Another old interview of Nicollette’s. It’s from the April 2005 edition of Jezebel.
She talks about DH, things people would be surprised to know about her and one of the craziest experiences of her life!

Scans are in the gallery

ANYTHING BUT DESPERATE
By Beth Weitzman

Born in England and raised in London and Los Angeles, there’s far more to Nicollette Sheridan than meets the eye. Best known for her role as sexy vixen Paige Matheson in the successful drama series Knots Landing, Sheridan returned to series television in a big way as Edie Britt on the most talked-about show of the year, Desperate Housewives. She plays a familiar character-a sexy, brutally honest serial divorcee with a great sense of humor whose romantic endeavors keep neighbors buzzing. Just like the character she portrays, Sheridan believes the way to live life is to be straightforward, fun-loving and to see the glass as half full. She’s smart, sensitive and maintains one killer body. I had the chance to chat with Sheridan and it was a blast. From traveling to riding horses and a Harley, Sheridan is a very interesting character. And she’s even handy at home – who would have thought? We laughed as we reveled in the secrets of Wisteria Lane, shared stories of wild adventures and agreed that James Denton is one handsome guy.

So, you’re a dog lover. What kind do you have?
I have a Golden Retriever and a mutt. And you?

I have a King Charles Spaniel, her name is Jez. She’s my child.
It’s pathetic, isn’t it? We were discussing it the other day, because, if you have a child, you’re going to love the child more than your puppy. (Laughs)

That’s got to be tough, expecially when the dog comes first.
Yeah, I know.

I can’t even imagine it. At least dogs don’t whine and cry all the time… well, maybe sometimes. But you can leave a dog in a crate alone and say, ‘See you in a couple of hours.’ You can’t do that with a child.
Exactly. (Laughs) But [my dog] doesn’t go in a crate; he doesn’t know about being in a crate. No, not Oliver. He runs the house. If anybody goes in a crate, it’s me. (Laughs)

So you recently got engaged to Niklas Soderblom. Congratulations.
I did, thank you very much. He’s a wonderful man.

How did he propose?
I can’t tell you that. Some things are sacred.

Was it romantic?
It was very romantic. And it was very unusual.

With that, tell me more?
No, I just wanted to whet your appetite and leave you hanging. (Laughs)

Thanks a lot. Do you find that being in Hollywood and as successful as you are makes it difficult to maintain positive, loving relationships?
I think it’s probably difficult to maintain a positive, loving relationship anywhere in the world if you don’t have great communication. And, of course, a lot of love.

That’s a fact. Well, let’s talk about the show.
For the first time, I love watching the show I’m on.

How did you get connected with it?
Well, initially they wanted me to come in and read for the role of Bree [Van De Kamp], which I did do but just couldn’t wholly commit to this character. I went it, and I think I have a great reading that they seemed to love, but the director looked at me and said, ‘No, no, no.’ And I said, ‘What do you mean, ‘No, no, no’?’ He said, ‘Well, I see you as Edie [Britt]. Would you mind playing a character like that?’ And I said, ‘Are you kidding? I come in a good wife and mother of two, and leave as the slut. It’s fabulous.’ (Laughs)

What were your first impressions of the script?
I knew it was something special. It was very funny, I thought it was extremely innovative but strange and mysterious at the same time. It was very entertaining, which is what I think we are all looking for.

Did you have any indication that the show was going to be as wildly successful as it is?
No, I don’t think there was any way to know that. It’s a phenomenon, it really is. And it keeps on growing. Every country it opens up in, it’s a phenomenal success.

The timining was really perfect. Sunday nights especially were ideal because there was a void in television when Sex and the City went off the air. I think the viewer who digs your show was also into Sex and the City.
That viewer, and the more. It really is remarkable – 13 years olds to adults are watching the show. At first, people thought that it was definitely going to be skewed toward women, but the men love it just as much. It’s like 49 percent men and 51 percent women. It’s crazy.

Yeah, it is.
And I did Knots Landing, and all the guys that watched it would say that initially their mother or girlfriend or wife dragged them and made them watch the show, and that’s not the case with this. Guys, you know, some hate to admit it, and some are proud to say that they watch it.

