Jack Davenport: ‘As a child, I was shuttling between Ibiza and Suffolk in a gloriously 70s hippy kind of way’

Born in London, Jack Davenport, 51, gained a degree in film and English at the University of East Anglia. In 1996, he starred in the TV series This Life. His films include The Talented Mr Ripley (1999) and the Pirates of the Caribbean series. In 2002, he was nominated for an Olivier for his performance in The Servant at the Lyric Hammersmith. He stars with Keeley Hawes in The Human Body at London’s Donmar Warehouse until 13 April. He lives in New York with actor Michelle Gomez and their son.

What is your earliest memory?
Hanging upside down on the bannisters. It must have been in Suffolk – there were no bannisters in Ibiza. For the first five years, I was shuttling between those two places in a gloriously 70s hippy kind of way.

Which living person do you most admire and why?
Anyone who speaks truth to power at the risk of their own safety.

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
Self-loathing that rises to the level of deploring.

What is the trait you most deplore in others?
Unkindness.

What was your most embarrassing moment?
I am in a public profession, so take your pick. It’s all embarrassing.

Describe yourself in three words
Not very concise.

What would your superpower be?
I am quoting Bill Hicks here – shooting food into hungry people’s mouths.

Who is your celebrity crush?
Judi Dench.

What do you most dislike about your appearance?
How long have you got?

If you could bring something extinct back to life, what would you choose?
Civility.

What did you want to be when you were growing up?
Not a child, which was short-sighted of me.

Would you choose fame or anonymity?
Anonymity, with the ability to still get good restaurant reservations.

What do you owe your parents?
Everything. They were in the same line of work [he is the son of Nigel Davenport and Maria Aitken]. They tried to do the right thing by saying, “What about an alternative?” but they weren’t actively discouraging, and they’ve always been very generous in their response to my efforts.

What or who is the greatest love of your life?
Michelle and our son, Harry. Michelle was in the stage production of Trainspotting in London, and I went to see it with a friend. She played all the female parts, and I was like, “Who is that?” I didn’t forget her and then, by sheer coincidence, a year later, I was in a bar doing some late-90s day-drinking and she walked in. I was with a friend who knew her and asked him to introduce me and, nearly 30 years later, here we are.

What does love feel like?
Your heart walking around outside your body.

What was the best kiss of your life?
18 June 1997 at Ronnie Scott’s.

Have you ever said ‘I love you’ without meaning it?
I hope not.

Which living person do you most despise and why?
Whoever invented social media.

What is the worst job you’ve ever done?
Bicycle courier: it was literally dicing with death on a minute-to-minute basis for 12 hours a day. It was terrifying and exhausting.

What has been your biggest disappointment?
Letting down the people I love.

If not yourself, who would you most like to be?
A platypus, because I’d like to be such an amazing source of confusion to people.

How often do you have sex?
More than I deserve, but not as often as I’d like.

What would you like to leave your children?
An understanding that kindness is the answer.

What is the closest you’ve ever come to death?
About five years ago, a half-tonne tree branch fell and missed me by three feet.

What is the most important lesson life has taught you?
We are not here for long – try not to take everything too seriously.