Kim Cattrall shot to fame when she played the sexually liberated Samantha Jones in the TV series Sex and the City. Her film roles span comedy, drama and thrillers including Police Academy, Mannequin and The Ghost Writer. She also appeared to rave reviews in stage productions of Private Lives and David Mamet’s The Cryptogram.
Born in Liverpool, she moved to Canada as a child and now divides her time between New York City, London and Vancouver. Cattrall is the face of a new Designer at Debenhams campaign, a collaboration between the retailer and the British designer Ashish.
What’s the last treat you bought for yourself?
It’s always got to do with food. We recently went to Norfolk, where we had this incredible fried cod and chips at No1 Cromer. My husband had it with a curry sauce, which was delicious. That’s a real treat for me to eat that much heavy, fried food, but it was worth every bite.
Where do you buy your food from?
I love shopping, but I love food shopping. Our home in London is close to Marks & Spencer and Sainsbury’s. The ready-made food in M&S is really good. And I love to go to Fortnum & Mason to get my peaches in brandy. When I was younger, I used to look out for the yellow stickers, but not any more. I can afford to shop at Fortnum & Mason, so I’m doing good.
Peaches in brandy, 1.1kg
What’s the best present you’ve given – and received?
I love to give. And I love to receive. My partner and I recently got married, and a friend gave me a picture of a place that I go to a lot in London in a lovely silver frame. That meant so much to me because it was a document of another time. I think it’s always nice to give something in a frame. It’s something that most people don’t do for themselves. I have a piano in my home in New York City, and it’s filled with photographs; it just gives me so much joy to pass by that.
Silver photo frame
What’s your favourite online store?
I don’t do a lot of online shopping. I come from a culture of catalogues. I grew up in a rural setting on Vancouver Island, so a catalogue was like a wish-book. I just couldn’t get enough of it. By the time Christmas came, the pages were almost torn off. I only buy basic stuff online because they don’t give that much information. I want to feel the fabric and read the labels.
What’s your favourite bricks-and-mortar shop?
I love department stores, not just because of Mannequin, which was a kind of dream to be in a department store all day and all night. Stores such as Bloomingdale’s are fantastic. There’s a place to have lunch, and then you meet your friends, and then one goes to the shoe department, and you say, “I’ll meet you downstairs in handbags.”
What’s the gadget you use most often?
I’m not really into them. What I’m really into is books. I just finished Sandwich by Catherine Newman, and I’m now reading Show Don’t Tell by Curtis Sittenfeld. I don’t have a Kindle. I love the heft of a book. I used to lay in the bath, which wasn’t the best thing for the book, but I’ve now realised books that are hardbound are much more resilient. I very rarely lend books. People can fall in love with them, and they don’t want to give them back. Or they fold pages, which is a crime really.
We were in Scotland recently visiting friends, and I came back with so many books. I just love the intimacy of smaller, independent stores.
Show Don’t Tell by Curtis Sittenfeld
What’s the purchase you regret the most?
If it’s something I’ve bought on a whim, I don’t regret it for long because it will be recycled within my network of girlfriends and guy friends. I pass on a lot of clothes. And some jewellery, mostly costume: I think, “I’ve outgrown this”, or “I haven’t worn it enough”, and then I’ll think of someone who will love it.
What’s the thing(s) you get delivered?
I order a lot of air filters. I travel a lot, so I’m not here for periods of time, and if the air purifier is on, there is less dust when I come home, so I’m not sneezing and coughing. I use one called AirDoctor [AmazingAir’s US sister brand], it’s good.
AmazingAir 2000 air purifier
Replacement air filter
Where do you buy your underwear?
If it’s necessary to wear underwear, I like luxury.
What would you buy with £20 – and £200?
Dinner or lunch. There’s been a huge jump in prices, especially for dining out. I have a great dining room table, a very good stove and a Ninja kitchen air fryer, so I’m good to go. Yesterday, a friend came over with a bottle of Campari and a chicken. And we had it with smashed potatoes and green beans, and it was a lovely meal.
One of the things about losing your anonymity is that people can be fascinated just by the fact that you are sitting next to them. It is very sweet, but it’s not the same as being in your home where you have your privacy, and you can just kick off your shoes.
Ninja Double Stack XL two-drawer air fryer
What’s your ‘saved search’ on eBay/Vinted?
I don’t really use them. I’m tactile; I need to feel things. If I want something in particular, I’ll go to an antiques shop. My home on Vancouver Island took almost 12 years to furnish and find its way. I just kept making notes and cutting things out of magazines. When something came about that I thought, “Well, this works with what I already have,” I’d buy it.
What item do you buy on repeat?
Chia seeds. They fill me up and give me energy.
Chia seeds, 400g
How do you make your coffee at home?
I do not belong to the coffee cult. I see it as a cup of acid being poured down my throat. I’ve always been into tea. When I’d come home as a child and as a young adult, the first thing that would hit me would be the smell of tea that had been brewing for hours. Now I like Barry’s and Yorkshire Tea. And I’m into ginger tea. I’ll cut up nice big chunks of it and drink it with lemon.
Barry’s Tea Gold blend, 80 teabags
What’s your biggest splurge?
My apartment in NYC. I worked with my friend and designer Tony Ingrao, and we took it down to the cement. At the time, I was doing a play set in the 1930s, and the building is art deco, so that became a big influence. I got rid of all the Ikea and garage sale stuff that I had. My life was changing, one thing was coming to an end, and something else was starting, so I wanted to celebrate that. I don’t think my home reflected where my success was. So I created this amazing space for me, and still to this day, it’s now been more than 20 years, I sit in my living room and I think, I built this.
And what everyday item do you scrimp on?
I don’t really. If I want something, I’m going to have it, and I’m going to enjoy it.
What’s your greatest vintage find?
A vintage 1926 glass mirrored table. I was with Tony, and we found it in the back of a stall; it was dusty as hell. It’s absolutely gorgeous. I don’t want anyone knocking things over on it, so I’m protective of it, but at the same time, it’s older than I am, which I am saying less and less these days.
For more, read How I Shop with Anya Hindmarch and Michelle Ogundehin
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