I think thats cos at the start of my career I was living in Ireland and doing more theatre. Right now I'm playing Edward, a journalist from Dublin held hostage in Beirut in the late 80's in the Frank McGuinness play "Someone Who'll Watch Over Me" which really is a very good Irish play (not set in Ireland though). Coming to London and doing Handful of Stars by Billy Roche at the Bush was exciting and surprising but for me playing Dominic in the same writers Belfry at the same venue was a real highlight. The first couple of performances of that play were extraordinary really, expectations were high, cos people had seen his last two plays at the same theatre and liked them a lot, but as soon as those kids started singing the opening of "You Can't Always Get What You Want" by the Rolling Stones which the play started with, people tuned right into this bittersweet love story set in a church in a small town in Ireland, and stayed tuned in. They liked it, we loved doing it, there was something happening. Christy Mahon in Playboy of the Western World was a good one too. The play's a classic but of course I hadn't read it so...I don't have particular parts that I'm waiting to play though, just don't really think that way.
Well, I was doing "The Caretaker" by Harold Pinter in New York, and Robert Colesberry, one of The Wire's producers (and actors, he played Ray Cole) came to see it. I met him a couple of days later and he told me about The Wire which I wasn't familiar with and this part (which didn't have a name yet but became Carcetti) that they were developing and that I might be OK for it. He was explaining the kind of show The Wire was, what he was saying reminded me of "City of Hope" the John Sayles film, which I really liked a lot. Bob said he was involved in producing that film although I'm not sure exactly in what respect. Anyway, I think he at least knew that I was getting what he was on about. Alexa Fogel, the casting director was there too. Anyway, after an hour we said our goodbyes. Incredibly sadly, Robert Colesberry died about 6 weeks after that. I went in and did some scenes with David Simon who is writer, producer, creator, and a little while later they asked me to do it. I hadn't seen any scripts as such cos they write them as the series is shot, but I was given a good idea of what was likely to happen with this character and the caliber of everyone involved was so obviously high you'd be crazy not to say yes. I didn't really think about joining into an existing world probably cos I wasn't familiar with it anyway. There's some really good TV being made in the states particularly on HBO so it looked like a good place to go.
Every now and then someone will ask you to do a short and if it's any good, well...I mean it's not going to make you rich, but it's usually one of the director's first films which makes it exciting to be there for. I like watching shorts too. Incidentally, Burning the Bed has theatrical distribution in Ireland this summer, as support to a feature. Also in this case it was a week in Donegal, and working with Gina McKee, an actor I admire and had worked with before.
Funny question this cos in "Someone Who'll Watch Over Me" this is first thing the character I play talks about. a) The Adventures of Tom Sawyer b) Complete recordings of Bonny Prince Billy c) The Owl and the Pussycat d) Speedboat.
The devil always seems more attractive, but I suppose god could be good too. Because the devil was originally an angel, cast out of heaven, I think that gives him the edge.
Well I booked a cab from Brooklyn, asked for a nice car seeing as we (me and Olivia, my wife) would be pulling up in a line of limos outside Radio City Music Hall, red carpets, flashbulbs popping, etc). Of course the car that showed up was a wreck with the front right wing held on with silver gaffa tape. I take all this as a good sign of course. Wait in a big line of cars, am tempted to just get out and walk but decide to live it up and sit in the banger. We walk up the red carpet, nobody asks us anything. Lets go back and do that again, get a few photos taken. Someone asks me what my chances of winning are. "Brian O'Byrne will get it," I say (and he does). Get a bit of mild snobbish abuse from a TONY official on the way in for some reason, brush it off, and we are in. They have water to drink, that's all, and you have to pay for it. Right, back out another door, find a bar, have a martini. Very good. Get chatting to a couple of record execs doing the same as us. Try to get back into Radio City which is harder this time. A cop denies us the chance of going up the red carpet a 3rd time. "I'm a nominee," I say. Blank stare from the cop which says "yeah, and...?" OK, where's the back door, I don't care. So we get in and are sitting right down near the front. I check out the competition, see where they are, who's on the aisle, whose further back etc. We are sitting beside Jimmy Fallon and he's funny and friendly. Then the telecast starts and goes on and on and...it's not boring at all. An actress from "Caroline or Change" sings a brilliant song, P Diddy is on stage, etc. Our category comes up, Brian wins it, deservedly, nearly misses getting it though cos he's just gone out to the bathroom. Sit back and enjoy the rest of the show, want to go and party. Bette Middler comes over and starts talking to me but it's not Bette Middler, she's a professional seat filler. Jimmy Fallon mutters something about a party later in Angus McIndoes. We go to the party at the Rockerfeller Center, big spread laid on, all very nice. Ask a starlet where Angus McIndoes is. Ring directory enquiries she says. Good idea. Blag our way into the party at Angus's. "I know Alfred Molina..." which technically I do, but only since the day before. This is more like it in here. End up with talking to Australians for the night, go home dropping my phone somewhere on the way. Wake up in the morning and check out my goodie bag. Its got weird stuff in it, including an umbrella and some teabags.
