Dame Emma Thompson (born 15 April 1959) is a British actress, screenwriter, producer, activist, author, and comedian.
Thompson’s description of a recent “perfect day” has nothing to do with receiving her damehood from the Queen of England or getting an Academy Award. “I got up and pootled in my kitchen, and then I went for a long walk and had a coffee in a glass in one of my favorite food shops. I bought my mother some biscuits and then walked home and had a cup of tea with my mum and my sister.”
The Love Actually star said her first rule was to ‘live as enjoyably as possibly within your financial means’.
She recommended not to think too far ahead and to avoid bingeing serial killer shows on streaming platforms – especially if they kept you up all night.
However when it came to relationships she added to keep your friends close – but to avoid any sort of toxic relationships. She said on the subject: ‘If your instincts tell you they are toxic, walk away and don’t look back.’
The list also warned against comparing yourself to others, but random acts of kindness can work as a ‘human anti-depressant.’
The eco-friendly actress also said to listen to David Attenborough, keep warm, and to form a ‘close bond with a local tree.’
Emma Thompson has opened up about her about her mental health in the past. In a Radio 4 interview from 2010, she revealed that working had kept her from ‘going under,’ and that she struggled with depression.
‘I think I probably should have sought professional help long before I actually did,’ she said at the time.
The actress added working on projects such as Sense and Sensibilities in the 1990’s, helped her escape from ‘the constant “must do better”, “must try harder” plus “you’re too fat and not really a very good mother.”‘
On drinking wine:
Actress and wine lover Emma Thompson says to go without wine would be like losing part of her soul.
The Love Actually star – who goes on a Berry Bros wine course after Christmas – said, ‘I can live without jewels and lovely clothes, I can even live without tea, but if I were to never have a glass of wine again it would be like losing part of my soul.’
Thompson was speaking to Decanter.com at the launch of Ballantyne, a cashmere shop on London’s New Bond Street.
She said she wants to learn more about wine in order to understand her passion. ‘My Christmas present from my husband is a four-day wine course at Berry’s, which I’m very excited about. I’m taking my mum along as my husband doesn’t drink.’
On lockdown:
In an August 2020 interview, Thompson said she has been boozing as she isolates with her mother and husband Greg Wise in Scotland amid COVID-19 pandemic and says she hasn’t had a night off.
She told the Daily Mail’s ‘Eden Confidential’ column: “I have not had a night off the booze since lockdown started. My rule is that if you drink too much you feel terrible the next day. Which is not a rule, it is an observation.”
Emma previously revealed that she could live without a lot of life’s luxuries but she could never give up wine.
She said: “I can live without jewels and lovely clothes, I can even live without tea, but if I were to never have a glass of wine again it would be like losing part of my soul.
“I took part in a blind tasting and the room was populated with old men. I was jubilant because I picked out the most expensive wine as the one I preferred. I’m a white Burgundy girl.”
Meanwhile, Emma’s Last Christmas co-star Emilia Clarke previously revealed she and Emma did “a lot of drinking” during filming.
She said: “We had a lot of fun together. We also got to do a lot of drinking together… and not just in the Christmas market scene, but also in a lot of other places.”
Sources:
- https://www.decanter.com/wine-news/emma-thompson-wine-is-part-of-my-soul-86034/
- https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-7491293/Emma-Thompson-reveals-list-20-things-help-deal-low-moments.html
- https://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/features/emma-thompson-life-loss-resilience
- https://www.8days.sg/entertainment/hollywood/emma-thompson-says-she-hasn-t-stopped-boozing-since-lockdown-13424540