomask.8537]

For years he was the one man in England I wanted to meet. By the time I knew people in a position to introduce me, he was deathly ill and i never realized my ambition.

[@desiredqued]

Oh... how sad, not sure how or where but Mr Sewell infused my increasing passion for art as a young black man from Tottenham. I appreciated the creative process and application but had little knowledge of the paintings that dazzled my eyes and imagination. It is Brian Sewell that got attention with his command regarding the value of the craft and its importance.

[@hyena131]

@2b02b Are you a Broadwater Farm Estate ne'er-do-well?

[@monkeytennis8861]

Relevance of race?

[@CHRISDABAHIA]

He was a wonderful critic in that he always made your ears prick up and take note whenever he spoke, whether you disagreed or agreed with him. A sad loss!!

[@williamwilliam5066]

Yes a lovely man, as a white man I thought he was great. If I were an Asian however, I'm not sure how approving I would be.

[@monkeytennis8861]

@@williamwilliam5066 why?

[@kernow9324]

The late Victor Lewis Smith used to do a fabulous impression of Brian Sewell. R.I.P. Brian Sewell and Victor Lewis Smith.

[@martinplatt5928]

His clipped accent is wonderful. A thoroughly straight forward and honest man. Just learnt of his passing today so RIP Brian. You were a bit special.

[@jean6872]

You mean ... ... he's dead? That is sad. I was hoping to get to know him. I still can, I suppose, on KZbin.

[@yuchenglin5799]

@@jean6872 Yes, very sad indeed. Comforting still, we have his voice to commemorate.

[@Ingramdumpkiss]

A very decent man and in his autobiography he never ceases to amaze - on every page he says or does or thinks almost the opposite of what we would assume him to say do or think, but is all the better for it, and he is totally without ego. I miss his wit.

[@alexandradane3672]

5 minutes , 5 years , 5 centuries of the late Brian Sewell would still not be enough ……..I adored him and treasure the memories of knowing him, of being in his company on a few occasions , talking to him, listening and bathing in his exactly that - his company . I will always hold that as being enormous luck and a privilege . He was quite an extraordinary man and gentleman . Erudite, articulate , waspish and witty , warm and wonderful and with such a wealth of knowledge and an enormous perception of , to and for the “ human condition”. May he forever Resquiat In Pace .

[@robzrob]

God bless Brian's Mum!

[@AntPDC]

RIP Mr Sewell. You will be missed sir.

[@MrDavey2010]

So British! Love the accent & manner.

[@jean6872]

I'd say English ruling class.

[@andynixon2820]

Considering he only had 5 mins he asked him some pretty good questions.

[@davidlondon2810]

He was the master of the dry put-down, sometimes outrageously and hilariously so. I remember hearing him on the BBC’s radio discussion programme “Any Questions” years ago when a question came up which obliquely referred to a British Member of Parliament who had been caught having sex at a notorious London gay cruising area. When it came to Brian Sewell’s turn he merely said (in exactly the same way he speaks here): “the poor man went cruising for a young Adonis and ended up with a 55 year old Rastafarian”.

[@iliyakuryakin4671]

I remember that and it was on Question Time. The programme is on youtube (kzbin.info/www/bejne/oZDcdp-NZr6Yb9E) and Brian's comment comes at 2:45.

[@barbfrmsf]

May he rest in peace thanks for sharing your talent with us

[@juanlauda2300]

Sewell is missed sorely.

[@jjaammeess84]

Its quite an eye opener to see that someone who I would deem as somewhat aloof would still class himself as a failure. Its obviously in a wildly different class to my own shortcomings but we all have our own foibles to bare. I certainly like the man more than the few newspaper clippings and HIGNFY have provided before.

[@tonyclifton265]

"the word you're looking for is draughtsman" lol excellent

[@Rasscasse]

I love Brian Sewell There I’ve said it!

[@limpet7r63]

Not being remotely interested in art, the first time this man came into my consciousness was when Clarkson interviewed him on his chat show in the 90s, and Mr. Sewell put his incredibly eloquent and articulate boot into the Citroen 2CV, or more accurately, the kind of people who drove them at the time. Erudite, sharp, funny, and with a wonderful command of the English language, he was a fascinating and complex character whose views on a number of subjects were entirely contradictory to the initial impression give by his blunt, RP mannerisms and upper class image. He was a vocal critic of trades unions for example, but not because he didn't believe in the principle of organised labour, but because he thought the unions that exist today to be weak and ineffective. Sorely missed.

[@Ampex196]

Brian speaks English almost faultlessly. It is music to the ear!

[@chel3SEY]

He sounds atrocious. That's why people mock his accent... and so they should.

[@joshuataylor6087]

He sounds wonderful. I wish more people had pride in the English language.

[@AntPDC]

chel3SEY Why should his accent be mocked? Should yours?

[@chel3SEY]

If I spoke like Sewell, yes, I should be mocked too!