Depends on the part, and like you say, for Stuart it was such a part of what he was, and the sex in that series needed to be explicit. Or in films like: "Don't Look Now" or "Last Tango in Paris," etc. I'm getting a bit bored stripping at this point, and won't do it if it's not necessary. Don't feel exploited though cos I don't feel like I'm a babe really.
All of the above at some point.
I've worked with some good actors: Kate Ashfield, Kate Hardie, Gary Lydon, Andy Serkis, Lorraine Bracco all spring to mind as people you'd want to work with again. They're generous, open, and adventurous. I think I worked well with the directors: Jamie Thraves, Charles McDougal and Jez Butterworth. I think it's to do with knowing where each others at.
First off, I'm not attempting to do a Baltimore accent. I didn't feel I had enough time to get it right (as it's so particular) and wanted to be consistent with whatever I started with. Also, not all the other actors have Baltimore accents. Started reading up on the scene politically and otherwise on the internet pretty much straight away, and you can get almost anything you need there. Also there's lots of people around when you're shooting like David Simon or Bill Zorzi (ex-political reporter for the Baltimore Sun and brought into Series 3 to write a lot of the political strand) who can tell you pretty much anything you need to know. Went to a couple of council meetings early on, and generally I like to take a good look around a city when I'm in it and see what it's about which in this case would be necessary anyway.
Not sure if that sounds attractive or desolate. A complete void with limitless resources sounds good for say, a heroin addict. I like the sea, and I like being in it, so maybe I'd be on an island somewhere, white sand, blue sea, scuba gear.
Not really. See people occasionally around. Caught sight of Charlie Hunnam on the back of a mag yesterday modeling Armani gear. Met Jason Merrils who played Phil (who died at the end of Episode 3) in the kiddie part of the local swimming pool recently, where we had our kids.
I will have a tequila and champagne slammer and then sing "Witchita Lineman".
Well, this is a good one! Hi Sue - yeah of course I remember you and everyone else. Is it normal for kids to hang around in shops (when they're not robbing stuff)? Have to say I wasn't aware I was being entertaining or doing funny voices or whatever. And I had a special walk? Jesus. I remember going in and getting a free read of the first review I got in the Evening Herald. And I was in there when I got word of my first paying acting job. £60 for standing around, with lunch. Used to enjoy all the people coming and going, local characters - Mrs. Nutty was a personal favourite. Used to love bombing around in Tom's jeep, even slept under it once. If you ever see Lynda, say HI to her for me.
I wrote one fan letter in my life, it was to Roddy Frame, a singer I much admired and still do. This was 21 years ago though. I sent it via the record company and got a reply from a fan club which freaked me out cos that meant they read it and he probably didn't get it. As far as having "fans" goes, I'm not ultra-aware of it. I get some mail and stuff and meet people occasionally but its not too hectic. The only thing is I'm not very good at replying to letters I get. I don't have a stack of photos to sign or any of that. I've sent out a few holiday snaps and self portraits on backs of envelopes though.
If I could go back over the last 20 years I think it'd be foolish not to do something completely different, not sure what. There's a lot of the world I'd like to see.
