20 Questions With…Russell Tovey

On stage, Russell Tovey is now best known for his role as Rudge in the original cast of the National Theatre production of Alan Bennett’s The History Boys, a part he reprised for the upcoming film version and which he’ll perform again on an international tour ahead of a Broadway premiere.

Also at the National, Tovey has taken roles in His Dark Materials, His Girl Friday, Henry V and Howard Katz. His other stage credits include The Laramie Project at the Sound Theatre, Plasticine at the Royal Court, The Recruiting Officer at Chichester Festival Theatre, and Troy at the Minerva Theatre.

Tovey’s television credits include Holby City, Messiah, Servants, Silent Witness, NCS, Hope & Glory, Lily & the Learning Seed, Mud, Mrs Bradley Mysteries, Sort It, The Bill, Ultimate Force, Evil Under the Sun, Shane and Anchor Me. On film, he’s appeared in The Emperor’s New Clothes.

In his first season with the Young Vic, Tovey is playing the title role in Tintin, adapted from the popular cartoons by Belgian illustrator Georges Remi, aka Hergé. Festen’s award-winning director Rufus Norris directs the world premiere, written by Norris himself along with prolific Scottish playwright David Greig. Based on the book Tintin in Tibet, the story follows the hero’s quest to save his friend Chang, which takes him into the snow fields of the Himalayas where the legendary abominable snowman is rumoured to live.

Date & place of birth
Born 14 November 1981 in Essex.

Lives now in
I live in Essex now. I bought a place there where I have lived there for about one and a half years.

Training
I didn’t train. I’ve been doing this since I was a nipper. I joined a kids’ agency when I was ten. I joined a local drama club and the woman who ran it set up this agency. I got work through them from a very young age. My first job was a walk-on part in The Bill – I threw a ball at a policeman. And things sort of progressed from there.

What made you want to become an actor?
I watched a film called Dead Poets’ Society when I was ten and I remember saying “I want to be an actor.” There’s an actor in it and all he wants to do is play Puck in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. He’s made to go and do other stuff instead and in the end he kills himself – not that I’m going to do that, but it was so inspiring. I just told my parents, “that’s what I want to do, act”. They’ve always been really supportive of me. When I was at high school, I was having a lot of time off for filming work. I’d be back for three months and then off filming again, and my dad was worried that, if it was a fad, I wouldn’t have an education and I’d have wasted all that time. But I always knew this was what I wanted to do, and I wanted to make sure I could make the link from acting as a child to acting as an adult. Mum has been 100 percent there for me throughout. Well, they both have, but mum comes back again and again and again to see the show. If there’s a minor celeb in the audience, she loves it, she just wets herself! She always buys gossip magazines!

First big break

I’d say my first big break as a kid was a TV show called Mud. I got to go in the BBC Broom Cupboard and meet Andi Peters. I was 12 and thought it was just amazing! As an adult, I suppose the best thing was getting in at the National in Henry V and being there for two-and-a-half years after that. It was like my drama school, I learned loads.

Career highlights to date
The History Boys has been a massive movement in my life. I’ve made so many great friends and learned so much doing it. It was such a hit and now I’m about to go round the world with it. Profile-wise, everyone knows it. I’ll be one of the original eight boys till I die. People always say “Oh, you were one of the History Boys”. That’s wonderful, I’m very proud of that.

Favourite productions

Tintin, I love this. I’d like to say His Dark Materials, but it was a relentless schedule. It was a great job. But at that time in my life, I was going through a few personal bits and bobs, and I was very tired. But I’m so pleased to have done it. I liked Henry V when Nicholas Hytner first took over as the National, and that’s my one and only Shakespeare credit.

Favourite co-stars
Frances de la Tour. I love her, she’s just an icon. I call her J-Lo because she wears velour tracksuits, and she loves that! Samuel Barnett, he’s one of my best mates now. They’re both from The History Boys. Tom McKay on Henry V is also one of my best mates. Because of the way acting is, you move from show to show and the people you work with become your best friends for that time, but you might not take everyone with you. But I’ve made lots of mates and some have become really firm friends. There’s nothing more exciting than going round the world doing a show you love with your best mates.

Favourite directors
Nick Hytner because he’s given me the opportunity to do some great stuff and has taught me loads of stuff. Also, I’ve done a TV show, My Family and Other Animals, and the director on that, Sheree Folkson, is just brilliant. We have a good rapport with each other. She knows what she wants and she’s very gifted in her vision. But there are loads. At my age, I’ve already worked with some really great people so I’m very lucky.

Favourite playwrights
I have to say Alan Bennett, of course. And I also love Patrick Marber and Harold Pinter. I reckon they’re my favourites.

