The Grinch Hits London

Jim Carrey whirled into London last night as part of a whistle-stop tour for his latest movie The Grinch and to the crowds who had massed in Leicester Square the actor was worth the wait. Carrey, who spent time here when girlfriend Renee Zellwegger was in Britain filming Bridget Jones's Diary, told the crowd that he loved London, particularly because of the rollerblading, and said that looking out from the balcony at the Odeon Leicester Square on the sea of faces made him feel like the Beatles - and then burst into song to prove his point. When Ron Howard proclaimed that Carrey was born to play the role of the Grinch, Carrey agreed saying, 'when I was born I had this hideous face.' The Grinch was chosen as this year's Royal Film Performance - the Queen was the guest of honour last night. Other guests included Hugh Laurie, Richard E. Grant and Billy Elliott star Jamie Bell. Carrey and Zellwegger disappeared after the premiere, but Ron Howard and his entourage went on to the after-show party - a Grinch spectacular which transformed a warehouse in trendy Shoreditch into Whoville for the night. Following a press conference this afternoon (16 November 2000) in London, Carrey will be flying to Paris, Berlin and Stockholm to complete his series of European premieres.