Sex and sets
Hospitals, most would agree, are hardly the most-welcoming of places. But when you're sitting with McDreamy himself, Patrick Dempsey, on the Hollywood sound stage that is home to Seattle Grace Hospital, it's a completely different story!
Dempsey looks more like a dude than a doctor in his black
leather jacket, jeans and black brogues for our interview, and with
his McDreamy-like 5 O'Clock shadow and those sparkling eyes, he's
got me charmed before he's even uttered a word.
The subject of sex on set started off as innocent chit-chat but,
surprisingly, Dempsey is more than willing to divulge his opinions
on the subject matter and indeed, talk about his own sex life: "My
sex life's very good. I've been married for 10 years, and it seems
to get better and better every year because you get more
experimental."
Talking about sex with one of Hollywood's hottest stars at nine in the morning was not what I was expecting, but it wasn't too long before bedroom talk turned to more family-oriented topics.
Married with three children, Dempsey says "it's exhausting to
try to find a balance" between work and family life and he relishes
the times the whole family is together in the rare quiet
times:. "You get them in bed with you. We're all in bed
snuggling. That's great."
At work, Dempsey thinks the most difficult challenges lay with the
writers, rather than for himself as an actor: "I think the
challenge for writers is really to keep the stories fresh and to
keep these characters moving forward growing in a way that is
engaging for the audience and engaging for the actors.
There's only so much that they can come up with. And I think from
the acting perspective, it's about trying to find the most in the
scenes that you can, and make it as believable as possible. It's
definitely like running a marathon."
Grey's spin-off, Private Practice, has been both a positive and negative experience for Dempsey, who enjoyed having former colleague Kate Walsh back on the set for the recent crossover episodes.
"I think Kate was a real nice addition to our show. I was very sad when they had the spin-off. I thought it was kind of a major turning point for this show, and it certainly diluted it... I think Isaiah [Washington - who played Preston Burke] has been a tremendous loss as well."
On a roll, and not holding back with his opinions, Dempsey also shares his thoughts on the 'Denny situation'. He's not a fan: "I think that cheapened [the Denny-Izzie] relationship early on. I didn't like it, and I've been very vocal about that. It's not my choice. It's Shonda's show. You're really at the mercy of what they're going to give you, and you have to come to terms with that. That's what they pay you for. You have to be a professional. You have to get over it."
Of course, there's a lot Dempsey likes about the show. Like James Pickens (Dr Richard Webber), his favourite scenes are the gory surgery ones - particularly during this current season, which he labels "one of the best".
In addition to getting stuck into the blood and gore on the show, Dempsey enjoyed the recent fight scene between Mark Sloane (Eric Dane) and Derek as it opened up the characters' relationship. It was an opportunity for viewers to learn more about their history as friends and what was behind the punches. In any case, he enjoys Dane's sense of humour on-set, and the fact that McDreamy and McSteamy together give the show a masculine friendship to develop, amidst all the female-centric storylines.
But - , what about the more burning concerns surrounding Derek and Meredith and where they're heading? Will Derek finally propose? Dempsey assures us that "it definitely happens" but has no idea about a first McBaby. He's also quick to state he doesn't believe Katherine Heigl (Izzie) is leaving the show, but as with everything Grey's Anatomy, it all lays in the head of creator, Shonda Rhimes.
But the good news is yet to come. He takes great delight
in announcing that fans can look forward to another two years of
the show, as all of the cast have contracts for two further years
(stars of major dramas are usually signed up for an initial five
series, and this is series five of Greys). So rejoicing fans
can look forward to swooning over their television sets for that
bit longer.