What’s the first thing you saw on stage that had a big impact on you? And the last?
Sweeney Todd at the National was the first thing that I really thought, wow! I went there with school. I was playing Tobias in my school’s production of it, and I just loved it. I’ve got the cast recording and still listen to it now. The last thing I saw was Sam Barnett in When You Cure Me at the Bush. I thought it was so powerful. Of course, Sam’s a mate so I always think he’s good, but Morven Christie was amazing as well. Absolutely brilliant.

If you hadn’t become an actor, what would you have done professionally?
I would have been an archaeologist. I had a metal detector when I was little and used to be obsessed with dinosaurs. I also wanted to be a history teacher. I’ve always been obsessed with the past, kings and queens and who got beheaded. And I love all the hidden secrets in London’s past. I’m always buying all these books about things people don’t know about, like Underground stations that exist but nobody knows about as they’re no longer used.

What roles would you most like to play still?
I never really know when people ask that. I don’t have any specific roles in mind. I just want to do good writing.

What would you advise the government to secure the future of British theatre?
Support it. Just give it loads of money to keep it going and get kids away from their Playstations and into the theatre.

If you could swap places with one person (living or dead) for a day, who would it be?
Andy Warhol because he was just so out there, so mental and he absolutely inspired so many people with his art. I think it might be fun to be absolutely gaga for a day! Failing that, maybe a king?

Favourite books
I just read Tracey Emin’s book Strangeland and I loved that. And Alan Bennett’s new book, which is always good. I like Haruki Murakami, his stuff’s always good, too. I buy a lot of art and photography books.

Favourite holiday destinations
My parents have an apartment in Tenerife but I wouldn’t say that’s my favourite. I’ve been there about three times a year from the age of six so I’ve had enough of it now! I am really looking forward to going to Sydney with The History Boys, so that might became a favourite. But basically, anywhere hot.

Favourite after-show haunts
I’m a member of a couple of bars. Soho House, that’s always good for other theatrical people and it’s open late and it’s right in the middle of Soho. When I’m at the National, I just go to the Green Room. Anywhere really with friends is good.

What made you want to accept the title role in Tintin?
I wanted to be the first person to play him! How would I describe him? Well, he’s ginger… he’s a young reporter, I play him about 19 or 20, but I think he might be a bit younger. There’s the Tintin in the books and then there’s the Tintin I’ve made, my Tintin. I think most people expect Tintin to be RP in accent but I’ve kept it in my voice (cockney). I see him as a Londoner, maybe he works for the Independent. He’s cutting edge, he gets out there and is very active.

How does the cartoon adapt from page to stage?
I was a big fan as a kid. I used to read the books and draw all the pictures. Our set has colours taken directly from the comics so you’ve immediately got this visual impact of the cartoon strip. Performance-wise, what I discovered in rehearsals, was my natural instinct is to underplay and not give too much away, whereas this character has got to be so “Bang”. You have to be really out there. I’ve completely discovered a way of playing him that’s really big but suits the set and suit the cartoon.

One of your main co-stars is a dog. Does the old adage of “never work with children & animals” apply to Snowy?
The main challenge is trying not to be upstaged! The dogs are very well behaved, they’re on right at beginning and right at the end. The wonderful Simon Trinder (who plays Snowy when he talks) is on through the rest of the show – I think playing a cartoon dog goes a step further than me playing a cartoon boy! We have three real dogs and they alternate. They’re all very different. One is female for a start, and she comes on and just rolls on her back. Chester’s got a brilliant personality, he’s quite lary, and Olly’s quite grumpy. So it’s a real combination. At the end, they’re the bloody show-stealers. All they do is walk on and roll on their back, and I think, “I’ve done this for two hours and you get a much bigger reaction?!” I had a dog of my own, but she died about three years ago. I now have a cat called Duffer who’s a little geezer.

What’s the funniest/oddest/most notable thing that has happened in rehearsals or performances so far?
Everything, I suppose! We’ve had a lot of technical problems. There was a big bit of staging that we decided there’s no way it could work and take our weight so we had to adapt a whole 30-minute scene. But it’s been brilliant, coming into rehearsals every day was amazing. It was a big effort getting to press night. Now that’s gone, it’s our show, it’s just like playing now. The audiences really vary as well. For matinees, the majority are big school parties so they’re very vocal. You can tell if they’re posh kids or if they’re inner London borough kids by the way they react. The posh ones are all very reserved, but they chuckle quite a lot. With the other kids, it’s like you’re in Take That when you walk on stage – they’re all screaming! In the evening, most people in the audience are adults and they’re Tintin fans. The kids follow the comedy and camaraderie and energy, and the adults get all the more emotional stuff.

What are your plans for the future?
I finish this on 21 January and start The History Boys on the 23rd so I’m doing that, then I’m off for ten days and then round the world for however many months with the tour. Apart from that, my future plans involve seeing my nephew get older. He’s a year and a half and he’s amazing.

Tintin opened at the Barbican Theatre on 14 December 2005 (previews from 29 November) and continues its limited season until 22 January 2006.