[@AntPDC]

chel3SEY No, only your shallowness.

[@gilletje3307]

I love him so much ( Brian).

[@portaccio]

"boyhood persians..." I thought he was talking about the breed of his dogs. It wad "boyhood passions". Posher than the queen he was.

[@123paul]

And more useful and valuable to this country than that tedious woman ever was.

[@MrDaiseymay]

The old QUEEN makes our Queen sound like Rita Webb

[@CHRISDABAHIA]

@@123paul They both have/had their value. Just because you're bitter and twisted, doesn't make that any less true.

[@ghughesarch]

his boyhood passions may well have been boyhood Persians as well.

[@willdatsun]

Legend

[@barry5787]

Love him, he is sensitive but to the point, with enough humorous ambiguity to keep you hooked and sex bubbles below the surface. Magic.

[@eleveneleven572]

I'm not surprised he came across Anthony Blunt 😎

[@leewinters418]

He's brilliant.....

[@chel3SEY]

He's a joke.

[@AntPDC]

chel3SEY He's fabulous, loved and adored by many.

[@chel3SEY]

Loved and adored by many? Maybe. There's no accounting for taste. Mocked and disliked by MANY more.

[@AntPDC]

chel3SEY Please cite the source of your assertion. No, wait, you can't - the mere opinion of a superficial termagent.

[@chel3SEY]

Zzzzzzz

[@shaikhalifa3133]

Epic interview !

[@lovejoynelson5366]

Class act. The Master

[@PrinceWesterburg]

Art is emotion

[@hugh0221]

I miss people with accents like Brian's.

[@sumukhkb]

hugh0221 That's true, so do I. I'm not British though, so I would like to know why the number of people with such accents has come down. Could you throw some light on that, please?

[@gwasgray9309]

sumukh bharadwaj Because it's considered old-fashioned. But then the majority of people never would have spoken with a very posh accent, the obvious difference between then and now is that TV presenters and radio announcers all had posh accents in the past.

[@sumukhkb]

Thank you for the reply. I understand that Mr. Sewell's accent is old-fashioned. I also understand that there exist a multitude of accents in Britain, and that it would be a shame if any of them is lost. What I can't understand is the hate that the posh accent receives. I'm aware that a few people with that sort of accent were extremely snobbish, and looked down upon others, but surely a great many others were very well behaved?

[@AntPDC]

sumukh bharadwaj It's all about class hatred, fuelled by envy and insecurity among the weak-minded.

[@sumukhkb]

I see. It is nonetheless sad though, that such a thing is allowed to happen. Was there pressure exerted on the media to replace their presenters with people who spoke more 'acceptable' accents? Also, I have read that the accents taught at Eton and Harrow were very famous. Do they still teach their students these?

[@tobyruncorn2]

He smiled at the end.

[@Tanishq.A]

His accent is so simple,clear and correct and not like other british people. I think his accent is the most correct way of speaking english.

[@Jjrdan]

+Tanishq Aurangabadkar There is no correct way of speaking English.

[@johnharwood194]

You're wrong and judgemental. There is no CORRECT way of speaking. His accent is NOT natural, it's an accent that was developed about 200 yrs ago in the "triangle of learning" (Oxford, Cambridge, London). If anything it's totally WRONG in some respects. It might be clearer to non-British people and "standard" but not necc' "better". We should be geting away from this type of snobbery in 2016. Accents are great and add character to a country, unlike America where 300 million people speak an almost uniform, bland form of English! What's important is grammar, and correct use of words, NOT accent which is superficial.

[@stevenaball333]

And who are you to tell the British people how to speak? What a strange thing to say.

[@duxnihilo]

G96Saber Relativism and Universalism are not mutually exclusive. Admit to yourself you read about neither and just parrot jargon you heard from others.

[@jerryoshea3116]

Tanishq Aurangabadkar His accent was related to him being born in another time..But different regions of the Country have different accents..The average "working class,Blue Collar"work was hardly likely 2b exposed to Green&Latin and the Humanities..So there are numerous reasons for this disparity..

[@Geraint3000]

Greatly missed.

[@michaelspilman5220]

I loved his voice and admired his knowledge. However he didn't know much about the north of England. I didn't like him saying bad things about the north. Both the north and it's people are wonderful. When it comes to the UK arts scene the rest of the UK has a lot to thank the north of England for both in terms of artists and art. Such a pity he didn't realize this . Overral I didn't like him. From Michael from Yorkshire and proud of it.

[@michaelspilman5220]

to mike oxenfire . the north of england apart from contributing immensly to uk arts and culture has nice people and beautiful countryside and marvellous seaside resorts( not that the rest of the country dosent have any of these). what is there to hate about that?. from michael from Yorkshire and proud of it.

