I am back from a week-long fantastic trip to the UK following Damian Lewis and his brilliant band from Stroud to Poole to Norwich to Cambridge in the second leg of his ‘Mission Creep” UK tour. I cannot wait to share with you my report from the gigs, fun backstage shenanigans, and a few surprises in the days and weeks to come.
But first…
Interviewing Damian has been a huge dream for me. In fact, I have been able to interview him a couple of times in the years past. But because they happened spontaneously, even though Damian wanted to be generous with his time, he was about to go to his next interview or his next appointment that we had to be very quick. And there were always people around.
So, this time, ladies and gentlemen, I have been able to arrange an interview with Damian before I arrived in the UK. And, in Stroud, he told me we would do the interview in Norwich. He would not have many guests after the gig that night so he could make the time needed for a meaty interview. The rest was for me to sit down and write my questions which I wanted to be different from the usual interview questions Damian gets. Well, when you think about it, how many times did you read how he got cast as Major Winters in Band of Brothers or how he picked up his guitar during the lockdown and started playing again. Do not get me wrong, I know that the professionals are trying to do their job and some may not necessarily be very curious about what the interviewee will say. But I am.
So, after his fantastic gig at Epic Studios in Norwich, Damian and I sat down in his dressing room with a glass of “D Lou” – the band’s signature gig drink whose recipe I will provide in the days to come – in hand. I asked him the questions whose answers I was dying to find out about and filmed the interview, too. I tended to listen rather than intervene but you will hear my voice a couple of times where I could not restrain myself. I have to add that I am super impressed, and you will see, by how articulate Damian was after a one-and -a-half-hour gig and a few drinks! AMAZING.
I am happy to report Damian called me a very good journalist at the end of the interview. To be honest, I may be a good journalist but first and foremost I am a walking Damian Lewis encyclopedia and it certainly helps when you interview someone you know really well.
I hope you enjoy this and look forward to your feedback. Thank you.
Best interview since he started doing music! THANK YOU SO MUCH! Watching him answer in such a detailed manner all my questions is such pleasure! Thank you!
Thank you for your constant support and friendship, Tsvete! I’ll never forget you and I watching it for the first time in the tiny Cambridge hotel room and hugging each other at the end! And, of course, you making me rewind it since you missed a word when I talked. Hahaha. Love you!
That was a great interview! Refreshing, familiar ( you two!) and comfortable , both in your element.. now what do his children think of his music, I believe they are teens? It’s always interesting at this age their taste!
Kindest regards , Valentine
Thank you so much for your very kind words. Comments like yours keep me going and going! My husband made a comment very similar to yours that the questions were refreshing but also it felt like a conversation between two good friends which made the interview great. I am so happy! Thank you! Damian, in a recent interview, said Manon (17) and Gully (16) were talented musicians in their own right, he said they were more talented then he was, and they were very supportive.
Very good interview!!!! It’s nice to see how Damian is open, relaxed and warm with his fans!!!!
Thank you so much! I’m over the moon that he sat with me for such an insightful interview, and that he was genuinely engaged!