FIRST IMPRESSIONS: Nicholas Farrell
What are you working on at the moment?
Single Spies, an Alan Bennett double bill of plays – An Englishman Abroad and A Question Of Attribution – about the Cambridge spies Guy Burgess and Anthony Blunt.
When were you at your happiest?
In Mexico. My wife and I had a holiday there going to Mayan temple sites in the jungles, and the combination of these ruined temples and the jungle is a wonderful juxtaposition… It was a very special time. And when we got back my wife was pregnant with our beautiful daughter.
What is your greatest fear?
Being halfway up a mountain, clinging to a ledge. I’m not very good with heights.
What is your earliest memory?
Sitting in the garden in the sun looking at a little lizard in the rockery that my father made. There was a little community of lizards that lived there.
What do you most dislike about yourself?
Sometimes I’m a bit too safety first rather than leaping into the deep end with abandon.
Who has been your greatest influence?
I think a part of the reason I do what I do was watching Anthony Hopkins playing Pierre in War And Peace in 1972. His performance was mesmerising and totally inspiring. He was one of the main reasons I thought ‘I must try this’.
What is your most treasured possession?
This week, it’s a pair of Swarovski binoculars I’ve just treated myself to. I use them for birdwatching.
What trait do you most deplore in others?
I’m not very keen on mean-spiritedness.
What do you most dislike about your appearance?
Why would there be? I’m perfect. I’ve got a bit of a lantern jaw that doesn’t go away with dieting. As you know bones tend not to. But I’m a character actor, not a leading man, so it doesn’t bother me too much.
What is your favourite book?
The Sword Of Honour trilogy by Evelyn Waugh.
What is your favourite film?
The Third Man.
Farrell’s faves: the Sword Of Honour trilogy, binoculars for birdwatching, Sibelius’s Symphony No 5 and eating chocs in secret
And your favourite piece of music?
Sibelius’s Symphony No 5.
What is your favourite meal?
Almost anything that my wife cooks.
Who would you most like to come to dinner?
John Singer Sargent – he earned his money painting the British aristocracy so he’d have lots of gossip. I’d be able to pump him on the gossip and the painting. And William Morris. Again, he achieved so much.
What is the nastiest thing anyone has ever said to you?
It was written about me, and to be fair, it wasn’t just about me but about the entire production. I had two very happy summers in the National Youth Theatre decades ago. There was a critic from Time Out who was a good critic but he wasn’t impressed with the play we were doing. There was a photograph of me and another actor and underneath it he had written ‘as subtle as a carthorse farting and a lot less funny’. That stayed with me.
Do you believe in aliens?
No.
What is your secret vice?
I’m a bit of a chocoholic. I treat myself then hide the wrapper in the bin.
Do you write thank-you notes?
I do, but not as many as I should.
Which phrase do you most overuse?
In many ways I would say that I use the phrase ‘in many ways’ too often.
What would improve the quality of your life?
A home in the country would be good.
Tell us one thing people might not know about you.
I’ve taken up printmaking. I do linocutting.
What would you like your epitaph to read?
He gave it his best shot.
Single Spies, touring until 30 April, is in Birmingham from 17 to 27 February: 0121-236 4455, www.birmingham-rep.co.uk
Single Spies, an Alan Bennett double bill of plays – An Englishman Abroad and A Question Of Attribution – about the Cambridge spies Guy Burgess and Anthony Blunt.
When were you at your happiest?
In Mexico. My wife and I had a holiday there going to Mayan temple sites in the jungles, and the combination of these ruined temples and the jungle is a wonderful juxtaposition… It was a very special time. And when we got back my wife was pregnant with our beautiful daughter.
What is your greatest fear?
Being halfway up a mountain, clinging to a ledge. I’m not very good with heights.
What is your earliest memory?
Sitting in the garden in the sun looking at a little lizard in the rockery that my father made. There was a little community of lizards that lived there.
What do you most dislike about yourself?
Sometimes I’m a bit too safety first rather than leaping into the deep end with abandon.
Who has been your greatest influence?
I think a part of the reason I do what I do was watching Anthony Hopkins playing Pierre in War And Peace in 1972. His performance was mesmerising and totally inspiring. He was one of the main reasons I thought ‘I must try this’.
What is your most treasured possession?
This week, it’s a pair of Swarovski binoculars I’ve just treated myself to. I use them for birdwatching.
What trait do you most deplore in others?
I’m not very keen on mean-spiritedness.
What do you most dislike about your appearance?
Why would there be? I’m perfect. I’ve got a bit of a lantern jaw that doesn’t go away with dieting. As you know bones tend not to. But I’m a character actor, not a leading man, so it doesn’t bother me too much.
What is your favourite book?
The Sword Of Honour trilogy by Evelyn Waugh.
What is your favourite film?
The Third Man.
Farrell’s faves: the Sword Of Honour trilogy, binoculars for birdwatching, Sibelius’s Symphony No 5 and eating chocs in secretAnd your favourite piece of music?
Sibelius’s Symphony No 5.
What is your favourite meal?
Almost anything that my wife cooks.
Who would you most like to come to dinner?
John Singer Sargent – he earned his money painting the British aristocracy so he’d have lots of gossip. I’d be able to pump him on the gossip and the painting. And William Morris. Again, he achieved so much.
What is the nastiest thing anyone has ever said to you?
It was written about me, and to be fair, it wasn’t just about me but about the entire production. I had two very happy summers in the National Youth Theatre decades ago. There was a critic from Time Out who was a good critic but he wasn’t impressed with the play we were doing. There was a photograph of me and another actor and underneath it he had written ‘as subtle as a carthorse farting and a lot less funny’. That stayed with me.
Do you believe in aliens?
No.
What is your secret vice?
I’m a bit of a chocoholic. I treat myself then hide the wrapper in the bin.
Do you write thank-you notes?
I do, but not as many as I should.
Which phrase do you most overuse?
In many ways I would say that I use the phrase ‘in many ways’ too often.
What would improve the quality of your life?
A home in the country would be good.
Tell us one thing people might not know about you.
I’ve taken up printmaking. I do linocutting.
What would you like your epitaph to read?
He gave it his best shot.
Single Spies, touring until 30 April, is in Birmingham from 17 to 27 February: 0121-236 4455, www.birmingham-rep.co.uk