Ralph Fiennes Eats & Sips Deliciously Theatrical Lunch on Table Manners

A Master Actor, A Home‑Cooked Greek Chicken, and A Whole Lot of Charm

Fine, exquisite actor Ralph Fiennes pulls up a chair with Jessie Ware and her momma Lennie on their beloved twosome‑duo podcast, Table Manners. And from the moment he walks in — “dashing,” as Jessie puts it — the episode becomes a warm, witty, deeply British feast.

Over lunch, Ralph dives into his new David Hare play, a West End transfer exploring Victorian theatre, artistic rebellion, and the complicated brilliance of Ellen Terry and Henry Irving. He talks about the thrill of performing a fresh work, the unpredictability of audience energy, and the strange subjectivity of knowing whether a show “went well” or not.

The conversation spirals into the world he grew up in: the eldest of six, raised in a creative, financially scrappy, wildly artistic family. There are memories of homemade soups, supermarket pies, and the kind of childhood meals that were more about feeding a crowd than culinary flourish. Yet food clearly became a lifelong love — he lights up talking about cooking, River Café recipes, Ottolenghi experiments, and the perfect slow‑cooked lamb.

And then there’s the Catholicism. His upbringing, his theologian relatives, and how that background unexpectedly helped him while filming Conclave. It’s thoughtful, funny, and deeply human.

Jessie and Lennie serve a Greek chicken with lemony potatoes, plus a bright green salad — and Ralph is all in. He even shares his post‑show ritual: a glass of champagne… or a perfectly made martini. (Dry, gin from the freezer, vermouth rinse, lemon sliver. Jessie’s “wet and filthy” blue‑cheese‑olive martini sends him into theatrical disbelief.)

It’s a warm, generous, delicious episode — the kind that reminds you why Table Manners works so well. A great actor, a great meal, and a great chat.

Dig into the full episode below — it’s a yummy listen and an even yummier hang.