Lily Cole

Supermodel and actress Lily Cole on her favourite places to travel

“I NEVER REALLY THOUGHT ABOUT becoming a model. When I was asked to pose for a photo shoot, I didn’t really know what I was getting myself into. I took the opportunity and the rest came along. One thing I loved straight away was the travel. I was just 14 when I started, and going to all these exciting places was simply amazing.

“My favourite European city is Venice. I’ve been there on holiday only once. Unfortunately, I don’t get to go there for my modelling assignments. It’s a magical city, with all those bridges, gondolas and boats. Where else in the world do you get a chance to discover a city using a boat? I also loved walking around and discovering the lesser-known calli and buildings.

“A city that I love almost as much as Venice is Paris. It breathes and lives fashion, it’s so romantic. I love everything about it: the architecture, the shops, the coffee culture and the way French women dress. They have an attitude that I enjoy watching. Now that I’ve scaled down on my modelling work, I don’t go as often as before, but I was recently there for the promotional tour of my new film The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, which took place during Paris Fashion Week. It was great fun to walk the red carpet and hang out with lots of fashion people I’ve worked with over the years.

“When I was 16 I backpacked to India and other parts of Asia, sometimes with friends but also by myself. I know, I was a bit young to travel on my own, but my mother is a very liberal person and always had a lot of trust in me. Would I go backpacking today? Probably not. My hectic lifestyle leaves little time for taking holidays now but, when I do, I really like nice, clean places and relaxing. Carrying a rucksack is hard work.

“The place I really want to visit is Madrid, as I’ve never been. I’m also fascinated by northern European countries like Norway and Sweden, as I love mountains and hiking. I do it a fair bit when I go to LA to see my boyfriend. He lives there, but I don’t think I’d move – I think I’d miss the European culture and history too much.”
INTERVIEW: FRANCESCA LOMBARDO

THE IMAGINARIUM OF DOCTOR PARNASSUS IS OUT NOW AT CINEMAS ACROSS EUROPE.

FLY TO MADRID, PARIS (BEAUVAIS) AND VENICE (TREVISO) FROM ACROSS THE RYANAIR NETWORK. VISIT WWW.RYANAIR.COM