'It was hell': Charles Dance struggled with teenage stammer
Charles Dance went through "hell" as a teenager after developing a stammer.
The 76-year-old actor admitted he found it impossible to get a girlfriend when he was younger because his speech impediment meant he found it hard to hold a conversation without having to resort to "complicated sentences" to avoid using the words he struggled with.
He told The Guardian newspaper: “It’s horrible. And I could never be seen to be a stammerer. I’d have to make up the most complicated sentences to get round the words I couldn’t manage.
"When it came to girlfriend time, it was hell. All the things I wanted to say, I couldn’t say. You could see their eyes glazing over during my terribly long sentences.”
The 'Rabbit Hole' actor has son Oliver, 47, and daughter Rebecca, 42, with ex-wife Joanna Haythorn and 10-year-old Rose with former partner Eleanor Boorman, but he admitted he doesn't "see much" of his youngest child since his relationship with the artist ended just months after she was born.
He said: “I don’t see much of Rose, unfortunately, but that’s just the way it is."
Meanwhile, Charles - who is now in a relationship with producer Alessandra Masi - dismissed claims he had turned down the chance to take over from Sir Roger Moore as James Bond, and admitted he was warned off even auditioning for the iconic role.
He said: "No, of course I didn’t turn down James Bond!
"What happened was, my agent called and said, ‘I urge you not to do it. Just think how you’ll feel if you don’t get it. It will kill your career stone-dead.’ She was probably right. If I’d got it, I would have probably f***** it up.”
The 'Game of Thrones' actor rarely turns down work and feels guilty when he does.
He said: “I’m lucky enough to do a job that I love. There are many, many people who do jobs to put food on the table and pay the bills. And there is always a bit of me that feels guilty when I turn down work. I think: who am I to say no?”
