Hollywood may now be clambering over itself to get in on the action, but Simon Pegg is still a Brit at heart. Well, a Hertfordshirer at heart of late, but that doesn’t mean he’s forgotten his local haunts.
With his new film Man Up (out in cinemas now) having been filmed all across our fair capital, we pinned the 45-year-old actor down to find out his favourite offbeat London attractions - comic book store included, of course. He’s teetotal now, so drinking holes are a no go (“I think a lot of the pubs I used to go into have closed”) and in very Pegg-esque fashion, he isn’t sure what’s considered “current” anymore.
But hey, if we can get the same eight-balls as Scotty, we’re in.
Bakery
“Dunn’s Bakery is a fantastic bakery on the bottom of Crouch Hill [in Crouch End]. I don’t live in London anymore but I go into London especially to buy bread from there because it’s the very best you’ll find. Anywhere.”
6 The Broadway, London N8 9SN; dunns-bakery.co.uk
Old-school Cinema
“The Phoenix Cinema in East Finchley is very good. It feels like a very traditional cinema. It has a vibe to it which is nice. Like a lot of those cinemas, Screen on the Green and Screen on the Hill, you know, they’ve retained that essence of what old cinema was, pre-multiplex. You can go along and you can get a sense of what it was to go to the movies in the seventies and eighties. The BFI screen near Southbank is also brilliant. It has some of the best sound in the whole of the city.”
52 High Road, London N2 9PJ; phoenixcinema.co.uk
Comic Book Shop
"Gosh Comics in Bloomsbury is very good for geeking out. Did I used to go there? No, I don’t read comics [laughs]. But Gosh is very much about comic books rather than just toys. It’s got a lot of underground stuff. You’ll find your vintage eight-balls there, too, you know, if that’s what you’re into. It’s is a good place to go to find those titles you might be unable to find in some of the larger, more commercial comic book shops."
1 Berwick Street, London W1F 0DR; goshlondon.com
Café/restaurant
"When I did live in London, I lived in Crouch End for a long time, so quite a few of my favourite places are around that area. Banners is definitely great for soul food and atmosphere. They do good jerk chicken. I always get the big salad because it has jerk chicken in it; absolutely delish. I highly recommend it."
Banners, 21 Park Rd, London N8 8TE; bannersrestaurant.com
Park
"Hampstead Heath is always very nice. I love going there to walk the dogs, take the kids, get some air and reflect on life a little bit."
Man Up is in cinemas now
[Images: Flickr Creative Commons, Rex]
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