Josh O’Connor underwent a "weird baptism" on his own to combat his mental health struggles.
The 29-year-old actor took the summer off after spending three years working back-to-back on various projects and admitted having free time left him feeling "insecure" but a spontaneous visit to the Hampshire coast where he’d enjoyed breaks as a child left him feeling like a "new man".
He told GQ Hype magazine: "I work in an industry in which we’re all quite vulnerable, I think, to mental health.
"I was tearing my hair out. I didn’t know what to do and it probably wasn’t great for my mental health. It made me a bit insecure.
"One morning I just got in my car and drove there. I got to the beach, ran into the sea – it was freezing cold – and just lay there. When I got out, I felt like a new man. It was like a weird baptism."
John can currently be seen playing Prince Charles in ‘The Crown’ and, to get into character, he spent "months" eating boiled eggs.
He said: "I ate boiled eggs for months. I am eating quite a lot of them, because that’s what Charles does. He eats a lot of boiled eggs."
Not only did the actor have to learn to ride a horse for the role, he also perfected Charles’ unusual polo technique.
He explained: "Charles holds the reins in a different way.
"Most people have four reins here, then thumb on top. He puts the reins in between each finger. So I learnt that as well. I love that."
Josh struggled with some aspects of researching the role because the royal family are so polished in public, so he was delighted to catch the recent documentary ‘Prince, Son and Heir: Charles At 70’.
He said: "There are a couple of moments when Camilla says something and he’s not expecting it and you see a kind of banter or sometimes an annoyance, like, ‘It’s my time to be in the spotlight.’
"Moments like that are really brilliant. Something where you can go, ‘Oh, that’s the embarrassed Charles.’ "
Read the full interview with Josh at https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/culture/article/josh-o-connor-the-crown-season-3-interview
Josh O’Connor’s ‘weird baptism’
