Jennifer Lawrence reveals how she prepares for kissing her leading men, Chris Pratt talks about stripping, Jamie Oliver revisits his paella, Will.i.am says he is concentrating on the US for the next four year and Emeli Sandé performs live in the studio
On tonight’s show (Friday 2nd December) Graham welcomes Oscar-winning actress Jennifer Lawrence, Jurassic World star Chris Pratt, celebrity chef, restaurateur and activist Jamie Oliver, one of the music industry’s biggest names Will.i.am and singer songwriter Emeli Sandé.
Jennifer, talking about intimate scenes and how she prepares her breath before kissing her leading men, says, “When I had to kiss Josh (Hutcherson) and Liam (Hemsworth) in The Hunger Games I was like, ‘Who cares?’ and I’d eat mustard and tuna. And then I did American Hustle with Christian Bale and I was like, ‘Oh damn,’ and I was really clean and ate lots and lots of mints.” Flirtatiously adding about Chris her co-star in Passengers, “With Pratt I definitely ate mints!”
Asked about performing stunts sequences in her movies, she says, “As soon as I wrapped Hunger Games I was done with stunts, I didn’t want to do any more, I didn’t like it. I complained so much they said, ‘So we guess it will be mainly Chris doing all the action.’”
Chris talking about his early days as a struggling actor, reveals, “I stripped for money.” Asked if he was successful, he says, “If you need $40 and you get $40 it is a success! It never got ‘uninnocent’ – I did it three or four times and then decided I would do an audition for a strip club but there was one of the dancers sleeping in his car waiting for the club to open and I just felt a darkness that it was about to turn from a funny anecdote that I could tell on The Graham Norton Show one day to me being that guy.”
Joking about British food, he says, “In America we are a melting pot, we’ve great Italian restaurants, great Japanese restaurants and Indian food but it’s never ‘Let’s go get British tonight.’ You’re good at the drinking, which I love. Your food is basically just to coat your stomach so the ale and whiskey have a place to live!”
Jamie, now Britain’s best-selling non fiction writer of all time, talks about his early, less promising school days, “I wasn’t very academic and because I was dyslexic I was in the special needs class which wasn’t great for my confidence.”
Revealing that because of his dyslexia he had never been able to concentrate on a novel until The Hunger Gamesfilms came out, he says, “I loved it so much and just couldn’t wait for the next film so I bought the book. Reading those was a big deal for me.”
Talking about his new Christmas Cookbook, he says, “I am chuffed with it. I normally like to be humble but it is probably the best book I’ve ever written. It was a pleasure to write.”
Asked why he dedicated it to his grandmother he says, “My earliest memory of Christmas is her reaching for the Brussels sproutsand her cracker hat catching fire on a candle, in turn her blue rinse caught fire and she was a human candle. I remember thinking my dad was beating her up but he was actually putting out the flames. Once he had finally put her out we carried on eating dinner and I thought, ‘That’s Christmas!’”
Revealing he has cancelled Christmas day at his house this year, Jamie says, “I have hosted it for about a decade and the family has got bigger and bigger. This year it was going to be about 30-40 people but I’ve had a fifth child and worked hard all year so I have called it off. It went down pretty well with some people but not so well with others!”
Asked about turning 40, he says, “I didn’t like it much. I wasn’t happy. Most of my life I have been the young whippersnapper and suddenly I was old.” Adding jokingly, “At 42 I might over deliver and get better at drinking good tequila!”
Talking about sustaining an intimate burn while cooking a romantic Valentine dinner for his wife Jules, Jamie reveals, “I was cooking naked at home while preparing a whole sea bass and I had a new, fan-assisted oven and when I opened the door a jet of hot steam attacked my manhood. It was a weird thing in life – the worst and best time in my life. Worst because the pain was so bad but best because my private parts expanded!” Apologising to his teenage kids for recounting the story, he adds, “Sadly it didn’t turn out to be the romantic night I had planned. I ended up sitting with some frozen Green Giant (corn) on my old fella!”
And finally, Jamie, reminded of the press and social media attention his paella got, he says, “They went medieval on me. It got very dark – I got death threats because of a bit of sausage! Everything I did that month was over taken by chorizo.” Adding, ‘”FYI, it tastes better with chorizo!”
Will.i.am joins Graham for a chat. Talking about The Black Eyed Peas and asked whether the group is back together, he says, “We never broke up. We just took a break. We are now working on a new project – I am not calling it an album – but it will be out next year. It is inspired by all the violence in the US.
Asked if he has thought more about becoming a British citizen he says, alluding to the Trump presidency, “It wouldn’t be right at the moment because the US is so messed up and if I quit it now it might not be the right time. I live here a lot and love it but over the next four years I’d like to focus on the US.”
Emeli performs Breathing Underwater live in the studio before joining Graham for a chat.
Talking about her four-year hiatus since her last (7-times platinum) album, she says, “It’s been a while! I am naturally shy and introverted and after the success of the last album I needed real life again. It was important to have time away.”
Asked about the new album, she says, “The reaction has been encouraging and inspiring.” And on her upcoming UK tour, she says, “It’s an arena tour which is a dream come true for me. I can’t wait!”
And finally, Graham pulls the lever on more foolhardy audience members brave enough to sit in the Red Chair.
The Graham Norton Show, BBC One,2nd December 10.35pm
Pictures are available from PA
Notes to editors – all quotes in this release were said during the recording but won’t necessarily appear in the final show.
Next week (Friday 9th December) Graham’s guests include Carrie Fisher, Grayson Perry, Sandi Toksvig and Nadiya Hussain.
For further information please contact Mary Collins 07769 670516 or at
2nd December 2016