So what are your thoughts on being compared to Kim Cattrall?
Well, I’ve actually never heard that, but I’m not sure. I think that Edie is a very smart character who is unapologetic for who she is. I think she’s brutally honest, and I admire her. And, I must say, if you look at the other women of the show, we have lying, we have cheating, we have one taking drugs. I mean, everybody is really up to no good. And Edie is really the most respectable of all of them, I think. I mean, Susan (Mayer) burned down the house and lied about it for who knows how long; that’s insurance fraud. (Laughs)

A lot of the show focuses on what Mike Delfino [played by James Denton] is doing there and on Mary Alice Young’s suicide. Are thesen questions ever going to be answered, and if so, where will that leave the show?
Probably best answered by the writers but I can guarantee you that answers will be revealed, and the show will continue moving in a very strange and interesting direction. I must tell you, though, they keep us on pins and needles, too. I’m about to start shooting the next episode, and I still don’t have the script and it starts the day after tomorrow. So, really it’s a very difficult show to write, and, to tell you the truth, the writers are a little behind at the moment and so the pressure is on. We go to work in the morning and can be handed for pages of a new scene as we’re sitting in the makeup chair, ready to shoot. So it’s a little crazy.

What’s a typical day like when you’re filming?
Usually a 5 a.m. call; it takes about an hour to go through hair and makeup, and then we hit the set and go ’til about 8 at night, hopefully not later than that. We film five days a week, and it takes eight days to shoot one episode.

Do you even know what the ‘secrets’ are?
No, not really.

That’s interesting that the story is unraveling as you’re doing it.
Absolutely. And the more that it does, the more revealing it is as to know how much more there is to Edie than meets the eye.

Can you give me any kind of heads up?
Wish I could, but I can’t. I would be severely punished.

That’s too bad. So tell me, how do Nicollette and Edie compare?
I think we both have being straightforward in common. I think that Edie likes to have fun, and she looks for the cup to be half full, and so do I. I think we’re both smart. And I guess I’m funny and bitingly honest at times, and I love the physical comedy aspect of playing this character. I just like the heightened reality of this show.

Tell me about the behind-the-scenes relationship among the cast. There’s been a lot of gossip about some rumblings among the females.
We all get along pretty well, actually. We are very supportive of one another, and we are really happy to be a part of this incredible success.

Recently you guys did a shoot with Vanity Fair, and there was some chit-chat that there were arguments among you guys while you were shooting. Is there any truth to that?
I was not aware of any arguments going on whatsoever.

Isn’t that amazing how stuff gets made up? We wouldn’t do that.
Yeah, you guys do really nice articles and beautiful covers. I think the magazine looks great. Good work.

Thank you. It’s a lof of fun. I love what I do.
And that’s very important. That’s what I feel going to work every day. I wholeheartedly love what I’m doing.

What is it about acting that you love so much?
The people and the journey it takes you on as an actress.

What do you think of being thought of as the sexy vixen ever since your days on Knots Landing?
I just don’t get it. It’s amazing what some good lighting and some makeup will do. You know what? For me, it’s a lot of fun playing the mischievous one, and the trick is to always make them human so that people can relate to that character.

Well, you’ve always been known for your killer body. How do you manage to stay in such great shape?
I eat as much as I can. (Laughs) At the moment, I really haven’t been doing a hell of a lot. It’s very hard to get me some exercise; I just don’t have the time. It’s also a very lame excuse, because you make time for things that are important. But I’m telling you, the schedule is a little crazy. If I’m not working, I’m doing publicity of traveling. It’s a heavy load at the moment, and I just haven’t been making the time to do that, but I really do need to start. I’ve had a couple of quick starts that didn’t last in the past couple of months, but I need to start running again.

You must have amazing genes.
Um, I must say that I am blessed with some pretty good jeans. Juicy, True Religion (laughs). But I’ve always been very athletic, and I’ve always been a tomboy since I was a little girl. This past year I did manage to go powder skiing. Cat skiing is what it’s called, when you take a cat up the mountain and ski fresh powder. Did that, and went on a motorcycle trip in Utah. It was a motorcross, me and nine guys. My fiancé was one of them, so I was safe.

So what does your fiancé think if your infamous Monday Night Football promo?
You know, it was designed to amuse and entertain, and I think did just that, and it was blown out of proportion.

Definitely. How has your life changed since Desperate Housewives started airing?
I get a lot less sleep. (Laughs)

I’m sure it’s quite hectic. What has been the biggest obstacle you have faced in your career?
When I took a self-imposed hiatus, it was a lot more difficult re-entering than I thought it would be.

