Daily Pilots Post

[dramaturgca.livejournal.com]

Voila! A DPP! I want to thank everyone for your kind words about the banner from yesterday. I think Katee is one of the most uniquely lovely women out there, so it's certainly no hardship to sift through pictures of her.

And on that note, it's time to switch over to the other half of our gorgeous pilot couple.

Jamie Bamber



(Yes, that's his full name.)

Same questions as yesterday: What's your favourite non-BSG role for Jamie? What's your dream role for him? Do you have other favourite shows you'd love to see him turn up on? If you feel like it, what's your least favourite role he's played? What do you love about him offscreen? Keep it positive, except for least favourite role, but let's talk about the man who made Apollo who he is!

Comments

[dramaturgca.livejournal.com]

Let's see. Choosing a favourite role for Jamie is hard. Ultimately, I think it comes down to a tie between his very first pro gig, as Archie Kennedy in Horatio Hornblower movies (he's so young and cheerful and ginger!), and his current role on Law & Order|UK, where he's so sweetly idealistic. It's something about the giant blue eyes and the square jaw, he just radiates hero.

I dream of seeing him do Shakespeare live, but I have no idea how likely that is. I also think he would be awesome as James Bond. I'd love for him to play a part where he's actually good with girls, since that NEVER happens. And I wouldn't mind seeing him do some more bad guy. His turn as Martin Klar on Dollhouse was delicious.

There's basically no one I wouldn't like to show up on Leverage. Other than that... Maybe Warehouse 13.

Least favourite role, well... I haven't watched Pulse 2 yet (I have it though) but I suspect that'll be up in the running. Ghost Rig was fairly bad, though.

Offscreen he's absolutely charming and totally brilliant. (Full disclosure, yes, I've met him. Actually, I've met Katee, too, but I've had actual substantive conversation with Jamie) I love that he loves Shakespeare. I love that he's played Mephistopheles in Doctor Faustus. I love that he's devoted to his wife and his adorable daughters. There's very little, actually, that I don't love about him.

[rdave1.livejournal.com]

I'm sorry you can't just leave it at you've met him and he really nice. I need more details like when, where, how and what did you guys talk about?

PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:D

P.S. Ignore me if this sounds nuts! Working is driving me nuts and I'm taking a little break on LJ.:)

[dramaturgca.livejournal.com]

Hee. Of course!

I went to Battlestar Con in Burbank in... 2007, I think? The year of the WGA strike. Both Jamie and Katee were there. Katee's handler was massively strict, so Katee didn't talk much to people, but I was hanging out afterwards and Jamie was stil there so we stood around and talked about Shakespeare and working in live theatre. It was delightful. And he knew what a dramaturg is, which automatically puts him the I will love you forever category for me.

I think what I remember most about his talk, other than his unfortunate hand placement, was a little boy asking a question about accents because the boy was to play a Brit in a school play, and Jamie gave this very clear anwer about the differences between American and British accents and gave the kid pointers on how to improve his British. It was completely charming.

[rdave1.livejournal.com]

He really is a nice guy. Eugie had the same type of experience with him when she was Cylon Attack in London last year. He genuinely cares about what his fans have to say and he really wants to get to know us. The fact that he totally adores his wife and his girls is a plus becuase it just makes him the sweetest guy on Earth.

Here to hoping he will actually make it to D*C this year.:)

[rachelindeed.livejournal.com]

Hee! I didn't know that was his full name; I love the "St. John," that is uber-British and it always makes me think of Jane Eyre.

