I consider London my home. I pine for it. I find myself more often than not in America, predominantly L.A., so I feel homesick for London. I think it's the energy. It was so liberating. Nobody was judging you. You could dress however you liked. You could really just be essentially who you wanted to be. I remember when I was a child we'd occasionally go up to London on the weekend. We'd go to the theatre and grab something to eat, or we'd go shopping on Oxford Street or along the Kings Road. So I had a connection with London, because it's only about an hour and a half from Canterbury. I remember going to the Tower of London [Tower Hill] too, and seeing the Crown Jewels. They're all there in a case, and then there are the Beefeater men, who are there to guard the jewels.
Dinner
When I started drama school, I had a flat in the centre of London under the British Telecom Tower, and I always used to think of the tower as my back garden. It was like a beacon for home, because it's so tall and I could always see it flashing. I lived on Hanson Street, and there was a fantastic little greasy spoon there. In the summer we'd sit outside under the BT Tower eating eggs and bacon, tea and toast.
On the other end of my street is a restaurant called Back to Basics. It's a small fish place with really lovely waitresses from Sweden or Stockholm or somewhere. The food is fantastic, the fish fresh, really well cooked. My good friend whom I lived with in the flat was Swedish, and he loved the food there and recognized the cooking as a taste from home. There was a restaurant next to it called Silks & Spice. They have one in Camden, as well. It's got great Thai food.
Saturday
Shopping
I worked at Paul Smith [Covent Garden] when I first moved to London. It was a great place to work. I got a lot of great clothes from there, and I still do. But back then I got a great discount. It kept clothes on my back the whole way through school. Now I'll dress in one of his suits or I'll wear his shirts. Paul Smith's got great British style. There are little details and things that make his stuff stand out. I think what I learned about style from there is to be individual and not to feel like you have to conform. Just wear what feels good and be a little eccentric if you feel like it.
Lunch
I normally lay low when I get to London these days. But I used to go to a pub, the Old Ship [Hammersmith], that has beautiful views of the River Thames. There's also the Cow [Notting Hill], a pub near the Portobello Road market, which is a great place to go on the weekend. The Cow was always good for a pint of prawns or some oysters and a Guinness. It's got character. When I was younger, I used to go to pubs and bars and hang out with friends and do Soho. But it's been a while. That was before I broke my back.
I was visiting friends in Lisson Grove. They had a roof terrace on the landing below their apartment. I got up to the fourth floor and I could see this roof terrace. I could have just jumped straight from the window onto the ledge, but instead I got onto this piece of drainpipe flashing, nothing really substantial, and I fell back and landed on a first floor terrace between some iron railings and an old washing machine. I had a rather miraculous escape from death and the possibility of spending my life in a chair. For four days I contemplated that, having been told by the doctors that I would never walk again. It's something that's actually been a very positive part of my life. It made me appreciate life with a fresh set of eyes. Forced me to slow down, look around, and think a little more.
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Excerpted from Celebrated Weekends: The stars' guide to the most exciting destinations in the world by Mark Seal. Copyright 2007 by Mark Seal. Excerpted with permission from Rutledge Hill Press. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced except with permission in writing from the publisher.
