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Born in London, Jared Harris, 63, appeared on television in Mad Men from 2009 to 2012. His other TV series are The Crown, The Terror and Chernobyl, which won him a Bafta in 2020. His films include The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Lincoln and Reawakening. Tonight, he returns to the RSC stage at Stratford-upon-Avon where he plays Claudius in Hamlet until 29 March. He is married and has homes in Los Angeles and New York.
When were you happiest?
I’m happy whenever I’m with my wife, Allegra.
What is your greatest fear?
Unemployment – I’m an actor.
What is your earliest memory?
We were in Hawaii where my father [Richard Harris] was filming the movie Hawaii with Julie Andrews. I remember there was a lawn with a fence and then the ocean, and we were told we couldn’t go in the ocean because there were fish that would eat you.
What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
Not following through on things.
What is the trait you most deplore in others?
Bad manners.
What was your most embarrassing moment?
Where do I begin?
What is your most treasured possession?
My wife asked me that two days ago because we have a house in Hollywood and, with all the fires, she said you should think about what things you want to put in the back of a car and leave with. Where would I even start? I have artwork that came from my father’s house in the Bahamas, I’ve handwritten poems from him, I’ve letters from my mother, first-edition books. But they are just things. And, at the end of the day, I don’t really believe that anybody on their death bed says, “I wish I had a first edition of Ulysses signed by James Joyce.”
What do you most dislike about your appearance?
Everything. I have a weird eyebrow that has a mind of its own. Freckles, red hair, a gap in my teeth, a chipped tooth, a spot that keeps reappearing in the same place, hair that grows faster on one side than the other.
What did you want to be when you were growing up?
I remember really wanting to go into space. I liked the idea of flying.
What is the worst thing anyone’s ever said to you?
“Next! We’re looking for somebody else.”
What does love feel like?
It’s like arriving somewhere that you’ve always wanted to be.
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Which living person do you most despise and why?
There’s a premier league table at the moment – what is going on in the world? I think it’s very sad that the most significant political and historical figure of the last 15, maybe 20 years, is Putin. He’s been busy undermining western democracy and so far he’s getting away with it.
What is the worst job you’ve ever done?
I worked on a kibbutz in Israel and had to clean out the chicken run. It was like an oven. Inside were rows and rows of chickens that had been shitting for months – the whole floor was six inches deep in chicken shit.
What is the closest you’ve ever come to death?
On the interstate. Anyone who has driven in the United States will know that you are always very close to death – it is like the wild west on the freeways.
What single thing would improve the quality of your life?
I’d like my parents to be alive – I miss them.
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
A successful marriage, my third.
What has been your closest brush with the law?
I went to Central School of Speech and Drama, and we went to London Zoo and studied an animal – I did a gorilla. When I was graduating, a friend and I decided to go back to visit our animals. The zoo was closed, but that didn’t stop us. The police gave us a bed for the night.
What is the most important lesson life has taught you?
Never give up.
