Haven My SIMON WILLIAMS

Now in EastEnders, the actor, 71, in the sitting room of his 19th-century farmhouse in Oxfordshire...

1 FOUR-LEGGED FRIEND I can’t live without a dog, and two years ago, a month after the death of our last one, my wife Lucy and I got Gussie, a cockapoo, from kennels in South Wales. He’s quite stubborn, but a marvellous companion and keeps me company when I’m in the sitting room of our five-bedroom home. We’ve lived here 30 years and this room holds so many memories of my family, as well as having a lovely view of the surrounding countryside. 2 LIGHT DRAMA My father, the actor Hugh Williams, was a great fan of Shakespeare and had this ornament featuring the bard turned into a desk lamp, which has great sentimental value to me. Dad died unexpectedly in 1969, aged 65, while we were both appearing in the play His, Hers And Theirs, which he co-wrote with my mother Margaret. The photo on the wall [far left] is a publicity still showing the two of us in the production. I treasure the picture – there’s a lot of love coming out of his face. 3 RADIO STAR My wife Lucy gave me this cockerel figure for fun to celebrate my landing the role of businessman Justin Elliott in The Archers in 2014. The actor who was going to play him pulled out at the last minute and the editor called and asked, ‘Are you available on Sunday to do a few episodes?’ I must have been in nearly 100 now. I doubt Justin is everyone’s cup of tea – but, good or bad, you always have to try to love your character. 4 LUCKY BREAK My whole wardrobe is made up of borrowed bits and pieces from acting jobs I’ve done, including this silk scarf, leather gloves and fake bow tie – I never learnt to tie one – that my character James Bellamy wore in the original Upstairs Downstairs, which ran on ITV from 1971-75. I was just 23 and landing a part in a drama with 18 million viewers was amazing luck. I almost turned it down because I didn’t think a TV series about a family and their servants would be a hit! 5 CLASS ACT My actress wife Lucy’s mother was Celia Johnson, star of the film Brief Encounter. She appeared with my father in a number of plays, and this is a photo of them as Elizabeth and Darcy in a 1930s production of Pride And Prejudice. Lucy recently found some wonderful letters between Celia and her travel writer father Peter Fleming – brother of Bond creator Ian – which she’s turned into a show, Posting Letters To The Moon. 6 SOAP VILLAIN I’ve been playing the shadowy property developer Hugo Browning in EastEnders – and watched DVDs and tapes like this for research. Before joining, I thought the regular cast members might be a bit standoffish, but everyone has been so welcoming and playing a scene in the Queen Vic with Danny Dyer was magic. I’m appearing in connection with a particular storyline and once that comes to an end I suspect that will be the end of Hugo. Still, it’s nice to have played a posh villain in Albert Square!