Steve was interviewed by Michael Hogan for The Observer to promote the upcoming season of True Blood.  Topics of discussion include how he stays in practice with babies, house hunting, his tour of the White House, and his suggestion for a scene on True Blood (which would be a hoot!), not to mention vampire spray tanning.  He also briefly discusses Spitfire, which will be a SCAMP film!

Where are you and what are you doing?

I’m in Venice Beach, California, looking out at a grey day. There are good waves out there but it’s too cold to go into the water, even for an Essex boy. My 12-year-old son’s been over for the Easter holidays and we did that classic British seaside thing of running in, screaming like wusses and running straight back out again.

Do you have a “no shoptalk at home” rule?

Well, we shoot eight months of the year and put in long hours. So we talk about work for the first bit, but by month six you’re crawling along on stumps and it’s the last thing you want to discuss. Although Sookie and Bill aren’t together now, so we don’t spend nearly as much time together on set as we used to. Often one’s at work and the other’s at home. We miss that camaraderie. Occasionally we do have a scene together, with all the crew who’ve been with us since day one, and it’s just like family. We get back to ribbing each other very quickly. It’s tit-for-tat banter.

You have two children from a previous marriage but yours and Anna’s first child is due this autumn. Are you out of practice with babies?

A bit. Anna’s brother’s got two wee ones, so we see them a lot and I keep my hand in, but it’s nice to give them back after a few hours. I can wave goodbye to that now. (Laughs) I’m kind of dreading it but excited as well.

You’ve been spotted house-hunting in Hampstead. Is a move back to Blighty imminent?

I’ve always had a little house in Highgate. I spend as much of the summer there as I can and come back for Christmas. But we need more space now. It’s funny how word spreads. Your friends see some story claiming you’re looking at £1.7m houses and ring up going, “Dude, how much?” I’m surprised I haven’t had Foxtons on the phone.

Do you feel like you’re letting your home town down by being so pale on television?

(Laughs) Funnily enough, me and Alan Ball [True Blood's creator] have talked about putting in a scene where the vampires go to spray-tan booths, so they can blend in and look normal. I’ve also been nagging him to write a scene with a bunch of us sat around reading magazines in a dentist’s waiting room.

You dined at the White House recently, how was that?

Yes, for the Correspondents’ Dinner. We went last year as well and that was even crazier. Not only did we find out that President Obama’s a huge True Blood fan but the press secretary took us for a tour of the White House and it turned out the whole place was on lockdown. We later found out that while we were there Obama was downstairs in the situation room watching the attack on Bin Laden’s compound. You know that famous photo of them all watching the raid? Well, I was right above their heads looking at the Norman Rockwell paintings in the Oval Office. This year we sat with Daniel Day-Lewis and Dakota Fanning. The attorney general came over and asked to have his picture taken with me. Luckily he didn’t ask me to bite his neck for the pic, like a lot of True Blood fans. That would’ve been awkward.

You and Anna have a production company called Scamp. What are you working on?

We’re putting a film together which will hopefully shoot in London later this year. It’s called Spitfire. I’ll be starring in it. It’s a Pulp Fiction-esque story about assassins.

Are you going to miss the Olympics?

Hope not. True Blood season five finishes shooting next month and I’m desperately trying to get Spitfire together in time so that I’ll have an excuse to be over in London in late July. I’m hoping the stars align because I desperately want to be there when it’s all happening.

To read the rest of the interview, please visit the source.