Lily Allen 'attracted to danger and fear' of new projects
Lily Allen is "attracted to danger and fear" of doing new things.
The 40-year-old singer made her West End debut in Danny Robins' thriller '2.22 - A Ghost Story' in 2021, in which she played lead character Jenny, a woman who thinks her London home is haunted and a ghost visits her child at 2.22am every night.
And because it was Lily's first stage show, it was the idea of the unknown that made her sign up for it.
The 'Fear' hitmaker told her radio personality pal Miquita Oliver, 41, on the latest episode of their 'Miss Me?' podcast: "I have to say, when I signed on to do '2.22', that first play that I did, I don't know. I, kind of like, signed on to it because it seemed so scary, and I'm attracted to danger and fear in that way."
However, doing '2.22 - A Ghost Story' did not turn out to be scary at all for Lily, and she had a lot of fun creating "close bonds" with the cast members, including horror TV series 'Archive 81' star Julia Chan, 42, Disney's live-action 'Snow White' film actor, Hadley Fraser, 45, and Jake Wood, 52, from the hit UK soap opera, 'EastEnders'.
The 'Smile' performer added: "I was not anticipating having as much fun on it as I did and, you know, forming such close bonds with the people that were on it ...
"It was really a blast."
Lily - who previously has battled "emotional turmoil" following her split from 50-year-old actor David Harbour in 2024 - has admitted she feels her "best" self when she is working.
The 'Everything's Just Wonderful' singer said: "I find that I'm the best, the most fun when I'm working, actually."
Lily - who previously said she was attempting to be "less of a narcissist" in 2025 - is two weeks into her social media hiatus, and described how she dealt with an "extremely heavy" wave of "sadness" and "loneliness" after she initially ditched it.
The star even compared her social media break to "withdrawing from drugs".
Lily - who lives in New York with her two daughters, Ethel, 13, and Marnie, 12, whom she has with her 47-year-old ex-husband Sam Cooper - said: "I think, like, the beginning of last week, I was feeling incredibly low, like lower than I felt in months. It was extremely heavy. This was like a different kind of sadness, heaviness, loneliness, whatever.
"And then I realised, maybe, this is because I'm not filling the gaps with scrolling. I've suddenly got this time for, like, reflection, or, do you know what I mean?
"Because I don't have that much to do here in New York during the day. I run, sort of like, various errands, and I get food ready for the girls when they get home from school, and I meet up with people for lunch, and I'm very active in my recovery. But in terms of work, there's not much going on.
"And so I guess I would find myself sitting on Instagram and scrolling, or being narcissistic and posting and reading my responses to my - getting that dopamine fix.
"And I haven't had it for nearly two weeks. And I think it made me initially really sad. I think I was having, like, withdrawal symptoms from it.
"It was horrible. I mean, I really did feel like I was withdrawing from drugs or something. It was crazy. But it took me a minute to think, 'Oh, yeah, it's probably that."
