Even though TV’s most famous doctor was earning $700,000 per episode in the final season, *House* star Hugh Laurie said he still feels like a fraud.
Laurie regrets playing a “fake version” of a doctor instead of becoming a real one, as his father had hoped. He admitted that his “dad would have hated” the easier path he chose by becoming an actor.
Keep reading to find out why Laurie chose acting over medicine.
Dr. William (Ran) Laurie, Hugh’s father, had big dreams for his youngest son, born in June 1959.
Hugh Laurie was on track to follow in his father’s footsteps. His father was not only a respected physician but also a 1948 Olympic gold medalist in rowing and a graduate of a Cambridge college.
When British-born Hugh Laurie was studying at the same college as his father, he was also a member of the rowing team, with plans to train for the Olympics and then go to medical school.
However, Laurie discovered a drama club, the Cambridge Footlights, a sketch comedy group. There, he met actress Emma Thompson (*The Remains of the Day*) and his future comedy partner, Stephen Fry, who later co-starred with him in the 1997 film *Wilde*.
Laurie’s path changed completely.
Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the now 64-year-old actor appeared in several TV shows, including the BBC sitcom *Blackadder*, where he co-starred with Fry.
Hugh Laurie also appeared in the 1995 film *Sense and Sensibility* with Emma Thompson, with whom he had once been in a relationship. He starred in Disney’s live-action *101 Dalmatians* (1996) and even made a guest appearance on *Friends*.
In 2004, Laurie was offered the chance to play a doctor in a new TV series called *House*, a medical drama that ran for eight seasons.
In his Golden Globe-winning role as Dr. Gregory House, Laurie dropped his British accent and perfectly played the narcissistic genius who led a teaching hospital in New Jersey.
During the show’s run, Laurie became Hollywood’s most popular doctor, gaining a huge global fan base. However, life as a celebrity also brought its own challenges.
“I had some pretty bleak times, dark days when it felt like there was no way out,” Hugh Laurie said in a 2013 interview with *Radio Times* (via *Daily Mail*). “I have a strong work ethic, so I was determined never to be late or miss a single day of filming. You wouldn’t catch me calling in sick, saying, ‘I think I’m getting the flu.’ But there were times when I’d think, ‘If I had a little accident on the way to the studio and got a couple of days off to recover, that would be great.’”
Those days off didn’t come until 2012, with the final season of *House*.
After that, Laurie kept busy, appearing in TV shows like *Veep* and the 2015 science fiction film *Tomorrowland*, which starred another famous TV doctor, George Clooney.
In 2016, Hugh Laurie took on another doctor role, this time as neuropsychiatrist Dr. Eldon Chance in the TV series *Chance*.
The *Maybe Baby* star explained to the *Los Angeles Daily News*, “As a gambler, my instinct is to walk away after even a modest win… Yet I was drawn back to this wonderful project that was simply irresistible.” Comparing *House* to his role in *Chance* (which was canceled after two seasons in 2017), Laurie said, “The characters are very different. Their medical practices and attitudes toward life are completely different.”
Despite his Hollywood fame, Laurie, who also starred in 2018’s *Holmes & Watson*, still feels he let his father down by not becoming a real doctor. His father, who passed away from Parkinson’s disease in 1998, had been a respected physician.
“My father was a real doctor. If it’s true that many men try to become versions of their father and fail, it seemed fitting that I ended up being a fake version of a doctor,” said Laurie, who also played a doctor in the 2005 film *The Big Empty*.
“My father had high hopes for me to follow him into medicine,” Hugh Laurie said. “I would have liked to become a doctor myself, and I still have dreams about being one. We live in a world of shortcuts, don’t we? And I took those shortcuts. Dad would have hated that.”
Laurie calls himself a “cop-out,” adding, “Honestly, this causes me a lot of guilt.”
What do you think about Hugh Laurie’s surprising confession? Please share your thoughts in the comments below and share this story so we can hear what others think!
“I’m More Lips Than Human”, A Woman Struggles to Eat Due to Her Huge Lips but is Determined to Make Them Even Bigger
Vienna Würstel stands out as an extraordinary personality on various fronts. Identifying as a “plastic fantastic” beauty enthusiast, she has recently captivated online audiences with her impressive 30ml lips. Despite facing persistent online trolling, she remains steadfast in her pursuit of fuller lips, sharing her beauty journey and challenges on social media.
Vienna has been causing a significant buzz on the internet.
Vienna Würstel, a self-proclaimed “plastic fantastic” beauty influencer, has undergone a lip enhancement procedure, receiving 30ml of filler. Her noticeably voluminous lips have stirred mixed reactions across the internet.
Residing in Mallorca, Spain, Vienna openly acknowledges the challenges posed by her substantial lip enhancement, confessing that even simple tasks like sipping water become a formidable undertaking. She humorously refers to herself as “more lips than human.” Despite the attention garnered on social media, Vienna doesn’t shy away from the reality that she faces significant criticism, evident in the relentless stream of negative comments beneath her Instagram posts.
Vienna is resolute in her pursuit of making her lips even bigger.
In her recent TikTok video, Vienna disclosed that approximately 30ml of fillers still reside in her lips, expressing her hope for even further enhancement in the future. Undeterred by criticism comparing her to a duck, the courageous and resolute woman remains committed to enlarging her lips.
In her own words, “I really, really wish for even bigger lips and I can’t wait for that.” Vienna candidly admitted that achieving more substantial lips is currently her foremost aspiration. However, this has sparked concern among some users, who question the safety of Vienna’s ongoing plastic surgery procedures.
Vienna asserts that all her beauty procedures are safe and bring her pleasure.
The woman remains steadfast in reassuring her subscribers that the substantial amounts of filler she has chosen are entirely safe. Emphasizing the professionalism and high qualifications of her plastic surgeons, she affirms, “If they weren’t highly qualified, they couldn’t reach the sizes on my face, so yes, I’m safe.”
Despite her admiration for her enhanced pout, Vienna openly acknowledges the challenges she faces, particularly when it comes to drinking. In another clip, the plastic surgery enthusiast admits that eating is relatively smooth for her, as long as it involves softer foods. However, she discloses that drinking beverages proves to be more challenging due to her lips. Vienna shares that, because of her lip size, she sometimes feels it’s difficult to function, but she views it as a personal challenge that she’s determined to adapt to.
Here’s another remarkable story of an unstoppable woman whose dream was to emulate Barbie, leading her to invest millions in her transformative journey.
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