[describing his role in 'The Talenter Mr. Ripley] "The chap in the duffle coat jumping up and down in the background!" During my childhood, I was surrounded by actors and all I remember is they were fun to be around. That kind of sticks. People tell me that Hollywood loves new faces, but I don't know. They're probably just being nice. [about how his 'This Life' character, Miles Stewart, was received by the public] A lot of drunken women came up to me in pubs telling me I was a bastard. To begin with I tried to explain that the show wasn't real, but then I found a better tactic was to look them in the eye and say "Yeah, you know what? I am." I try not to see acting as anything other than a job. I hate it when I say to people I'm unemployed, and they say "you mean you're resting?" I'm like "No, unemployed", because I am. That's what acting's about - making a living. Acting is a cruel enough business. One minute everyone's going "Hey!" and the next they're going "Who?". You certainly don't need people knowing your private business, especially if you want to come out with your head still attached. My parents who worked in the business, felt lion-taming was preferable to acting. They said 93 per cent of all actors were out of work, and tried to talk me out of it. But I grew up mixing with Mum and Dad's friends. Adult actors are really childish, and that's nice to be around when you're a kid. So the big reason I wanted to be an actor was I really enjoyed actors' company - which probably makes me about as shallow as a puddle. But it could be worse. I could be working for a living.