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Age
a day ago
- The Age
The Bear is back and ready to be binged. Here's what you need to know
The FX dramedy The Bear arrived on Disney+ in the winter of 2022, and unlike a lot of award-winning TV, this series has stuck to a yearly release schedule, always arriving in late June. So get ready to start hearing 'Yes, chef!' during everyday interactions. Season 4 debuted in full in Australia on June 26, returning viewers to the eclectic, vibrant Chicago food scene and the struggling restaurant at the heart of the story, the Bear. At the end of last season, Carmy Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White), the Bear's chef and co-owner, had just received a review in The Chicago Tribune that might determine whether or not his place stays open. But viewers still don't know what it says. They almost certainly will find out in the new episodes, though Christopher Storer, the creator of The Bear, likes to keep the show unpredictable. Here are some things to keep in mind going into the new season. Chaos on the menu
Perth Now
2 days ago
- Perth Now
Gareth Edwards: I'm very happy to move on from Star Wars
Gareth Edwards was "very happy to move on" from the Star Wars franchise. The 50-year-old filmmaker helmed 2016's Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, but Gareth doesn't have any intention of returning to the sci-fi franchise. Asked if he'd ever make another Star Wars movie, Gareth told Business Insider: "I'm very happy to move on and do my thing." Despite this, Gareth remains a huge fan of the Star Wars movies. He said: "It's the thing that was in my life before I knew what a film was. "It's like your mom; it's like something that's a part of you. I'm always fascinated by what they're doing. I never stop loving that trilogy." Fan sentiment towards Rogue One has become kinder in recent years. But Gareth has downplayed the suggestion that his movie - which starred the likes of Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Ben Mendelsohn, Donnie Yen, Mads Mikkelsen, and Forest Whitaker - is the best Star Wars film since Disney bought Lucasfilm in 2012. The director said: "I don't agree with it, but I appreciate it. I'm very grateful that people say nice things." Gareth has encouraged cinemagoers to judge movies over a long period of time, rather than jumping to conclusions. The filmmaker shared: "What you have to keep in your pocket as you go through making other films is that it's not about how people feel the day it gets released, it's how people feel about it 10, 20 years from now. "When you make a movie, you're living at least a year from now, you're trying to imagine what it's like, all these decisions you're making, what they are going to be like a year from now when this movie is released, what's the audience going to think? "And as the movie comes out, you go, 'I'm going to pretend I'm living ten years from now, and it doesn't matter what people say in the moment.' It's the kid who comes up to you 20 years from now and goes, 'Oh my god, I loved that movie!' I think that's the reward." Meanwhile, Gareth previously hailed Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope as the movie that changed his life. The director admitted to being obsessed with the film during his younger years. He told the Guardian newspaper: "I don't remember exactly when I first saw A New Hope; it's always just sort of existed for me. It's the only film that I don't remember actually sitting down to watch for the very first time. "From the age of about six I watched it every day for at least a couple of years. I must have seen it more than 200 times. My mum remembers me quoting it word for word on long car journeys. I once did the entire script."
Perth Now
2 days ago
- Perth Now
Brenda Song blocked from movie role by Disney
Brenda Song has claimed Disney blocked her from starring in Gran Torino because of a sexual assault scene. The 37-year-old actress shot to fame as hotel heiress London Tipton in the Disney Channel's The Suite Life of Zack and Cody and went on to star in a number of the network's own movies before moving away from child stardom to more adult roles. However, despite her success, Brenda revealed her transition wasn't made easy and she faced difficulties such as missing out on a role she wanted in Clint Eastwood's 2008 drama Gran Torino. Accepting Variety's Virtuoso Award at the Bentonville Film Festival in Arkansas, she recalled: "The character had an intended sexual assault scene, so Disney nixed it. And I was very upset but I was like, 'Okay, I guess it didn't work out.'' Brenda also had to fight for her role as Christy in The Social Network, which also featured a sexually-explicit scene, going to then-COO of Disney Branded Television Gary Marsh to plead her case. She recalled: 'I was just like, 'I am an actor. When you hired me, I was not a hotel heiress. If I have ever done anything in my personal life to ever draw bad attention to your company, I understand. But this is the last season of the show, and this is the opportunity of a lifetime.' "And I was so fortunate, they were so supportive. They allowed me to do this film that truly changed my life.' Brenda - who has sons Dakota, four, and Carson, two, with fiance Macaulay Culkin - was grateful to break into acting at a young age because it was "really hard" for Asian-American women to find success. She said: "That was the tricky thing growing up, being an Asian-American actress in Hollywood. 'Like if you weren't Jackie Chan or Jet Li — I'm not an Asian man — it was really hard. But I was fortunate to have actors like Ming-Na Wen, Michelle Yeoh and Lucy Liu, who really inspired me.' Of working with Ming-Na when she was eight years old, she added: 'I'm so grateful because she was so encouraging, so kind and just so supportive.'
