Quotes of All Topics . Occasions . Authors
Soap opera seems to be a dirty word, but actually they are the most popular shows we have. People want to know what happens next, people hate the villains and love the lovers. It's good, fun TV. But I wouldn't call 'Downton' a soap opera as such.
Admitting that we ourselves are bar mitzvah boys is our way of letting non-Jews as well as Jews in the audience know that everything we're doing is meant in good fun; we're having fun with our background and don't want to be taken in the wrong way.
I used to do prank calls as these people and try to convince certain hoteliers that I was someone else. At the time, I used to do people like Tony Blair and William Hague. It was very good fun hearing people kind of thinking, 'Hmm, is that who I think it is?'
It's not like I think: 'By the age of 40 I've got to be an international household name.' When the opportunity to perform comes up, then I'll take it. It's really good fun. But because I don't crave the attention or the buzz, it's not like I'm desperate for it.
I went down to the sewers in London and looked at a campaigning group in London called RATS, Rowers Against Thames Sewage, and I went to Sewage School and hung out with kids learning to make sewage soup and how to clean sewage. And it was great - really good fun.
You just suddenly think that there's something quite childish about acting. Basically, it's pretending, isn't it? It's good fun and I enjoy it, but it's a funny way of making a living, particularly when you make a very good wage, as I've been fortunate enough to do.
I'm not curing cancer. I'm not saving lives. It's my job. I'm an actor. It's a good, fun job. People enjoy it, but there are many other people who are doing so many things that are more worthwhile. I just don't see anything that special about it. I see it as entertaining.
The perfect party for me is having six to 12 people for dinner Friday or Saturday - good, fun friends, a lot of artists. I have a beautiful deck that looks over the canyon and Los Angeles on one side, so it's very pretty at night. It's a great opportunity to catch up with friends.
I'm always drawn towards the darker stuff, because I think it's just a lot more interesting. But it's also good fun doing the comedy, and I think that's why 'Misfits' has been great in that way, as you get a really good balance. I think it's best to try and do everything as an actor, really.
Occasionally, fans will ask me to go on their shoulders, and we'll do a sort of Hodor and Bran thing. That's always good fun. But one guy did it, and he really wasn't an expert at picking people up, and I was kind of going sideways on his back holding onto his neck, and then I sort of fell off. But that was fun.
As an actor, some of the most fun days I've had on set have involved shooting blanks all day - or better yet, on a micro-budget indie shoot in Texas, shooting live ammo. I feel guilty admitting this, but make-believe beating a man half to death for nine hours can also be strangely satisfying and, dare I say, good fun.
