RELATIVE VALUES

Actor Russell Tovey and his mum Carole on the challenges of coming out

The Years and Years star and his mum on their close bond

Caroline Scott
The Sunday Times
Tea for two: Russell, 38, and Carole, 66, with Rocky the French bulldog at Carole’s home in Essex
Tea for two: Russell, 38, and Carole, 66, with Rocky the French bulldog at Carole’s home in Essex
JON ATTENBOROUGH

Russell
When I was a little boy I used to say I was going to grow up and marry my mum because I loved her so much. Everyone falls in love with her. She is fascinated by the world and everything in it. The things most people are shocked and shy about, she’s on the front foot. She’ll ask someone with tattoos and multiple piercings, “Now, tell me why you’ve done that to yourself,” with the utmost respect and without judgment. She has an incredibly curious mind, which I think I’ve inherited.

I was quite an obsessive child and she indulged all my passions. She would take me to antiques fairs and boot sales, every whim was catered to. She and Dad ran their own