Ed Westwick's My London

Actor Ed Westwick does his romancing on Primrose Hill, calls Soho his second home and is too old for Camden...

Home is
New York now, but I was raised in Stevenage. There's not much happening in Stevenage.

Where do you stay in London?
The Soho Hotel is a home away from home. Soho is a great area anyway. I used to stay in Camden, but it's got a bit young now.

What was the last play you saw in London?
Hamlet at the Donmar starring Jude Law.

What advice would you give a tourist coming to London?
Pack an umbrella and go to a Premiership
football game.

Which five London shops do you rely on?
Pret A Manger is great for tuna baguettes. I love Paul Smith, and Ozwald Boateng makes the best suits. I like picking up little trinkets at the random market stalls in Camden. And you can't beat a wander round Selfridges.

What's the best meal you've had in London?
At Lemonia in NW1. It's a quaint little Greek restaurant and the food is absolutely superb.

What's your earliest London memory?
When I was a kid I used to have to go and get my eyes tested. I'd have to take the day off school and my mum would take me to the Natural History Museum. I must have been about 100 times.

What would be on your tombstone?
'He knew how to get here.' It's a reference to
living fast and dying young. That would be my
rock'n'roll tombstone.

What are your guilty pleasures?
Peanut M&M's. I'm pretty guilt-free.

What are you most afraid of?
Death is kind of freaky.

What would you do as Mayor for the day?
I would shut down all the schools so the kids could have a day off.

What's your life philosophy?
If it's not fun, I'm not doing it.

What animal would you most like to be?
A lion because they're badass and king of the jungle. Although lions don't live in jungles Did you ever think about that?

What was the last album you bought?
Recovery, Eminem's new album.

What would you save from a fire?
My Gibson 1957 Les Paul Junior guitar as it's
so much older than me. And probably my
Paul Smith overcoat.

What makes you laugh?
Pretty much anything. I don't need an excuse to laugh. I make myself laugh a lot.

What makes you cry?
The commercials on television for saving rescue dogs. They're intense.

What are you up to at the moment?
I am about to go and shoot a scene for season 4 of the fantastic TV series Gossip Girl.