Richard Keith Robert Coles (born 26 March 1962) is an English writer, radio presenter and Church of England clergyman who was the vicar of Finedon in Northamptonshire from 2011 to 2022. He first came to prominence as the multi-instrumentalist who partnered Jimmy Somerville in the 1980s band the Communards. They achieved three top ten hits, including the No. 1 record and best-selling single of 1986, a dance version of "Don't Leave Me This Way". Coles frequently appears on radio and television as well as in newspapers and, in March 2011, became the host of BBC Radio 4's Saturday Live programme. He is a regular contributor to QI, Would I Lie to You? and Have I Got News for You. He is an author, Chancellor of the University of Northampton, Honorary Chaplain to the Worshipful Company of Leathersellers, and a patron of social housing project Greatwell Homes in Wellingborough. Personal life Coles was born in Northampton, England. His grandfather was a prosperous shoe manufacturer. The company failed under Coles's father because of the increasing popularity of cheaper foreign imports and the family lost much of their wealth. He was educated at the independent Wellingborough School (where he was a choirboy) and at the South Warwickshire College of Further Education (Department of Drama & the Liberal Arts) in Stratford-upon-Avon. He later attended King's College London where he studied theology from 1990. Coles was awarded an MA by research from the University of Leeds in 2005 for work on the Greek text of the Epistle to the Ephesians. Coles is gay. The first person who Coles came out to was his mother, in 1978, when he was 16. He played her Tom Robinson's "Glad to Be Gay" four times before she said "Darling, are you trying to tell me something?" Coles has spoken about the "mental crisis" that he suffered following his coming out, which ultimately led to him attempting suicide and being diagnosed with clinical depression. Coles lived with his partner, David Coles (né Oldham), in an asserted celibate relationship until the latter's death in December 2019. Following the death, Coles said he had received hate mail claiming that his partner is in hell. The Church of England has allowed priests to enter a civil partnership since 2005 and Richard and David entered into one in 2010. Coles later said that the relationship was not celibate, but he had to promise celibacy