Marc Warren is Cool Hand Luke

For some celebrities, referencing the part of London they live in is an opportunity to wax lyrical about postcode status, or maybe the weekend habits of the oil oligarch they happen to share a garden wall with.

Thankfully, Marc Warren takes a more grounded approach when it comes to discussing his locality. That’s not because he’s not a proud Finchley adoptee... far from it. Indeed, the Northampton-born actor has now resided in this particular part of north London for 12 years. And while other areas of the capital flash up on his radar, 2011 will conclude, just like so many before, with the polished actor happily entrenched in local life.

“Why did I move here to Finchley?” he begins. “The honest answer would be that a decade or so ago it offered the lure of some very attractive house prices. North London seemed the place to go for many, I could afford a decent pad, and the transport links into the centre have always been strong. Finchley was therefore perfect. I realise that doesn’t sound too romantic when you put it in those terms – I suppose it was probably more a marriage of convenience rather than love at first sight, but we’ve grown on one another!

These days, of course, Marc’s fondness for Finchley extends to more than just an appreciation of its position on the Northern Line. “I like it here, it’s unpretentious,” he says. “There is always the temptation to move, particularly these days when most of my time is spent in central London, around Soho and Covent Garden. But Finchley has a way of always drawing you back.”

The aforementioned commute to central London is now unrelenting, and will be until early next year, given that the 44-year-old is cast as the lead, Luke Jackson, in the stage production of Cool Hand Luke, currently playing at the Aldwych Theatre the West End.

After TV roles across Sky and the BBC, it’s a brave step back into the exposed and unforgiving side of acting, but one that Marc is relishing... not that anyone didn’t expect the slick performer to slide effortlessly into a role that offers loud echoes back to the characters Danny Blue and Rick from ‘Hustle’ and ‘Mad Dogs’ respectively. For the versatile actor, the portrayal of charismatic rebels seems to fit quite nicely!

“Cool Hand Luke is about the life of a World War II veteran who is imprisoned in the late 1940s,” he explains. “Luke, or ‘Cool Hand Luke’, as fellow prisoners call him, is fighting for freedom. It’s both a sad and inspirational story.

“Rehearsals went very well and the production kicked off at the end of September. We run into 2012 so it’s a big commitment coming at the end of a busy year – we finished the second series of Mad Dogs just a day before rehearsals began. Indeed, there’s the possibility that I’ll be filming a third series within a few days of me concluding the theatre work, so it’s all go, that’s for sure.

“It’s hard work but it’s really rewarding, and it feels like the right time for me to return to the stage. I was there at the start of my career and have done a few bits over the past couple of years, including ‘The Rise and Fall of Little Voice’, which was great. It can be addictive wanting to get back out there every night. The appreciation of the audience is so instantaneous; it’s a really different animal to TV, albeit much more pressured.”

So with such an unrelenting theatre schedule now in full swing, what about a des-res in or around Covent Garden?

“It’s an idea, I suppose,” he laughs, “but I think for most people it’s the case that the more time you spend in central London, the happier you are to venture elsewhere! It’s a great place but we all need a break.

“And there are some fantastic places to eat around Finchley. The Izgara, a Turkish restaurant on Hendon Lane is the somewhere I love to visit. They cook phenomenal kebabs and everything I’ve sampled there is really tasty. I can’t really recommend a drinking spot though. I used to visit the Queens Head on Regents Park Road when I first moved to the area, but I don’t drink these days.

“If I do decide to up sticks I think it’ll be a bit daunting. I haven’t really looked at property prices in a long time, so it’ll be interesting to see what I can get for my money. I’ll soon know whether my ambition of owning a place in central London is doable or not – so you never know, I might be sticking around Finchley for a bit longer!”

Cool Hand Luke at Aldwych Theatre until January 7, 2012 - www.aldwychtheatrelondon.info

Members Comments

There are no comments for this article.

Add a Comment

Please log in to post a comment.