Molly Wilkinson surprised mum Hilary Whitehall by admitting she thought there was a man in the family funnier than her comedian brother Jack Whitehall on the latest episode of the Mail’s ‘The Apple & The Tree’ podcast.
The podcast, hosted by the Reverend Richard Coles, pits parents against their adult children to ask questions about their shared family history they’ve always wanted answered.
This week’s episode of ‘The Apple & The Tree’ features the Whitehalls, with matriarch Hilary Whitehall, 64, and daughter Molly Wilkinson, 36, spilling the secrets of entertainers Michael and Jack Whitehall.
Explaining how theatrical agent Michael had tried to dissuade his children from pursuing acting, Hilary remembered that it wasn’t clear at the time which of the Whitehall clan would steal the limelight.
‘My youngest, Barnaby Whitehall – as a child, when there was a camera around, would be up on a chair declaiming: I want to do a speech!’, Hiliary said.
This week’s episode of ‘The Apple & The Tree’ features the Whitehalls, with matriarch Hilary Whitehall, 64, and daughter Molly Wilkinson, 36, spilling the secrets of entertainers Michael and Jack Whitehall. Listen here
Molly Whitehall: ‘Barnaby’s (pictured right) is arguably funnier than Jack!’ Listen here
‘You couldn’t pay him to do that now – although he is very good at public speaking and a very, very funny man.’
Molly replied: ‘He’s arguably funnier than Jack. People always say to me, I’d love to meet your brother, he’s so hilarious. Of course, they mean my older brother.
‘But my younger brother is honestly one of the funniest, most hilarious people I know.
‘There’s quite a lot of space in the Whitehall family taken up by Michael and Jack that he never really gets to have a moment. But get him to a pub on his own, and he’s hilarious.’
Molly and Barnaby, unlike their parents and older sibling, have chosen lives outside the public eye.
Molly ran a PR agency before switching to producing documentaries after the birth of her first child.
Barnaby works behind the scenes in the entertainment industry as the creative director of a production company.
Hilary added that because star son Jack is often away doing comedy professionally, he can behave ‘introverted’ when at home.
![Hilary Whitehall: 'Jack was always eccentric - he used to dragoon you [Molly] into doing performances with him.' Listen here](https://www.americanpolibeat.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/1744870218_286_Jack-Whitehalls-sister-Molly-Wilkinson-reveals-which-man-in-the.jpeg)
Hilary Whitehall: ‘Jack was always eccentric – he used to dragoon you [Molly] into doing performances with him.’ Listen here
Jack appeared alongside dad Michael in the hit Netflix series ‘Jack Whitehall: Travels with My Father’
‘Because Jack does it for a living, he can be quite at home – introverted’, she said.
Jack Whitehall is the star of comedy series ‘Fresh Meat’ and ‘Bad Education’ and previously hosted the BRIT Awards.
He appeared alongside dad Michael in the hit Netflix series ‘Jack Whitehall: Travels with My Father’.
Hilary said it must have been difficult for Molly growing up in the shadow of the ‘eccentric’ future actor.
‘You were the angel child’, Hiliary told her daughter.
‘You weren’t demanding. I think you had a big character ahead of you. Jack was a big character from day one.
‘He was always sort of eccentric – he used to dragoon you into doing performances with him.’
You can listen to the full episode of ‘The Apple & The Tree’ featuring the Whitehalls now, wherever you get your podcasts.
