"We are at a corner table in a breakfast place in Chelsea, Joseph Fiennes opposite me on the banquette with his jack russell, Noa. Dog duty, he says, apologetic. Noa looks at me, brown eyes also apologetic. They've been in Hyde Park, he says, he lost track, didn't have time to take her home. Nature is where he's at his best, where he feels cleansed, connected, observant his sentences are decorative like this. It's when I'm at my happiest, on hours-long, rain-drenched walks. Hot cheeks, freezing hands."
"In an ideal world he'd be trekking or wild swimming in the rugged landscape of the Tramuntana in Spain. But if it must be London, nothing beats Hyde Park. Fiennes is tidy in a cashmere cardie and thick twill chinos. Noa has a snazzy yellow collar. Anyway, she's well-behaved, he says: Aren't you, Noa? She curls up to prove it. The scene is a masterclass in unhurried wholesomeness. Until he says Noa will savage me if I'm mean."
"Fiennes was launched into the national consciousness as the doe-eyed, luscious-lashed 28-year-old star of Shakespeare in Love opposite Gwyneth Paltrow. He's self-deprecating about his career since, saying to one interviewer that it condemned him to a decade of flouncy shirts and horses and to me that he's been pretty much a supporting actor for an actress throughout. While he's worked alongside impressive women Cate Blanchett, Helen Mirren, Elisabeth Moss, Rachel Weisz, Eva Green his own standout roles include the chilling Commander Waterford in The Handmaid's Tale (whom he describes as insidious)."
"Now 55, he jokes, he's mostly playing dads. Not least Young Sherlock's dad in the Amazon series young Sherlock being his real-life nephew Hero Fiennes Tiffin but also a gripping portrayal of Richard Ratcliffe, husband of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who was held hostage in Iran for six years, in Prisoner 951."
Joseph Fiennes sits at a corner table in a breakfast place in Chelsea with his jack russell, Noa, who is on dog duty. He explains that he has been in Hyde Park and lost track of time, so he did not take her home. He connects nature with feeling cleansed, observant, and happiest during long, rain-drenched walks. He prefers trekking or wild swimming in Spain’s Tramuntana, but if staying in London, Hyde Park is best. He describes his career from early fame to later supporting roles, including standout performances such as Commander Waterford in The Handmaid’s Tale. He also notes playing dads, including roles in Young Sherlock and Prisoner 951, and jokes about his age.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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