James Norton has it all: good looks—no, great looks—a British accent, and range. The actor from South London played John Brookes, who stole the heart of Emma Watson’s character Meg March (and that of audiences all over the world) in Greta Gerwig’s Little Women. His breakout role, however, put him on the other side of the scale as eight million viewers were “wishing [him] dead” following his vivid portrayal of the serial rapist, murderer, and drug criminal Tommy Lee Royce, in the BAFTA–winning drama series Happy Valley. Fast-forward a few acclaimed West End performances here and there, and now Norton is playing Griffin Dunne’s depressed and soon-to-be-wed son in the independent dark comedy film Ex-husbands. To celebrate the movie’s release, the actor shares his key components to the good life. —Carolina de Armas
Airline: British Airways.
Airport: London City Airport.
Alibi: “I was doing my insulin.”
App: The fart app.
Bag: Yorkshire Tea.
Bedtime: Before the 10 p.m. news has finished.
Bike: My beloved Condor bicycle.
Birthday: 18th.
Boyfriend/girlfriend: Someone who likes me.
Breakfast, weekday: Eggs.
Breakfast, weekend: Eggs on toast.
Car: Classic Audi Quattro.
Child: Trained at chess.
Cocktail: Hendrick’s Gin and cucumber.
Cocktail appetizer: Boquerones en vinagre.
Couple: Sausages and mash.
Date: A swim in the sea.
Diet: Mediterranean.
Dinner, weekday: Cozy.
Dinner, weekend: Ambitious.
Disguise: Bangs.
Drive: Home for Christmas.
Enemy: Myself.
Escape: Pyrenees.
Excuse:
“I’m fragile.”
Family: The von Trapps.
First Lady/First Man: Miss Piggy and Kermit.
Fit: Increasingly loose.
Flaw: Reclaimed oak.
Foil: My sister.
Friend: Someone who eats quietly.
Good-bye: À bientôt.
Hideaway: Up a tree.
Hotel: GoldenEye in Jamaica.
Indulgence: 85 percent dark chocolate.
Insult: “Plonker.”
Jacket: Big pockets.
Kiss off: “Byeeeeeeee.”
Last Meal: Roast and ice cream.
Lunch, weekday: On the hoof.
Lunch, weekend: Seated.
Match: Wimbledon men’s final, 2001.
Movie: Hook, 1991.
Name: Kevin.
Neighbor: Susan Kennedy.
Non-fiction book: Waterlog, by Roger Deakin.
Novel: Stoner, by John Edward Williams.
Pair of shoes: Reebok classics.
Pet: Hammy the hamster.
Piece of advice:
“Don’t take it all too seriously.”
Podcast: This Jungian Life.
President: My grandmother.
Restaurant: Peckham Bazaar, in London.
Ride: Not telling.
Saying: “No such thing as bad weather.”
Singer: Jeff Buckley.
Spouse: Marge Simpson.
Street: Dean Street, in London.
Storm: Snow.
Television series: Brideshead Revisited, 1981.
Theme song to your life: The Postman Pat theme song.
Time of day: Six p.m. (bath, cocktails, sunset).
Toast: Hot and buttered with Patum Peperium.
Vacation: Jamaica.
View: Langdale Valley, England.
Wake-up time: Not too early, not too late.
Work of art: Anything by Cecily Brown.
James’s Essentials
