It makes me chuckle whenever I hear about a well known actor who "modestly" says they never really wanted to be "famous" and prefer to live a quiet life off screen. That's kind of like when someone gives you a lovely gift and you say "Oh, but you shouldn't have" when you really mean "Yes you should have and I deserve it!" Anyway, there's an interview with Antony Cotton today and he's expounding on his off screen life where he prefers to keep a low profile. That would be why he joined Soapstar Superstar *and* had his own chat show all while he was front and centre on Coronation Street and he now does dozens of personal appearances all over the country. Not to take anything away from him, I think Antony is brilliant, I really do. I just think it's kind of ironic that he says he never wanted to be famous, just wanted to be an actor, something he's been doing since he was a young'un. He realizes that he is indeed famous and well known but is actually quite reticent about his private life and keeps his "fame" and personal lives quite separate. The interview is quite good, given just after he opened up a new Poundland last weekend in Belfast.
Sounds to me like this guy has it all together -- he's been in the biz for a long time and is just being careful to protect himself, his privacy, and his career by saying and doing everything 'middle of the road'. I suppose if you got more famous and nearing the end of your career and you amassed enough capital so that you didn't care whether you worked in this industry again -- you could start telling it like it really is... the dirty, confidential side of the business...but this guy still has stuff he wants to do and can't afford to tick off the viewing public, the system that feeds him, or open a Pandora's Box of scandal which these days -- due to youtube, twitter, etc. -- can break a career that's been meticulously managed so far...
ReplyDeleteI can't see to fault anyone who chooses a safe route especially in a business that's fraught with so much insider dealings, rejection and nepotism...
I can understand Antony Cotton wanting his private life to be just that....but when you're an actor and the show you're on is shown all over the U.K. and Canada, it's hard not to be famous. It comes with the profession.
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