Jude Law: 'I'm clear about the things I don't want to repeat and those I do'

Somewhere around the Millennium’s turn, the home life of Frost and Law became a great British obsession. Divorce followed. In 2005, Law was forced to apologise to Sienna Miller, his then girlfriend, for that liaison with the nanny. Still, none of this justifies the level of intrusion that Law had endured. Both he and Miller were recently cited as victims of Fleet Street’s campaign of bugging and phone hacking. It must feel good having that particular hoopla behind him.

“Yes indeed,” he says in a resigned voice. “Although the scars from all that will be around forever. I suppose that’s what life does, doesn’t it? You move on, but you move on with that experience. Of course that experience has an effect. It’s altered me.”

He seems to be over it. One sensible strategy seems to have involved doing good work. The knives were sharpened when he took on the role of Hamlet at the Donmar theatre in 2009. The reviews were, however, largely ecstatic. His Dr Watson has helped Guy Ritchie’s steampunk Sherlock Holmes movies become sizable hits. He also seems to be getting on well with his four children.

“It’s extraordinary how many friends around my age are just embarking on the baby journey,” he laughs. “And I’m like: ‘I’m over guys. I’m done.’ I was 24 when I had my eldest. I’m glad I had all the energy of youth to do it. Getting up on Sunday mornings is hard. And it’s even harder now. I don’t know where you grew up in Ireland, but where I grew up having a kid young meant having a kid aged 16. At 24, well, at least I had a job and I could pay my own way.”

Have the youngest watched his films? Do they have any idea what he does? “They’ve watched AI and Sky Captain,” he says. “My young son really wants to see Enemy at the Gates because he heard it’s really good. But I’d feel a bit embarrassed sitting my children down to watch one of my films. I’d like it if one day, when I’m long gone, they’ll think ‘what did daddy do anyway?’ ” He beams. “They’ll see me as a young 22-year-old running around and say: ‘He looked alright once upon a time.’ ”

Side Effects opens Friday