Scotsman

Jason Isaacs was born in Liverpool in 1963 and made his debut in Mel Smith’s comedy The Tall Guy. He won acclaim for his work on BBC drama Civvies in 1992 and has since appeared in films Armageddon, The Patriot, Black Hawk Down and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. He lives in London with wife Emma Hewitt and daughter, Lily, two. He can be seen in the movie Elektra, which is on general release now, and he is currently working on Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.

WHAT WOULD BE YOUR FIRST ACT AS RULER?

“I’d ban PCs and I’d ban private education and private health care. If it exists, naturally I want the best for my daughter but I’m here in America, the richest country the world has ever known, and there are people who don’t go to the doctors because they can’t afford to. I’d also ban carbohydrates so I wouldn’t have to worry about them.”

WHO WOULD BE YOUR MOST TRUSTED ADVISER?

“I might ostensibly be ruling the world, but clearly Emma would really be in charge and I’d be wearing the crown.”

WHO WOULD YOU BANISH?

“I hate to sound like a student politico but George Bush, and anyone who has a dog from a breed that has bitten people. You shouldn’t be allowed to walk around with a cocked gun so you shouldn’t be allowed to walk round with a ’cocked dog’. And toilet attendants. I don’t know what they do. They just sit there, intimidate you and listen to your noises.”

WOULD YOU BE A DICTATOR OR A BENEVOLENT LEADER?

“I really don’t believe in the will of the masses. If you put it to a vote in the street they’d have public hanging.”

WHO WOULD YOU SINGLE OUT FOR A KNIGHTHOOD AND WHY?

“I wouldn’t single out anyone as I think knighthoods are obscene. But that said, if anyone’s thinking of knighting me, they should discard this remark.”

WHO WOULD YOU SEND TO THE TOWER OR PUT IN THE STOCKS?

“Anyone who tells parents what to do with their children.”

WHICH LAW WOULD YOU ABOLISH?

“In America I think it’s weird that you can’t be a communist. In the home of free speech, you can’t stand up and advocate a certain way of life.”

WHAT LAW WOULD YOU INTRODUCE?

“I’d make it compulsory that everyone should do something pointless and publicly undignified every day. Being an actor what I do is incredibly childish so I think people should be reminded not to take themselves too seriously.”

WHICH BUILDING WOULD YOU DEMOLISH AND WHY?

“The National Theatre. The whole South Bank is horrible. Brisbane has a place called the South Bank and it’s thronging with markets and colour. They’re completely part of the fabric of Australian life. It doesn’t look as forbidding, like some kind of gulag.”

WHICH RULER OR MONARCH DO YOU MOST ADMIRE OR HAVE MOST IN COMMON WITH?

“I think I have most in common with George Bush because I’m incredibly lazy. The person I most admire is Mandela. Oh, and Alex Ferguson. You’ve got to admire him.”

IF YOU COULD CHANGE THE NATIONAL ANTHEM FOR ANOTHER PIECE OF MUSIC, WHAT WOULD IT BE AND WHY?

“I don’t believe in the Royal family so I’d probably change it to something more contemporary. Brought up in Liverpool I was spoon fed the Beatles so I’d probably have something from them.”