A year ago it was rumoured you wanted to take over as Doctor Who from David Tennant. is that true?No, I never said I wanted the part, but there is a financial tale behind how the rumour started. For a laugh I tried putting a £50 bet on me to play the next Doctor because I thought I was in with a chance, but all the boys I knew in Islington decided I must have some inside info so they piled in behind me. When the betting shop staff asked who I was, the boys told them my father had played Doctor Who so they called head office about it and then declared all bets off. The next thing I knew I was in the news as running for the part, but I think it stemmed from trying to put £50 on myself. I'd love to have a guest part, but when it comes to the main role my father was too big an act to follow.
Do you place bets often?
No. My son, however, was given Premium Bonds when he was four and never stops winning.
How did your childhood experience influence your attitude to money?
My father was brought up in a theatrical background, just as I was, and his father instilled in him the need to do everything properly and take responsibility for money. My father did well in his career and we lived in nice houses (we had a large family house in Barnes and a home in Ibiza), but because I grew up watching him budget and being quite paranoid about expenditure I went the other way. When he tried teaching his responsible attitude to me, I developed a disregard for money. My approach was more like my mother's, who had the theory you should enjoy it while you can and keep your fingers crossed about the future.
So what about now – are you cautious or liberal?
I'm becoming much more cautious. I've had my liberal period and I have a family now. I have recently made sure that as well as earning from my acting, I've also got other projects – I'm opening an art gallery soon and collect wine and art.
Does having money make you happier?
That's a hard question to answer because I can only compare with my childhood and that was a different time. Everything was more cash-oriented then, for example, but I was brought up quite well because we had two houses and my father drove nice cars. I was happy then and happy now.
When did you start investing in wine?
My interest started off by meeting a sommelier called Barry who worked for Marco Pierre White and he pointed me to some lovely bottles because I love drinking wine. I think it's very important that you invest in things you enjoy and understand, so with Barry alerting me to what's good and worth investing in I have accumulated a few cases that are stored for me and sold for profit. My plan for my son's 18th is that we are going to drink some of the finest wine known to man.
How do you separate responsibility for finance with Jacqui?
We are both quite low-risk when it comes to investing. And in day-to-day affairs I delegate a lot of decisions to her and we split living costs down the middle.
Have you learnt any lessons about money by making mistakes?
I don't think I've ever really been burned, I've always done what I thought was right and you can't regret that. I'm sure there have been missed opportunities, with films I've turned down that went on to be successful, but everyone in the industry has had that happen. None of my investments in art or wine have gone wrong, because I've always been well advised.
What's been your best buy?
My first flat in Primrose Hill, only because I loved living there and all my mates were there. In 1993 I bought my first apartment there and it was a fantastic period of my life. I bought before Primrose Hill was on the map, so you could snap up property for nothing. Me and my mates (Jude Law, Sadie Frost, Jonny Lee Miller and Ewan McGregor) had a lot of anonymity there at first, but by 2000 it had become a place to visit and take pictures of celebrities so that's when I left. And because Primrose Hill became so famous I sold my flat for more than three times what I had paid.
And your worst buy?
Let's just say I won't drink beer and buy trousers any more. There's been a couple of times when I've picked some jeans up in a shop when I was a little the worse for wear only to find that when I looked at them in the cold light of day I didn't like them.
How do you prefer to pay – by card, cash or cheque?
I used to be more of a cash person, but unfortunately you have to pay by card a lot these days – it's taken over. I try to use my debit card rather than a credit card, but I will use a credit card for big purchases because I bank with Coutts and I get points. I nurture the dream that one day I'll be able to spend my points on an around-the-world air ticket for myself and my wife, but since I don't use my credit card much I will probably have to wait a good few years.
How easily do you tip?
I tend to try to tip about 12pc. The only problem is I can't easily work out 12pc so I tend to give them 10pc and a little bit more and hope it's all right. I'm a massive foodie – one of my big passions is restaurant food – so it really irritates me when a tip is taken as expected, especially if the service or food hasn't been that good.
Have you ever invested in shares?
Only for about five minutes because it's really not my thing. I don't like having to listen to people in stripy shirts telling me stuff I don't understand or receiving swathes of rainforest daily through my letterbox. I gave it a try a few years ago, but I didn't last long and eventually I sold them and put the money into my son's education. But I do put my annual maximum limit into a stocks and shares Isa every year – it seems to me that is worth doing because the investment grows tax free.
Do you have a pension?
I have a Sipp. I have a plan about how I invest it, but my approach has been to work it out and then leave it. I'm not all that convinced that pensions are a good idea with stock market returns so low. I'm like most people – I'm wondering why I bothered.
So how do you prefer to invest?
It's mainly bricks and mortar. After Jacqui and I married and I'd sold my Primrose Hill flat I bought a family house in Islington for £635,000. Last year we sold it for more than our asking price of £1.575m, a good result in a recession. We then bought a pied-à-terre in Marylebone and we want a house in the country. We'll probably manage that next year when I get the money together. I think homes are a palpable form of investment and I understand them.
Do you bank online?
No. I have a fear of the Qwerty keyboard and the thought that I might do something that exposes my details for hacking.
Source - the telegraph
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