My pap pics: Jack Davenport: 'Women come up and tell me I'm a

Sunday Mirror, Jun 27, 2004 by Simon Button

Keeping good company

Here I am with Matt Damon, Jude Law and Gwyneth Paltrow at the premiere of The Talented Mr Ripley. It was my first big film role and a bit intimidating to be in such talented company. When I saw the film I had to keep covering my eyes every time I was on screen - it was like watching a car crash. They were lovely people, though. Gwyneth is a very classy lady, but she's incredibly down-to-earth and mucks in with everyone else.

Sucking up to Joely

Mmm, here's me licking Joely Richardson's neck in the play Lady Windermere's Fan. God, my hair was really big in that show! I look like Count Dracula. If you took me out of the picture, it would be a lovely portrait of a very beautiful woman. Joely and her mum, Vanessa Redgrave - who was also in the play - were a real pleasure to work with, despite stories in the press at the time. An understudy got disgruntled and decided to say all this stuff about them being prima donnas, but it was just crap. They were delightful to everyone.

The Coupling cast

This is a publicity shot from the third series of Coupling. Richard Coyle (behind me), who played Jeff, isn't in the new series - he didn't want to do it, so we've got a new character called Oliver, played by Richard Mylan. I never expected the show to last so long - around one in five sitcoms never makes it past the first series. Now we're on the fourth, so we must be doing something right. It's a laugh to film. As Steve, I just ponce around making a tit of myself. Am I like him in real life? I bloody hope not.

An innocent snog

After this picture, there were stories in the papers about me dating my This Life co-star Daniela Nardini, which was a load of rubbish. It was all very innocent - she won a BAFTA, I gave her a congratulatory kiss. Obviously I'm saying, 'Well done, dear' but inside I'm thinking, 'Why didn't I win?' This Life was a great show, but people couldn't differentiate between me and my character Miles. I used to get called a git a lot. Women would come up to me and say, 'You're such a bastard.'

Getting wiggy with it

This is on the Pirates Of The Caribbean set. That's me on the right in the wig. I'm just about to shoot my big sword fight. It took ages to rehearse and we filmed it at 4.45am, so I wasn't exactly wide awake. When they shouted, 'Action', all hell broke loose, with stuntmen fighting around me. I fell over a couple of times, but there were no injuries, thank goodness. As for the costume, it was a bit depressing to be in a pirate film dressed as a Mardi Gras float. It got really f**king hot under that wig.

Papped in Primrose Hill

Sarah Parish and I have just finished a movie called Something Borrowed. It's a romantic comedy about a wedding - I play the groom and Sarah is the maid of honour. Debra Messing, of Will & Grace fame, is the big star and the paparazzi were swarming around when we were filming in Primrose Hill. She was away that day, so I guess they had to settle for me and Sarah.

The balcony scene

Another premiere, this time for Pirates Of The Caribbean in Leicester Square. Myself and Mackenzie Crook, on the left, went on to the balcony first, to a very underwhelmed crowd. Then Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley came out and it was like the Beatles had arrived. I had no idea a film based on a theme park ride would be so successful, but then, unlike a lot of blockbusters it had a good plot, strong characters and jokes. Was I on a percentage of the proftits? Get out of it! I'd definitely do the sequel if they asked me though, but the script hasn't been written yet, so I don't know if my character will be in it.

Me and my blushing bride

Aah, the big day! Myself and my lovely wife Michelle got married in her home town of Glasgow in May 2000. Our first dance went fantastically. Michelle is an amazing dancer, so I let her lead me and people thought we'd been rehearsing for weeks, when really we just made it up on the spot. I was 27 and it bemused me when the papers said I was too young to get married. How young is too young? How long is a piece of string?