I had a minor part in Love Actually, I was only in it for 15 seconds but I still earn royalties every year
SNUGGLING up on the sofa with his wife Emma, Junior Simpson settles down to watch Love Actually for the thirtieth time.
But Junior, 61, isn’t just a die hard fan – he stars is in the film and thanks to its popularity he has been raking in the royalties since it first hit the silver screen back in 2003.
Junior had no idea how big the movie would become when he landed the role of the DJ in the wedding scene. Or that his fleeting 15-second appearance would still be earning him money from royalties 21 years later.
“Being in the hit movie was a huge honour,” the actor and comedian tells Fabulous in this exclusive interview.
“I had no idea it would turn out to be such a massive hit.
“I still get recognised now – people often come up and ask for selfies.
“I’m glad I am still around to spread Love Actually joy this festive season.”
His character dubbed ‘the world’s worst DJ’ appeared in the Juliet (Keira Knightley) and Peter’s (Chiwetel Ejiofor) wedding reception scene.
However, Junior, who lives in South London, with singer Emma, 56, and their daughters aged 18 and five, didn’t actually audition for the part.
Junior was forty when he unexpectedly got offered the role in the iconic Richard Curtis film.
He was working as a stand-up comedian at the Brixton Academy when he made a joke about the lack of diversity in Richard Curtis’s film, Notting Hill.
The comment opened the door for Junior because Richard was in the audience watching his set.
“That one liner caught Richard’s attention. It led to being offered the role in Love Actually,” Junior explains.
“I went for a read through at Richard Curtis’s office and was surrounded by all the stars.
“Bill Nighy was incredible, every time he opened his mouth, he was hilarious.
“Acting with Keria Knightly and Chiwetel Ejiofor was great fun. We were scheduled to shoot for three days. We nailed it in just a few takes.
“The day we filmed everyone hoped the film would do well. None of us thought this little British movie would take the world by storm.”
The film was released in November 2003 and cost £30 million to make. It was a box office sensation and grossed a staggering £194 million.
A December 2023 Sun Poll revealed Love Actually was the nation’s favourite Christmas flick watched by 39.2% – or four in ten – of us during the festive season.
It was followed by Home Alone which 18% of filmgoers love to watch at Christmas followed by 11.1% who watch Elf.
Referring to Love Actually being at the top of the Christmas film list, Junior says:
“That is jaw dropping. It’s proof the story has something which appeals to everyone.”
While his appearance in the movie was brief, Junior is still making money from his cameo today.
“Even to this day I still get royalties – I have no idea how much at this point but not millions,” he admits.
“The movie has taken on new significance for me because it helped me find love and that woman saved my life.”
Junior and Emma reckon their love story would be worthy of a film.
They first met in 2017 and had a fling that fizzled out. But then they matched on a dating app in 2020.
Even to this day I still get royalties – I have no idea how much at this point
Junior Simpson
“She was living in London, and I was living in Birmingham,” Junior explains.
“We only met up a few times. But we spoke for hours on the phone and declared our love for each other on Christmas day 2020.”
Towards the end of January Junior was feeling sick at work when Emma came to the rescue.
He had covid and soon became extremely unwell but it was Emma who saved his life.
“I went home and rang Emma and told her I was feeling poorly and would call her the next day,” he says.
“When I did not call after three days she panicked – she knew I wouldn’t have ghosted her.
“She drove to my flat and found me lying on the floor, barely breathing.
“I had covid and had gone into a diabetic coma and was hours from death.
MOST RE-WATCHED CHRISTMAS FILMS
1. Home Alone
2. The Snowman
3. Love Actually
4. Home Alone 2: Lost in New York
5. Elf
6. Die Hard
7. A Christmas Carol
8. The Nightmare Before Christmas
9. Miracle on 34th Street
10. It’s a Wonderful Life
11. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone
12. Gremlins
13. The Polar Express
14. The Muppet Christmas Carol
15. White Christmas
16. The Holiday
17. The Grinch (2018)
18. How The Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)
19. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
20. The Santa Clause
21. National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation
22. Scrooged
23. Lethal Weapon
24. Trading Places
25. Jingle All The Way
26. Nativity
27. Arthur Christmas
28. Bad Santa
29. Jack Frost
30. Deck the Halls
31. Christmas with the Kranks
32. Last Christmas
33. A Christmas Story
34. Fred Claus
35. Meet Me in St Louis
36. The Christmas Chronicles
37. Mickey’s Christmas Carol
38. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
39. Four Christmases
40. A Charlie Brown Christmas
“She woke me up and I was convinced I had been asleep for a few hours – I’d be out for three days. I do not remember much after that.”
Junior was rushed to hospital and was on a ventilator for a month and it was during his recovery when he cemented his feelings for Emma.
“Emma moved to be with me in Birmingham and I proposed to her over Christmas in 2021, when I was again in hospital after having a minor stroke,” he recalls.
“It was a very tough time, but I’d go through it all again twice if it meant I still ended up with Emma.”
The couple married in May 2022 and now live together in Streatham, South London.
Junior says Emma is also a Love Actually ‘superfan’ and is so obsessed she’s earned the nickname ‘Auntie Claus’, after Santa’s older sister in the smash hit film.
Watching Love Actually reminds me how lucky I am to be alive
Junior Simpson
“For a Christmas addict she’d never watched Love Actually until she met me. Now it is a Christmas tradition for us,” Junior adds.
Junior began his career as a comedian after the tragic loss of his eldest brother, Calvin, who was killed in a road accident in 1990 aged just 31.
“He was my hero,” remembers Junior.
“The person I looked up to, my north star.
“He was a wonderful actor and encouraged me to take up comedy as I was constantly cracking jokes around the house.
“But I felt that one performer in the family was enough. When he died, doing what he had wanted for me was my way of celebrating and remembering him.
“Laughter is a great release from pressure and creating that in a room full of strangers who all connect over the same thing is an amazing feeling.”
This Christmas marks five years since Junior’s brush with death, and he says watching his favourite film helps preserve his joie de vivre.
Whilst he still has a long way to go to making a full recovery he plans to return to the comedy circuit next year.
“I am 60 per cent recovered; I had to learn to walk properly again after the stroke. It has taken months of rehabilitation,” he says.
“I am working on new material and planning to hit the comedy circuit next year. Emma’s appearing in the comedy The Bavarian Boyz Oompah Show.”
He adds: “Watching Love Actually reminds me how lucky I am to be alive.”