Naomie Harris wears Halpern Covers AMAZING Magazine | Issue 2

Naomie Harris is extolling the virtues of hot water with lemon. She’s been drinking it for years and swears by its multiple medicinal benefits. “It’s good for digestion, your skin and helps all your internal organs,” she says, as she orders a steaming pot of said citric tonic at the north London restaurant where we’re meeting for lunch. “Just a little squeeze and a slice is plenty.” 

Nutrition and health are two of the Bond actor’s favourite subjects and she’s both entertaining and knowledgeable about anything to do with wellbeing. “I am always in search of health, like that is my thing, I am just obsessed,” she enthuses. “I have tried so many things, I seriously could [write a book]. I am just fascinated.” 

She proceeds to tell me in colourful detail about some of the more extreme regimes she’s tried over the years, including a vegan and raw food diet she undertook while staying at the Tree of Life Rejuvenation Center in Arizona, run by American homoeopath Gabriel Cousens. “I spent a month learning how to take all the right supplements, balance food and dehydrate food, but I did get anaemic and had to stop,” she admits. “I felt so exhausted and when I had a piece of meat it was like a blood transfusion. Everyone always assumes that I’m vegan, but I’m not – I really would love to be!” 

Harris, 45, is relaxed and engaging company, chatting animatedly within seconds of greeting me with a big hug, without an iota of movie star reserve. She lives nearby, a short walk from the Italian restaurant she has chosen for our lunchtime date, and is dressed down in a bomber jacket, orange sweater and jeans. She still travels by tube and bus and is pleased to report she doesn’t get bothered in public. 

This relative anonymity is possible thanks largely to the careful way she has navigated fame; keeping her film star life firmly fixed on the big screen and the red carpet and avoiding it spilling over into her private life. She’s never courted celebrity and, as a result, feels she’s got the best of both worlds. “I get to live my normal life and that’s what I’ve always wanted. [I] still have a name for myself within the industry and get to do great work with amazing directors, so it’s the perfect marriage,” she smiles.

For Naomie's full interview and shoot, plus other AMAZING women, fashion and lifestyle features, pre-order your copy of AMAZING issue 2 now.