You just wanted a break or were you pursuing other career opportunities?
No, I just wanted some time off. I’d been working for so long, shooting the television series (Knots Landing), and on my hiatuses I would do movies, so really, I had no life. I desperately needed to just get grounded and spend time with my horses, riding and traveling and finding that quiet place.

Besides going on a bike trip with nine men, what is the most daring thing you’ve ever done?
Oh my goodness, there are so man, I don’t know where to start. That’s sort of a tricky question. Can you think of the most daring thing you’ve ever done?

Actually, yeah. My friend and I went rock climbing in Aruba with no apparatus whatsoever, not on purpose.
That qualifies as insane.

It was, and it was not by choice. We were with the park ranger on a tour, and he says, ‘How about a little rock climbing?’ So next thing I know, we start climbing this huge rock, and we’re halfway up and it’s getting really challenging. And I’m like, ‘How do we get back down?’ Up and over was the answer. I almost had a heart attack.
I hate heights. I mean, I would climb up something, but I hate having to climb down something.

It was a bit scary. My friend is really clumsy and very tall and thin, and it was getting really windy. We thought she was going to blow off the rocky cliff. (Laughs)
Oh, my God, that’s frightening. Okay, I’ll tell you one of the craziest things I’ve ever done. About eight of us headed out to the rocks near Tahoe. We were in the water rafting and came to this waterfall. We couldn’t exactly backtrack at that point, so some of us go out, while the rest of us stayed in and went off the waterfall. Then, there was this thing called Little Maytag and Big Maytag. It’s like a big rock with a river flowing around it at high speeds with a lot of velocity. Instead of pulling to the side and getting out, we thought we’d go through it, and we made it. It was insane. So now we consider ourselves experts.

As crazy as they are, those experiences end up being so gratifying.
I love that. I’m definitely an adrenaline junkie. On Valentine’s Day, one of my gifts from Niklas was this skydiving excursion. So it’s all set up, and as soon as I get the time, we’re going to jump out of an airplane.

I don’t think I could do that. I’m not a big fan of flying to begin with, so I think jumping out of a plane would give me nightmares for the rest of my life. What is one thing about you that most people wouldn’t know and would be surprised to find out?
That I’m extremely sensitive.

Really?
What do you mean, really? (Laughs)

I’m just kidding.
And that I am smart.

I don’t think that is too surprising. What do you like to do when you do have time off?
I love riding. I love skiing, scuba diving, motorcycle riding. I have a Harley, but horses are really a big love of mine. My mother had me on a horse when I was 3. I ride all the time because my friend has these incredible Grand Prix jumpers. Every now and then, I’ll go out when I have the time to go and jump them. And I’m still looking for the ranch that I’ve wanted all my life. To have my horses and my dogs and my cabin and my little pot-bellied pig. See, I’m really a country girl at heart. That’s another thing.

So how do you handle living in Los Angeles?
Well, I live up in the hills, and it’s my little paradise. I have a view from the mountains to the ocean. It’s a very cozy, English cottage-y feel up there. It’s very important to me. And I love to cook and garden and fix things around the house. That’s another thing. I’m a really good handyman.

Now that is something that people would be surpised to find out!
I’m great with electronics as well, but I think that goes along in the category of being smart. It doesn’t hurt being educated in England, either.

How long were you in England?
We moved over to Los Angeles when I was 10 years old. And then I went back and finished school and worked over there and then came back here.

How do the two compare?
There is no comparison.

What part of England did you grow up in?
Well, I was educated in London, went to a very artsy school. From 9 to 12 in the morning, you do your scholastic part of the day, and then in the afternoon it was all the arts. I actually wanted to be a professional ballerina. In fact, I was a very hard-working ballerina when I was a little girl, and we did all sorts of dance. We’d do tap dancing, but ballet was my thing. And I learned how to sew. See, I’ll make a good wife, really. (Laughs)

So what was it about Niklas that you fell in love with?
His heart.

Have you set the date for the wedding?
No, not yet.

Where is your favorite place to vacation?
We are looking forward to scaping to Tahiti. Niklas has a big birthday coming up.

It’s beautiful there. So, to wrap things up, I have to ask: How good looking is James Denton in person?
He’s handsome, and he’s smart and kind.

I knew he would be. Thanks Nicollette, it’s been fun.