Robin Leach: Remembering “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous”

Robin Leach, host of Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous".

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robin_Leach

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“This is a caviar dream for me.”

Those were the words of my spouse the other day when she was getting ready for her bucket list trip to Canada’s Wonderland at the start of the Halloween season.

“Champagne wishes and caviar dreams,” I responded in possibly the worst English accent ever.

We both laughed.

It made me think of Robin Leach, who uttered those famous words every week on his show “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous”.

When I was growing up, we tuned in every Sunday night to Channel 7 on the peasant vision dial to peek into the lives of superstars, millionaires, celebrities and more, brought to us by Robin Leach.

Saw it here first
My earliest recollection of Robin Leach was as a correspondent on “Entertainment Tonight”. That show was the source of so much TV, movie and music news and information. They seemed to have their pulse on the entertainment industry, with reporters always on the spot or in the know.

One of those reporters was Robin Leach, a suave, silky-voiced, debonair British journalist.

That manner gave him credibility before he even opened his mouth.

Pretty soon, that lead to something even bigger.

Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous
Robin Leach got his own show in 1984, with the syndicated “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous”. It seemed Channel 7 on the peasant vision dial was much more willing to air syndicated programs, whereas the CBC and CTV affiliates stayed with home-grown shows and American network shows.

“Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous” aired early Sunday evenings on Channel 7, and I recall watching it while I did my homework for school on Monday.

It always had this exotic look, almost like a news show. Robin Leach’s style also gave it this air of importance when much of it was just glamour and fashion.

Yet, there were some interesting pieces that I still remember clearly.

Topping the list is a piece about a man named Nathan Lee Roth who had two mansions Robin Leach took us inside. One was called “Rothwell”, the other was called “Bradbury”. It is part way through this profile that Leach reveals Roth’s son is David Lee Roth, lead singer of the band Van Halen at that time. At that point, Nathan Lee Roth, who is Jewish, talks about his son singing in synagogue and having the most beautiful voice.

It was very well done, because Leach didn’t get starstruck and make it a piece about “David Lee Roth’s dad”. It was a story about Nathan Lee Roth and, in doing it that way, we probably learned more about David Lee Roth than if he had been the focus.

That was the charm of Robin Leach’s journalism.

“Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous” would run until 1995. Robin Leach would keep on working until he suffered two strokes in 2018 and passed away at the age of 76.

Parting thoughts
These days, shows like “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous” are all over specialty TV channels and streaming services. People cannot get enough of the glitz, glamour, fashion, high-end cars and other aspects of the celebrity lifestyle.

Yet, back in the 1980s, if you wanted that kind of information, the best, most accessible source was Sunday nights, when you could tune into Channel 7 to see “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous.”

To my mind, Robin Leach was one of the pioneers of that kind of reporting, shining a lot on the people, places and things the vast majority of people could only dream about.

He showed us the “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous.”