Nick Frost, star of movies Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz, goes back to the Sixties in Sky Atlantic’s new series Mr Sloane. We spoke to him about Twitter, pubs and living in Roman times…
Tell us about your character in Mr Sloane...
“Jeremy is a man in crisis. He has managed to avoid the excess of the 1960s by holding on to his personal touchstones – his work and his relationship with his wife. When those things are taken away from him, he feels he has failed as a human being and tries to take his own life.”
What happens to turn his life around?
“He meets a free-spirited young American hippy called Robin (Ophelia Lovibond) who gives him a feeling of hope. He seems finished as a person and then he meets this beautiful woman and she shows him there is another way – a way that he has never imagined before. She rebuilds him with confidence and gives him vim and vigour.”
Jeremy looks quite natty in his 1960s suits. Did you enjoy dressing in the period styles?
“All my suits were handmade and tailored which was great. I usually dress like a sack tied in the middle, so to get to wear a nice suit was bit of a treat.”
You were born in 1972. Could you relate to Mr Sloane’s late-1960s setting?
“I could really relate to things. When I was growing up, I remember there didn’t seem to be any technicolour. I just remember being surrounded by brown and beige.”
Which period of history would you most like to live in?
“I’m very happy in the present day, especially in terms of medical breakthroughs. Whenever I hear people say they would like to live in the Roman era, I think, ‘Well, that’s fine until you get toothache or haemorrhoids.’”
What do you like to watch on TV?
“I’m a big fan of Game of Thrones, but I would not want to appear in it because I’d probably spoil it. I also love cooking so I watch a lot of cookery shows.”
Do you mind being recognised in the street?
“It’s only a problem if people are rude. For example, if they are standing two feet away from you and think you can’t hear them say, ‘Yeah that’s the f***** out of Shaun of the Dead.’”
What do you have coming up next?
“I’ve just got back from Los Angeles where I shot a pilot for a drama called Sober Companion in which I play an alcoholic lawyer. It seemed to go very well. Now I just have to sit and wait.”
A lot of your screen roles seem to involve alcohol…
“I am on Twitter a lot and people are always saying, ‘Let’s have a beer!’ It is probably because I have a Cockney, working class, everyman charm. People imagine I sit around the pub all day, eating cockles and drinking Stella singing Roll Out the Barrel.”
You are writing a graphic novel. How is that going?
“I have just finished second draft. It is called The Homesick Swedish Mice, and is mainly for children, but there are adult themes throughout. I can’t draw for toffee so at the moment I am trying find someone to illustrate it.”
