The Wind in the Willows
Bob Hoskins plays Badger
Bob Hoskins suffered for his art when playing Badger in The Wind in the Willows.
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"My shoulders, joins and back all ached from playing this part. It's because I've given him a certain walk, all hunched shoulders and moving from side-to-side. I wanted to get the correct Badger posture but as a result I've got all the aches and pains!"
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Bob enjoyed playing the gruff but kindly animal.
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"I always wanted to play him. I like him because he is a miserable old bugger, but he's very caring. Even with Toad and his recklessness, he feels this huge responsibility to protect him.
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"He's irascible but he is a good sort and looks out for all his friends. He is about the only one that Toad will listen to, and Badger has to come down hard on him sometimes to make him see sense. He is avuncular and I feel I have made him my own."
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Adds Bob: "It is one of those parts where you can't go over the top. The further you go, the better it gets. I can't wait to watch it with my kids at Christmas."
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The role meant the acclaimed actor wearing a stripy wig and curled up eyebrows.
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"The wig is a bit Last of the Mohicans but I love putting all the stuff on. I don't think I could get away with wearing it out on the street though.
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"I love his clothes – I wear a cream shirt with a stripe that is made out of old fashioned tea towels. We thought that's what Badger would have done. It's a lived-in kind of granddad shirt, as they would make do with whatever they could get."
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Bob stayed up late in order to prepare for his role.
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"I live in the countryside and I have to say that late at night I've been trying to watch badgers and study them, but they are very shy animals.
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"I wanted to make the film a child's dream. When a child dreams, it's often about people who are animals and I wanted to make it their story, reflecting their imaginations.
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"I love the whole idea of storytelling. I was an only child and I developed a very strong imagination and I still much prefer reading a book to seeing a film. The Wind in the Willows is a finely tuned Rolls Royce. You can take it anywhere you go. Even though it's from 1908, the language is perfect."
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Bob shares his character's love of home comforts.
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"My nest is really important to me, which is a bit like Badger. My wife Linda and I have always cooked together and I find it very relaxing. I used to have bouts of depression but now I realise how lucky I am. I have become a very contented hermit!"
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Bob is no stranger to children's and family productions, thanks to his roles in Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, Hook and Garfield.
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"My youngest son Jack was three when he saw the premiere of Roger Rabbit. He wouldn't talk to me for a bit afterwards and I was very upset, I didn't know what had happened. After two weeks he said: 'Well, after working with Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck all day long, you could have brought them home to meet me'. He is now 22 and he's got over it!
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"I treat every job as a great adventure and I like to go in clean and be open and receptive to the director. Filming The Wind in the Willows was great work and I loved doing it, and the Romanians are such a good and talented crew."
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Suffolk-born Bob has been an actor for more than 30 years. He got his big break in 1978 in Dennis Potter's Pennies From Heaven, leading to a string of high-profile and successful films, including: The Long Good Friday; Mona Lisa; The Cotton Club; Mermaids; Nixon; The Raggedy Rawney; Enemy at the Gates and Mrs Henderson Presents.
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TV work includes David Copperfield, in which he played Mr Micawber opposite The Wind in the Willows co-star Imelda Staunton. He has also worked extensively on the stage.
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