Gemma Arterton's guide to London: secret gardens, stunning stationery shops and Singer Sargent
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East Sussex, in the countryside with my husband Rory, our son and our dog. I’ve lived here for nearly three years, and before that I was in Battersea, which was my stomping ground for 15 years. It’s crazy how it’s changed. I went back to the Battersea Power Station and was like, “What the fuck?” I couldn’t find my way around. I used to go to Battersea Park all the time.
It varies. The good thing about not living in London now is you can be on holiday in London. I usually stay at the Ham Yard Hotel, or Kettners. The real luxury one is Claridges – but that’s for special occasions. My first flat was in West Kensington. It was a basement flat, basically a cellar – it stank of damp – but I didn’t care. I loved it and stayed for about a year, then moved to Brixton where I lived for ages.
When I was a student I had a few. The first was as a barmaid in a pub called The Duke of Sussex, which is in Waterloo by the Old Vic theatre – actors from there and the National would come in a lot – and I was the karaoke hostess on Friday and Saturday nights. My go-to karaoke song is Total Eclipse of the Heart, and I also like doing Rapture by Blondie because of the rap, which I can’t do but I try. Back then I sang a lot of ballads. The landlord was a bit of a gangster and he loved ballads, so he’d say, “Go on and do a bit of Celine Dion”, so I did that.
