What got you started?
A lady called Anna Scher. She used to go around the London schools in the holidays, doing theatre workshops. My friend Paul's sister was going, so we turned up one day when I was about 13. There were some nice-looking girls there, so we carried on going.
What was your big breakthrough?
Doing a play called Class Enemy at the Royal Court when I was about 16. It was about a classroom of kids left with no teacher, so each of them gives a lesson about what they know.
Do you suffer for your art?
Doing EastEnders wasn't exactly suffering, but my soul's not in quick-fix TV. Theatre doesn't pay like TV work pays, though. We all have to live, don't we?
You've played a lot of "geezer" roles. Is it difficult to avoid being typecast?
Why don't you ask John Gielgud that? It's always the Londoners that get asked this. It can happen that I get scripts in, and I think: "Not another one of those roles." But I'm playing God at the moment, so I can't complain.
Stage or screen?
My heart's in stage. Making Quadrophenia was exciting because we were riding around on scooters with no crash helmets. But "hurry up and wait" is the anthem of films. Everybody wants you ready, and then you sit doing nothing.
What's the greatest threat to theatre?
A lack of something to say. Everybody's relying on tried-and-trusted formulas. When I was starting out, there was a Play for Today mentality: things were changing, and we were doing stuff about borstals and reform. The big threat is that we'll all end up doing Shakespeare because it brings the tourists in.
Is there an art form you don't relate to?
Ice-dancing. And opera's difficult. Musicals are OK, though – I like a spirited evening out.
Which other artists do you admire?
My mate Damon [Albarn]'s done well, hasn't he? I like people like Robert De Niro and Anthony Hopkins. And Gianfranco Zola, who played for Chelsea and Italy. He's an artist with his feet.
What's the worst thing anyone ever said about you?
When my daughter was born, I called her Ella Bella Mandela, because she was born the day after Mandela was released from prison. Time Out said: "Congratulations to Phil Daniels on his daughter's birth, which puts Bob Geldof's Fifi Trixibelle into second place in the 'poor dear' stakes." It was horrible, but it did make me laugh.
In short
Born: Islington, 1958.
Career: Best known for his roles in Quadrophenia, Scum and EastEnders, and as a lead vocalist on Blur's song Parklife. He performs in The God of Soho at Shakespeare's Globe, London SE1 (020-7401 9919), until 30 September.
High point: "Lots. A TV series called Outlaws. Quadrophenia. Doing Parklife in front of 120,000 people at Glastonbury."
