Arthur Mathews: ‘Graham Linehan is a good friend of mine, he is not a bigot. It’s a matter of free speech’

Arthur Mathews: ‘Graham Linehan is a good friend of mine, he is not a bigot. It’s a matter of free speech’

Arthur Mathews and myself sit side-by-side in the morning gloom of Merrion Square Park, speaking quietly, like spies plotting. I had presumed the comedy writer had health concerns about being cooped up for the interview indoors as Omicron rampaged, or perhaps that he had chosen the location because actor Dermot Morgan’s commemorative bench is just a few yards away.