Records: I'm going to limit this to singles, vinyl, just to make it hard. 1) Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves by Cher, one of the first records I played, on one of those little record players with V and T buttons. Lots of crackle before the song. I thought her name was "chair". When I got bored listening to the record I would fit a piece of paper over the disc, get it spinning, get a biro and make spirals on the paper. Then when I got bored of that I'd play the record again, at 78rpm. 2) Under Pressure by Queen and Bowie. Just like this a lot and always play it on jukeboxes if it's there. Got a great bassline which is why its been sampled more than once or twice. 3) Bitterest Pill by The Jam. This is their last single, my brother had it, I played it a lot. Paul Weller was just about to form The Style Council and I suppose you can hear that about to happen here. There's a great photo I saw somewhere of Paul Weller walking out of a hotel around this time. He's completely changed his look and there's a bunch of confused looking mods standing looking at him. 4) Sacred Heart Hotel by The Stars of Heaven. One of the best records by one of the best Irish bands. 5) Save a Prayer by Duran Duran. This would be good on a desert island. That slightly wobbly chime at the start really kicks it off in style. 6) Bachelor Kisses by the Go Betweens. This is really good, I had the 12 inch version. Can't separate the sound of the record from the smell of the 2 bar electric fire in the room where I used to listen to it. OK, I'm being biased towards records I listened to when I was younger. Probably cos then you listened to them over and over (at least I did). 7) Southern Central Rain by REM, one of the first REM songs I heard. Saw them play soon afterwards in Dublin under a hail of bottles and fruit (they were supporting U2 and the crowd mostly didn't know them or what to make of them). 8) A surprise record, picked out of the pile with your eyes closed and put on without seeing what it is, cos that's the way I pick records sometimes. I suppose people do that with IPOD shuffling now. I think I've already answered book and luxury in previous question.
I wouldn't be great at one-off comedy sketches so it'd have to be something else. I'm not sure about comic relief though. Obviously the intentions are right and people work hard at it for the right reasons but it and similar fund raisers do take the heat off governments to do something about the problems at home and abroad. Geldof and Bono do seem to be working hard on world leaders themselves to reduce 3rd World debt.
I was in Baltimore for 6 months, so yeah I got a chance to explore the city, though I haven't seen it all yet I'm sure. Going back for Series 4 though in August. The first morning I was in Baltimore I was standing beside a woman at an intersection when (unseen by her) a medium size rat ran across the street and up the leg of her trousers. As it ran up her leg the panic hit. It managed to get past the waistband inside her blouse and ran around in there. Needless to say she's screaming her head off at this point and grabbing onto me. I rip her coat off grab the bottom of the blouse/top and try to flap the rat out. Lots of people are looking over now and cars are jamming on brakes etc. It doesn't look good. Then the rat gets out, zigzags across the street, gets nicely flattened by a truck. The woman's OK, goes off to work. So anyway, that was my first day. I had plenty of time off, would rent a car from time to time but mostly went round on a bike (pushbike, pedalpower). Spent a lot of time in the Charles Cinema, saw a lot of good bands, drank a lot of coffee, saw the Oriels vs. Yankees, saw a good bit of the inside of City Hall. I drove around the state a bit too. All good. As far as the crabs go, I ordered a shitload of them one night, don't think they were blue though, didn't really know how to eat them properly and I eat a lung. Ever eat a crab lung? Not very nice and hard to kick the aftertaste. Took a while to get used to Baltimore but I did and got to really like it.
That was a real one off, getting to play 2 quite different but really good parts in the same story. Haven't really thought about it in relation to anything else though. Saw a production of True West at the Donmar Warehouse in London where the 2 main actors switched roles every second night. The show seemed pretty alive alright.
Usually something Queer As Folk related.
Montreal I loved very much. I was there for two months in 2001 and had a great time. Love that city. Used to ride up Mont Royal or go down by the river every morning on my bike, go to work (filming the TV series Dice with a great bunch of people) hang out in cafes/bars/poolhalls on the plateau in the evening. Prague was pretty close. Falkland Islands way down the list.
I've just read "Sarah" by JT LeRoy, this is one of the most vivid pieces of writing I've seen in a while. It has a bit or more than a bit of the feeling of other Southern writers like Faulkner, Twain, and Harper Lee. He himself (LeRoy) seems to be quite something. Want to read more of his stuff soon.
Haven't read this yet although I do have it. Will come back to that at a later date.
Haven't read this either, but I'd like to. Not knowing anything much about it I'd hazard a guess that it's real with enhancements.