Richard E. Grant’s harrowing childhood confession: ‘Tried to shoot’

Oscar-nominated film veteran Richard E. Grant has shared a disturbing story from his past in an emotional new interview.

Richard E Grant has revealed his alcoholic father fired a bullet at his head in a harrowing childhood moment.

The actor, 67, grew up in Swaziland with his dad, Henrik, after he split from his mother, Leonne.

Grant loved his dad when he was sober but described him as a “monster” once he began drinking whiskey, reports The Sun.

Richard E. Grant. (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for IFP)

Speaking to Davina McCall on her Begin Again podcast, Grant recalled his dad trying to kill him.

“He tried to shoot me when I was 15 when I emptied all his scotch supply down the sink,” said the star.

“I was half way through [pouring] the eleventh bottle, gun at the back of my head, I ducked, went off, ran to the garden – he finally found me, said ‘I’m going to blow your brains out’.”

Furious Grant urged him to do it, but fortunately his dad failed.

He continued: “He pulled the trigger, but because he was drunk, it wavered, so it went straight past.”

His dad Henrik, pictured, was an alcoholic. Picture: Instagram

Prior to his parents’ separation, Grant admitted he lived with guilt after seeing his mum have sex with Henrik’s best friend in a car.

He was snoozing in the back seat when he was awakened by “rhythmic” sounds. When he opened his eyes and looked over at the front seat he witnessed the romp.

Unsure of what to do, he closed his eyes and pretended to be asleep.

“I knew I was witnessing something I shouldn’t have,” he told McCall. “You feel guilty. You feel complicit. You know something that nobody else should know.”

Grant said he never felt safe at home and was “piggy in the middle” for the last nine months of his parents’ relationship as they were no longer speaking.

Chain-smoker Henrik died aged 52 from lung cancer – the same condition that Richard’s late wife Joan died from in 2021 – when his son was 24.

The actor shared the harrowing story on a new podcast. Picture: Supplied

Grant said he views every year he lives beyond his father’s death age as a “bonus”.

His mother, who Grant describes as a narcissist in the podcast, died in 2023 aged 93.

The two were estranged for decades before eventually salvaging a relationship.

After her death, Grant wrote on social media: “We had an incredibly complicated relationship, and she was somebody that was, for me anyway, emotionally withdrawn and withheld approbation or approval of anything.

“Nothing was ever quite good enough but what that proved to be was a great motor for ambition and determination, to try and prove yourself and be the best you possibly can.

“And, yet ironically, whatever she did she demanded and got applause and approval from everyone around her, including me.”

This article originally appeared in The Sun and was reproduced with permission.

Originally published as Richard E. Grant’s harrowing childhood confession: ‘Tried to shoot’