The only other role I've seen Jamie in is as Archie in "Horatio Hornblower," but I watched all those episodes back when they first aired and he was my favorite character in the series. I thought he was sweet and charming and very gorgeous, and I stand by all those first impressions. I also thought he was a terrific actor who said a lot with his eyes and his soft, wry voice. I stand by that, too :) I bought the episodes on VHS (it must be about ten or twelve years ago, now!) and sometimes when I was feeling down I would get up early before I had to leave for school just to watch him run across the exploding bridge a few times :)

I read the interviews that he gave during his Hornblower days and was pleased to hear how much thought he put into the role, even though initially it was designed to be a minor one. He just came across as tremendously smart and charming and invested in a character I loved, so I was grateful for that. I didn't really follow his career, but I did hear that he had a role in the new Battlestar Galactica, which was getting a lot of critical acclaim, and I was pleased for him and definitely rooting for him to succeed, though I wasn't watching the show at the time. I can remember picking up a DVD case for the show in a store years ago and trying to recognize him on the cover. I thought - my gosh, I can't believe that's him, he looks so different! My husband had been teasing me for years about my crush on someone he considered girly (it was the long golden locks on "Horatio" that did it), and when we finally got around to watching Galactica (which I decided to do primarily because I wanted to see Jamie in it) he literally couldn't believe it was the same guy :)

I thought dramaturgca's comments about her impressions of him in person were lovely, and they very much fit the impression he gives in interviews. I especially admire his intelligence and love of language, and I also think his devotion to his beautiful family is really wonderful. Plus he has a nice self-deprecation thing going on, and an infectious grin. And he loved Lee and Kara/Lee and the whole show, and always looked at his scenes and storylines with a lyrical and optimistic eye, while still being willing to recognize problems and mistakes.

One of my favorite interviews with him is the one eugis filmed during a Q&A session he shared with James Callis at a convention. The two of them together are so fun, and Jamie addresses the infamous pigeon with great charm -- I defy anyone not to love him as he explains how the scene looked in his head and then how he grappled with the reality :) And his lovely words about the finale (in French!) at the JVF put about as meaningful and gorgeous a spin on that ending as one could possibly come up with.

In short, I liked him a lot even before I watched enough BSG to know that he was playing my favorite character, again. He seems like a very nice guy and a very good actor, and in voice and body he's among the most attractive young actors out there.

I hope eugis won't mind if I post a link to the interview about the pigeon -- it's just so charming!

http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=gininthesky#p/u/5/OZ1qArMjs9M

Thanks :)

[scifishipper.livejournal.com]

I love his utterly charming description of the pigeon and his self-effacing humor at being left with a broom and a fat pigeon while James was getting out of a limo with two gorgeous women. And his interviews in French make me swoon.

I think that if they could've produced the pigeon scene the way Jamie thought about it, it would've been lovely.

[nazkey.livejournal.com]

Thanks for sharing the link! He's SOOOOOO cute!

[callmeonetrack.livejournal.com]

I haven't seen Jamie in much else, but I've enjoyed the episodes of Law & Order UK I've seen. And I enjoyed him in his cameo on Dollhouse.

I really wanted him to get the lead in The Walking Dead TV show, but alas, that did not happen. Looking forward to Outcasts although I suspect his role is much more supporting there.

I don't have a least favorite role. But man some of the hair in those banner pics is frightening! Hee.

I like how thoughtful he is offscreen in interviews and he has a fantastic smile.

[scifishipper.livejournal.com]

Oh, Jamie, how do I love thee...

I've been thinking about this since yesterday when I had a feeling that attention would be turned to my t.v. boyfriend. ;)

I have to say that while I adore Jamie, I haven't really seen him in too much else. I'm sort of a completist, so I can't just pop in one episode of a show to watch him, so Dollhouse and HH are out for now. I so agree with dramaturga's suggestion of jamie as james bond. I can totally see that. I am soooooooooooo excited to see him in Outcasts!

My favorite role is, of course, Lee. I can't say enough about his portrayal of my favorite tv/movie character of all time. I never thought Fox Mulder could be replaced, but Jamie's role just pushed every single one of my buttons. Holy frak. (I'm gonna stop there cause I really could just gush on and on.)

I would be very happy to see Jamie play Lee Adama forever. He is it for me. :D

[damao2010.livejournal.com]

You pretty much said everything that was on my mind, including the Fox Mulder reference (I loved him sooooooooo much and never thought I could get to love a tv character as much, but...) and the Lee Adama forever. I'd really like to see more of him, though. I only watch LAO:UK because of him, but his part is not very big and the show itself is not my favorite at all.

