In October this year, New Zealand actor Sam Neill "swallowed his scruples" and accepted a knighthood. Next year, he'll release the memoir Did I Ever Tell You This?
In the meantime, Sam tells us about his favourite songs, TV shows and books.
Photo: Art Streiber
TV shows
Babylon Berlin (especially seasons 1 and 2)
"It's beautifully directed, the acting is absolutely immaculate and it's about a really interesting period of world history ... really compelling television."
This is a fascinating series about a family living in an ultra-Orthodox neighbourhood of Jerusalem
"Again it's immaculately performed. These wonderful characters all drive you crazy and you love them for it."
..and of course The White Lotus
Books
Lessons by Ian McEwan
Sam couldn't put down this novel, which was gifted to him by his "brainy" older brother Michael Neill.
"[In McEwan's books] there's always some little hinging point where someone makes a decision and everything changes. It deals with some pretty heavy-duty stuff with a very interesting ambivalent tone. It's a really really good book. I thoroughly recommend it."
A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson
'Every sentence just blows your mind ... I think everyone needs to read this."
Sam also recommends Bryson's At Home: A Short History of Private Life.
Music
The Civil Wars - 'Forget Me Not'
"This just struck me over the head. I think it's gorgeous. A lovely, lovely love song."
Genesis - 'Misunderstanding'
After a disturbing day filming the 1981 psycho-horror film Possession, Sam would listen to this Genesis song in the bath.
"It sort of saved my life. I don't know why."
Marlon Williams - 'Princes Walk'
"Something about this song affected me and I kept playing it over and over… it seems to have a sort of Pacific feel to it that is just incredibly charming and like a lot of things that I love, it marks you nostalgic for something you never knew.
"I love Marlon, I think he's so cool ... There's something about what he does that is completely timeless."
Crowded House - 'Not The Girl You Think You Are'
"I could have chosen a thousand different songs but this one just popped out. It's a Neil Finn song at his best and it's kind of spooky and strange."
(This song appears in the 2003 horror film Perfect Strangers - Sam recommended it to director Gaylene Preston)
On the website for Two Paddocks - Sam Neill's Central Otago vineyard - his friends and coworkers share their Top 10 Tunes. Sam's Jurassic Park costar Jeff Goldblum was the most recent.
