Rufus Wright
Rufus Wright, a.k.a. Rufus Gerrard-Wright, met Stephen Merchant in 1995 at the University of Warwick in Coventry, where they worked on an ill fated student revue for Edinburgh, and on student radio. Steve often describes Rufus as "super posh," referencing his swanky upper-class family and his boy's school education. Six weeks into The Steve Show, Steve brought his old mate Rufus in to the studio, to the almost instant delight of the listeners. Rufus became a regular contributor to the show and is considered consistently funny and charming, particularly in the role of the "dandy" archetype.
Rufus described himself on The Steve Show as an "actor, a painter, and a crime fighter."
During the Xfm years, Steve mentioned Rufus a couple of times, perhaps most notably as his friend whose family had moved from Folkingham to Fingringhoe.
On the 16 September 2007 show, Rufus announced on-air that he had gotten engaged to his girlfriend that weekend.
Acting Career
Rufus starred in one episode of Extras Series 2 as Fran. Since then he played John Birt, David Frost's producer in the play Frost/Nixon; and also understudied Michael Sheen, who played David Frost. Rufus was also one of Steve's mates who starred in the comedy sitcom No Skillz. In 2001, Rufus had a role in the film Spy Game with Brad Pitt and Robert Redford. In 2007, Rufus played the part of a posh businessman in the comedy series Christie.
