Christmas Dinner with the Cast of “Love Actually”

Love Actually is one of my favorite movies! The cast is splendidly perfect, and the “love stories” are heart-breakingly beautiful! To me, this is one of the best holiday movies of all time! That’s why I would want to invite all of the main characters over for a holiday dinner party.

You might not recognize this movie as a “holiday movie”, but it is. These intertwined stories take place during the month of December in London. If you’re not familiar with this movie, you must watch it immediately! You will fall in love with it! Even though this movie came out in 2003, I have seen it on many “favorite holiday movies” lists.

Here’s a brief description, provided by Matt Patay, on IMDb.

“Set almost entirely in London, England during five frantic weeks before Christmas follows a web-like pattern of inter-related, loosely related and unrelated stories of a dozen or more various individuals with their love lives, or lack of them. The central character is the new bachelor prime minister David (Hugh Grant) who cannot express his growing feelings for his new personal assistant Natalie (Martine McCutcheon). The prime minister’s older sister Karen (Emma Thompson) slowly grows aware of her husband Harry’s (the late Alan Rickman) flirtation with an office worker named Mia (Heike Makatsch). Karen’s friend Daniel (Liam Neeson) is a recently widowed writer whose 11-year-old son Sam (Thomas Sangster) asks for love advice about a girl (Olivia Olson) he has a crush on. Meanwhile, Jamie (Colin Firth) is another writer who leaves his girlfriend after catching her cheating on him and travels to France to write a novel where he pursues a possible romance with his non-English speaking Portuguese maid Aurelia (Sienna Guillory). Also, Harry’s American secretary Sarah (Laura Linney) questions a romance she pursues with the office hunk Karl (Rodrigo Santoro), but her personal family problems get in the way. Other secondary characters involve a photographer (Andrew Lincoln) who pursues his best friend’s new wife Juliet (Kiera Knightly); a pair of movie stand-ins, named John (Martin Freeman) and Judy (Joanna Page), who grow closer after their simulated love scenes; a libidinous chum (Kris Marshall) who wants to travel to Wisconsin, USA to score with women; and a burned-out former rock star named Billy Mack (Bill Nighy) who is the main connection between all stories involved.”

There are a lot of different characters and I would want to invite them all. Unfortunately, Alan Rickman passed away earlier this year and he was one of my favorite actors of all time. I would put a framed photo of him on the table to honor his contribution to this movie.

Bill Nighy has been in some of my favorite movies — About Time, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, and The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. Emma Thompson has been one of my favorite British actresses since I watched her in Howard’s End and The Remains of the Day.

Colin Firth is simply charming and I loved him in the Bridget Jones movies. Hugh Grant stole my heart in Notting Hill and Four Weddings and a Funeral. Martine McCutcheon is so beautiful and funny. I could totally see us hanging out for real!

Liam Neeson may play a bad ass in the Taken movies, but his vulnerability in this movie is touching. Thomas Sangster has really grown up since this movie was made, and he is becoming a really great actor.

Laura Linney is such a great American actress, and I enjoyed her in October Sky. Rodrigo Santoro is a lovely piece of eye-candy in this movie, but this Brazilian actor caught my eye in Lost.

Keira Knightly (Pirates of the Caribbean), Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years a Slave), and Andrew Lincoln (The Walking Dead) are all wonderful, as are Martin Freeman (Sherlock Holmes), Joanna Page, and Rowan Atkinson (Mr. Bean).

For dinner, I would make a mixed greens salad, Beef Wellington with roasted vegetables, and Yorkshire pudding. I would serve traditional British Pimms. And for dessert, I would make a chocolate toffee mini trifles. Following dessert, we would watch this cherished movie and play the Love Actually drinking game.

{ Images borrowed from 1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5 }

This imagined dinner party with the cast of Love Actually has me wishing I was British, or at least spoke with a British accent!

Have you seen Love Actually? If not, what are you waiting for? Do you love these actors as much as I do? Have they acted in your favorite movies? Would you like to be invited to this dinner party?

Yours Truly,
Vanessa