QUICKFIRE

Former EastEnders tough guy Ross Kemp on changing career and the real X-factor

with actor and

documentary maker Ross Kemp

Guilty pleasure? A bag of Minstrels and a cup of tea, melting the chocolate slowly on my tongue. Where is home? A house by the Thames in Berkshire with my wife Renee and our 17-month-old son Leo [Ross also has a five-year-old son, Oliver, with former partner Nicola Coleman]. Career plan B? I’m doing plan B, because I was an actor and now I make TV documentaries. Who would play you in a movie of your life? Will Smith! Biggest bugbear? Airports. As a child you wanted to be… An actor. Pretending to play characters I saw on TV, I thought being an actor would be just as much fun. Earliest memory? Sitting in my Silver Cross pram in our conservatory catching dust motes in the sunlight. Secret to a happy relationship? I’m still working on that one. Best quality? The ability to listen has helped me enormously in transferring from actor to documentary maker. And your worst? I can be impatient. Last meal on earth? Traditional roast chicken with proper gravy, roast potatoes and lots of vegetables – pretty obvious, but it’s my favourite. Dream dinner-party guests? A one-to-one with Winston Churchill, where we would dissect his life over champagne, brandy and cigars. Advice to teenage self? Don’t worry about losing your hair. Cat or dog? I love cats, but I’m definitely a dog man. We have a golden retriever called Bruno. What do you see when you look in the mirror? Age. Starstruck moment? Meeting Michael Caine at a Bafta dinner. He’s impressive and has that genuine X-factor which you rarely see. Your big break? Professionally, getting the role of Grant Mitchell in EastEnders. Personally, breaking my left ankle playing rugby for an under-21 team, then two days later breaking my right ankle falling down the stairs at Holborn tube station. Career highlight? So far, winning a Bafta award for Best Factual Series in 2006 for Ross Kemp on Gangs. Favourite tipple? Pinot noir. Hangover cure? Pinot noir. Scariest experience? Being ambushed in the Sangin valley, Afghanistan, in 2007. Top of your bucket list? To spend a whole day – and night – with my wife on our own without interruptions. What would make your life better? More hours in the day and more sleep at night. Philosophy? Live life to the full without hurting other people. Last film that made you cry? Watching Bambi with my children. I don’t cry in real life, but I do at movies. Where would you time travel to? The court of Louis XIV of France to see how opulent it really was. First record you bought? ‘Something Better Change’ by the Stranglers. Most extravagant purchase? I’ve got some expensive watches, including a couple of Rolexes. Biggest fear? Wasting my life. Celebrity crush? The GB women’s hockey team who won gold at the Rio Olympics. Happiness is… Home.

Ross Kemp: Extreme World continues on Wednesday on Sky 1

at 9pm