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At least the non-smoking British film and stage actor is,
thank God, not an anti-smoker.
JL: When did you start smoking?
TC: I used to a bit, a long time ago. But I only ever liked it
after meals, and I could only smoke with coffee. I never could
smoke with tea, I didn't like the taste. And then I got a heavy
cold, once, and it did put me off it. And I stayed put off it.
Now I just, you know, bite my nails instead. Actually, I stopped
that, as well.
L: Have you?
TC: Yeah. So I sort of just go like that (mimes biting his
nails), hand to
mouth, that's all it is. I mean, I'd quite like to smoke, if it
agreed with
me. It just doesn't agree with me very much. There was a time
when I tried
to smoke a pipe. I used to buy all these expensive Dunhill
pipes in the
hope that one would have the desired effect. I loved all the
business, with
the fiddling about. But smoke doesn't agree with me very much.
JL: What about using cigarettes, cigars and pipes as props in
plays and
films?
TC: Oh that's all right.
JL: What films have you smoked in?
TC: Just the odd one. I did one in Czechoslovakia in which I
had to smoke.
But I just made sure that I didn't smoke till the 'take', you
know. I don't
like it very much. I think I've done it in the odd film, but I
prefer not.
And also on stage, I don't think I've done it much.
JL: What's your worst experience of smoking?
TC: I don't mind my friends smoking, and, you know, I'm very
keen on jazz,
but Alan Plater took me to Ronnie Scott's and I couldn't breath
because of
the low ceiling and everybody smoking. So that I can't cope
with. But
people smoking is fine, live and let live.
JL: Do you find that's a problem with a lot of jazz clubs,
because they're
usually very smoker-friendly places?
TC: Well, that's the only one that I've ever been to. I've not
been to any
more. I listen to records.
JL: Your good friend Albert Finney, is he still a big cigar
smoker?
TC: Yeah. He was at our house on Sunday, but he usually smokes
in the
conservatory with the window open. It's no bother. He can
smoke wherever,
it's all right. As long as there's plenty of space, that's
fine.
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