[@johannesr9166]

I'd like to spend some time with him to learn his accent

[@johnharwood194]

Just have elocution lessons, like he did. Although to be honest, a lot of it is put on. I know someone who met him at his home for an interview who said the 1st thing he noticed was how different his accent was when in private to when he is on TV. Most people affect it to some extent. And what is so wonderful about an accent that makes people hate you? Sewell asked that himself. Only stupid people think that if you speak like that, you're automatically more intelligent. It's just an accent of the South East mixed in with public school education. My ex girlfriends spoke like that and was not exactly the sharpest tool in the box. It means nothing.

[@harryburrows2112]

@@johnharwood194 Interesting take

[@mauromejias8840]

@@johnharwood194 an native English speaker cannot speak posh if they social circle are people from lower class or something else. Yes your fiance can speak in that way and i can sing such a bird. You will be the cheap copy at the end unless you change your social class with you are involved

[@Chillednfunked]

How hysterical, that affected accent. He seems like he has his tongue firmly placed in his cheek rather unassuming. Matt I never knew you interviewed him 😆 RIP

[@Ed-kv2vb]

Of course it isn't affected. You must be very young.

[@yuchenglin5799]

But it was proper, educated speech at the time he was born. Go ask your grandpa about it and you may find something new.

[@nmacog]

Bangety boo boo. Buddly bum. Buddly baaaa. BIddly BEE ... it's Brian Bandonde !

[@RiggySmalls]

But bo you bell bungalows?

[@nyamutography]

Hahahahahaha

[@jools182]

sadly missed

[@edwardsmith4911]

Roy gill was here

[@rbeygarcia]

Boy looks good enough to eat.

[@chrish12345]

what a waste, typical BBC to get interesting people in front of the camera for once in its life, only to then shut off after 5 minutes

[@GEricG]

I couldn't agree more. A man like Brian Sewell needs far more than five minutes in order to get any value out of the interview.

[@AntPDC]

EricG Brian Sewell is persona non grata at the BBC, and many other parts of the Establishment. More's the pity.

[@robzrob]

chrish12345 Where IS he these days?

[@chrish12345]

No idea, he's published a few books of late though

[@AntPDC]

robzrob He's in poor health, alas.

[@TheNeedlefactory]

the word you are looking for is 'maleducated' ha

[@kurt2161984]

Bwaaaaahh

[@thisistoocharming]

Even by bird pictures.

[@rovercoupe7104]

He liked Cadillacs. M.

[@jimipurple123]

brian badonde

[@michaelprice6385]

hes brilliant! no he's a joke! no he is

[@hyena131]

Dilettante extraordinaire...and utterly lacking a sense of humour.

[@davidlondon2810]

Not true. He had a very dry wit and could be absolutely hilarious.

[@hyena131]

@@davidlondon2810 Sadly he's keeping this supposed "very dry wit" extremely carefully under wraps...

[@muaythaifighter1100]

BOOOOO!

[@RhysWW1]

His irritatingly purse-lipped attempt at sounding more posh than he was was insufferable. And a 'draftsmen' is someone who drafts designs, not paints.

[@Airhead4321]

I think the point he was making was that you should be able to draw well (which is the general meaning of draughtsman, not just just the drafting of designs) in order to paint well. And that is in keeping with his mostly traditional approach to art. Anyway, RIP Brian.

[@MontyCantsin5]

He was absolutely correct to use the term draughtsman in relation to drawing as a fine art practice.

[@wilfredbarnes1986]

Satan got that soul. I would be surprised if not!

[@mrrobbiezed]

I fear five minutes with Brian Sewell would be intolerable . . . . . . . .What a Horrible man. His adopted role as art critic was way above his intellect. His rudeness towards artists, women, and the general public were unjustified. He himself should have been " PUT DOWN AT BIRTH". . . . . . .a phrase he used himself about Banksy. DON'T REST IN PEACE. . . . . .DRIP. . . . . . . .Definition of Drip: (informal) an inane, insipid person. Good Riddance !

[@123paul]

But still above your intellect I suspect.

[@mrrobbiezed]

+123paul You suspected wrong. I'd've lost him in every aspect of life, academically, artistically and socially. He was a bitter man . A bitterness which I believe derived from his unacceptance of his own sexuality.As a critic, he failed miserably. He was more an engineer, an engineer who created his own miserable existence, then took out on everyone else because of his own inner turmoil. So to me he was merely an engineer, a BITTER BROWN PIPE ENGINEER !

[@123paul]

***** The lady doth protest too much methinks.

[@mrrobbiezed]

You are a man of few words, but plagiarising snippets of Shakespeare to try and appear intellectual does not surprise me coming from you. Didn't Shakespeare also say "He hath heard that men of few words are the best men." This can be quite true, as long as the words are the man's own.

[@johnharwood194]

What are you trying to hide? Yes, of course you'd have "lost him" in all aspects of life. So why are you unknown? You remind me of those kids who, when you crticize them on You Tube, come back with "Shut it loser, I'm a millionaire with a Ferrari". ANYONE can claim anything on line. PROVE IT, tosser!