[rdave1.livejournal.com]

I would be very happy to see Jamie play Lee Adama forever. He is it for me. :D

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[rachelindeed.livejournal.com]

I, too, would be happy to watch him be Lee forever :)

And I would actually recommend taking a look at the Hornblower stuff if you're ever in the mood. I know the time commitment may be a problem, but they're actually designed to be pretty self-contained little miniseries. In the first one (four episodes), Jamie's role starts small and very gradually builds until he's basically achieved sidekick status. But in the second miniseries (two episodes), "Mutiny / Retribution" he has quite a large role, and you don't really need to have watched the first miniseries to enjoy the second one - they were filmed years apart and they stand on their own.

The only reason I mention this is because I think the Hornblower role is an interesting one in hindsight for us BSG fans, because Jamie is basically playing Zak. He winds up acting as the functional younger brother/junior officer to this heroic, intellectual, rigidly self-contained paragon of an officer. He himself is not particularly gifted or cool under pressure, and he resents Horatio's perfections for a while before getting over himself and becoming the sounding board, conscience, and partner-in-crime that the hero so badly needs. He's so sunny and normal and loyal and sweet -- no hard edges, no alpha!vibe, he's just the only person around who remembers that impeccable heroes are still human beings underneath. If Zak had lived long enough to join the service (and Kara hadn't come between them), I think he and Lee would have had basically this relationship.

Sorry for the ramble. I just have great affection for Midshipman Archie Kennedy :)

[sparklegirl79.livejournal.com]

I love how you compare Archie to Zak, I don't think I've ever thought about it quite that way before. I quite adore Archie as well, and Hornblower was my intro to fanfic. At the time, I was at university for my degree in costume design, so I first watched it for the costumes, then got involved in the plot, then fell completely in love with Archie. Aside from Lee, he's still my very favorite.

[rdave1.livejournal.com]

I don't what I can say that hasn't been said above but I do love Bambi.

I haven't seen him too many things. I started watching L&O:UK because of him. He is so fun to watch because he is flirty and fun, so different from my beloved Lee. I've seen him when he guested on Cold Case and Ghost Whisperer, plus his cameo in Band of Brothers.

I just can't hate the guy even if the movie or show is bad; there is so much pretty to look at.:)

[rachelindeed.livejournal.com]

Speaking of Mr. Bamber's early role on Hornblower, I have noticed an adorable resemblance:





When they make Muppetstar Galactica someday, Jamie will totally be Kermit.

[baciami2.livejournal.com]

Does that mean Miss Piggy will play Kara if her Kermie plays Lee?

[rachelindeed.livejournal.com]

But of course!



And Adama and one-eyed Tigh will make a fine heckling team:



:)

[(Anonymous)]

I've seen Jamie in Hornblower, I love how he wasn't afraid to play up his character's weaknesses and how Archie wasn't really cut out to be in a war. I think it made the series a bit more complex.
I also enjoyed him in Cold Case, which used to be a bit of a guilty pleasure of mine. His character was just the right mix of principled and guilt ridden and politically aware, hit all my kinks.

Of course I've been watching L&O UK just for him and suprisingly really enjoyed it. I think you have to like the detectives to be able to enjoy these kind of shows and Matt and Ronnie are very likeable to me.

What I like most about Jamie's interviews and appearances is his thoughtfulness and quiet intelligence (and I just love it when he gets all excited and passionate about a topic). He doesn't seem to like talking about himself too much and doesn't hog the limelight which I find very good qualities. I remember Richard Hatch saying about him that he is one of the least selfish actors he's ever met and that's something I love about him too (even if I sometimes wish he had demanded a bit more for himself especially on BSG).

I also remember someone asking him which superpower he'd like to have and he said "to make other people happy" which is a very sappy thing to say, but seems in line with how much of a good family man his castmates think he is and how considerate he seems to be.

Sorry this got a bit long.