Out actor Russell Tovey covers the
latest issue of UK LGBT glossy Attitude.
Tovey is promoting his upcoming book,
Talk Art: Everything You Wanted to Know About Contemporary Art but
Were Afraid to Ask. He also co-hosts with Robert Diament the
popular Talk Art podcast.
The 39-year-old actor spoke with Sir
Michael Craig-Martin, known as the “godfather of Brit Art,” about
his sexuality and love for art.
Tovey, a self-described “art geek,”
recalled getting advice from an older actress that “changed
everything.”
"I was doing a TV show and I was
desperately in love with this much older actor and had such a crush
on him, and I didn’t think anyone knew,” Tovey said.
"This older actress took me for a
walk along the beach where it was filming and explained to me that I
might be gay. She said, 'If you are, that’s great; if you’re not,
that’s fine. But you might be.' It felt like, oh, that’s an
option. That is something I can possibly be. That’s what these
feelings I’m having are."
"You feel lost and at that age, to
have someone put their hand out and go, 'Come here. This is just me
giving a bit of advice.' It stayed with me forever and changed
everything,” he said.
Tovey is best known in the United
States for his portrayal of Kevin Matheson in the HBO gay drama
Looking and his guest role as
Ray Terrill/The Ray on the CW's Arrowverse.