The king and queen of popular fiction: Marian Keyes and Richard Osman on their successes and struggles | Books | The Guardian

Interviewing Osman and Keyes is like being caught in a cuddle between two national treasures, albeit a slightly lopsided one. The photo shoot - Osman's 6 ft 7 next to the diminutive Keyes with her dark fringe and spiky eyelashes - resembles one between Roald Dahl's BFG and Matilda. Hair and makeup, let alone personal makeup artists, are not par for the course for author interviews, but this is the only sign of their super-brand status. At 51 and 58 respectively, they are as lovely (a favourite word for both) as everyone's mum says, and they really love their mums (to whom their novels are dedicated). Happily, they are not too nice for a good gossip about certain high-profile figures.