We begin with a slight Californian drawl and end with a broad Yorkshire brogue. Over the course of our time with the star of Steven Spielberg’s new version of Tintin, Jamie Bell’s accent slowly crosses the Atlantic. Forever linked with his role as an unlikely ballerina in Billy Elliot, Bell has since played a huge variety of roles from a teleporter in Jumper to a clergyman in Jane Eyre. Here he talks to GQ.com about his love of milkshakes, how to please a woman and his fondness for Greggs…

GQ.com: What’s small talk with Steven Spielberg like?
Jamie Bell: I was so nervous to reveal how much of a fanboy I am in case he started thinking, “Oh my God, we’ve cast a maniac.” So it’s only been recently, hanging out with Steven and doing all the press that I’ve been able to go, “Dude, that decision in Hook when he does this thing…” But I held my tongue for the longest time.

You’ve described Tintin as “Hitchcockian”. Which of his films does it resemble most?
Strangers On A Train or The 39 Steps. Lots of people looking over their shoulders in very low lighting, revealing bits of information and ending up dead.

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Jamie is set to be a guest-star on the BBC talk show The Graham Norton Show on Friday 21 October! It looks as though he’ll be on there to co-inside with the UK premiere of The Adventures of Tintin, and will be interviewed alongside Kate Winslet and comedian Rob Brydon, so looks to be a great show!

Next on:
Friday, 22:35 on BBC One (except Scotland)

The BAFTA-award-winning host returns with a new series of his unique talk show – featuring the biggest celebrities, the brightest conversation, the best jokes and, of course, his irrepressible audience.

Together on Graham’s sofa in this opening episode are Oscar-winning actress Kate Winslet, talking about her remarkable career and new film Contagion; top comedian Rob Brydon; Billy Elliott star Jamie Bell, now starring as Tintin in the new Spielberg movie; and indie band Noah and the Whale, performing L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N.

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Jamie Bell had to get a grip. There he was, the star of Billy Elliot, an unknown 15 year-old from a ­single-parent family in Billingham, Teesside, who beat hundreds of other wannabes to play the working class boy who loved ballet in the 2000 film. He won a Bafta; Russell Crowe was his new best friend. What was not to like? Himself, it seems.

“I lost my mind at 15,” says Bell of his hype-induced meltdown. He went back to school and managed to finish his GCSEs. But, “I’d been shown a world where there were no boundaries, where everyone gave me all the power. And I was like, ‘This is great!’ Then that was gone. But I was like, ‘Yeah, but I still want that.’ I’d lost my humble, very quiet, introverted sensibilities which I think I definitely had as a kid. And I…” Became a brat?

“Yeah, I became a little a——-,” he smiles. “And, you know, you’re a 15-year-old kid so it’s your world. And I was a b—— at 16! But still, looking back on it now, it was worry­ing because it is very persuasive, and you have all these grown-ups who it seems are encouraging it. And that’s unhealthy.” But unlike so many child stars before him, Bell’s spin-out was short-lived.

His mother, his manager and Stephen Daldry, the Billy Elliot director who became the mentor and father figure that Bell had never had, helped steer him right. (Bell has never had contact with his father, who left before he was born.) He chose parts in a few indie films, and turned down parts in American teen movies, “which focused on me as a kid. I wanted to still be a kid, but I came from the north east of England. I didn’t really sympathise or empathise with those kinds of characters.” And so he quietly got on with building a decent career as an actor. The rampaging ego retreated.

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Exciting news everyone – It looks as though Jamie has joined Twitter! Though it hasn’t been officially verified, it’s pretty hard to deny the profile picture, and he’s also been Tweeted by a number of verified actors, including Tintin co-star Simon Pegg!

He has also given two great shout outs to the site, and is following JBO as well, so thanks to him for that! Make sure you follow him at @1jamiebell – and whilst you’re at it, follow us @jamiebellcom to get all the latest updates as they happen!

1jamiebell @jamiebellcom You guy’s are on the ball. Thank you for spreading the word.
24 Sep 01:31

1jamiebell @jamiebellcom Followers, of Jamie Bell Online. I wanted to say a huge thank you to you for your support. JB
22 Sep 17:49

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Hello visitors,

This interview The Observer did was Jamie Bell was released earlier this week. Jamie Bell talks about his upcoming productions, his stint in New York, and life in Los Angeles.

Jamie Bell interview: This boy’s life

At 14, Jamie Bell beat 2,000 hopefuls to play Billy Elliot. A decade later, the boy from Billingham has 16 films under his belt and has worked with Clint Eastwood and Peter Jackson. But this summer he stars in Steven Spielberg’s Tintin – which is where, he says, the whole incredible adventure began

In a low-lit rum bar in a fashionably shabby corner of West Hollywood, Jamie Bell recalls the first time he saw a film in a cinema. “It was Jurassic Park,” he says. “I was eight years old and I was terrified because, you know – dinosaurs! They’re real!” He tells a good story. Plenty of animation. And the louder he gets the more Geordie his accent. “At the end, the credits said: ‘Directed by Steven Spielberg’ and I thought: ‘OK, I’m going to remember that name. Because he’s done something to me here, something important.’”

Sixteen years later, it’s happening again. In July, Bell plays the title role in Spielberg’s latest, The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of The Unicorn. It’s one of four movies that Bell has coming out in 2011, a bumper year for the 24-year-old actor. First up is The Eagle, a swords-and-sandals adventure adapted from Rosemary Sutcliff’s classic historical novel. And then comes Tintin, one of the most popular comic strips of the century, realised with innovative motion-capture technology by the world’s most famous director. “If you told that kid watching those dinosaurs: ‘You’re going to be working with that man…’” He shakes his head. “It’s just incredible. A massive milestone. It has monumental connections.”

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Additionally, thanks to Philip, I have added scans of Jamie’s article in March 13th’s issue of The Observer. Unfortunately, the text is unreadable, so if you have better scans, please share with us by emailing me.

Other than that, thank you for visiting! Remember, you can follow Jamie Bell Online on Twitter or “Like” us on Facebook!

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