Those of you who know me know that I have a thing for bald men. Think Jason Statham, Bruce Willis, The Rock, LL Cool J. (This lousy Monday just started to pick up.) Our hottest, most kick ass action stars are bald dudes who own it, and while I prefer a chrome dome I don’t mind some male pattern baldness as long as the guy keeps his hair short. So in theory I should be all over these photos of Hugh Laurie with short hair, but I think the gray hair is throwing me off. He looks really old all of a sudden. He’s 53 now, I know my Hugh Laurie crush shouldn’t just fade away because he’s aging naturally. I would still hit it though, especially when I hear him talk. It’s not just the accent, it’s how funny and self-effacing he is.

Hugh has been focusing on his music career post-House, although he does have some films coming out and I’ll cover that in a moment. He has a new interview with an Australian radio station, I think it’s promote his second blues album, Didn’t It Rain, which is out May 6 in the UK. He doesn’t say anything particularly noteworthy, but I like how honest he always sounds, and how he’s in no way full of himself. He’s just doing his thing, and he sounds grateful that we’re paying attention.

“I’m a man who does a lot, that’s not the same as having talents,” says Hugh Laurie, who may well have competed in rowing at the 1984 Olympics were it not for comedy.

“It was certainly a possiblility that I was going to devote my energies to.

“In the end I got diverted by a spot of acting… you don’t have to get up so early and it’s frankly not painful,” he says.

That was his first slice of luck, and once he experienced the feeling of performing in front of an audience AND making that audience laugh, he was addicted.

“I discovered there was a great pleasure to be had in making people laugh…

“There are probably all kinds of twisted psychological reasons as to why that’s the case, but it is a big accomplishment and an addictive sensation.”

Another slice of luck came in the form of the TV series ‘House’, in which Hugh Laurie was able to reinvent himself as the unconventional Dr Gregory House for eight seasons.

“It’s quite rare for an actor to have the opportunity to do something like that without the audience having any associations or any expectations.

“I think it took people by surprise, they didn’t know what to make of it. And that’s a good way to see anything.”

Then came the music career.

He’s about to release his second album, ‘Didn’t it Rain’. And it’s almost like the career has come full circle, after he had music lessons as a child, hated them, then took them up again in his teens.

And no, music is his ‘everything’.

“It’s my companion and friend. It’s also my daily sudoku and crossword puzzle.

“The piano is a wonderful companion,” he reflects.

After a varied career, Hugh Laurie says he has no regrets.

“I honestly don’t think that there’s any moment where I wish that the dice had fallen differently. The only things I wish for are that maybe I had appreciated things more at the time that they really mattered.

“But i’m not complaining,” he says.

[From ABC.Net.au]

Hugh didn’t bring up his rowing career – the interviewer did, and he was very low-key and humble about it, as we’ve come to expect from him. I love to see Hugh interviewed and I find him more attractive as himself than as the crotchety Dr. House. He never did it for me in character, but Hugh himself is lovely. I’m just surprised to find that I like him better with hair. That usually isn’t the case for me.

See, here’s Hugh with hair at the House wrap party last year. Maybe he didn’t want to bother with his hair and considered it part of his “House” character.

This is my favorite look for him. With hair and clean shaven. This was just a year ago as well. He was probably wearing a piece though.

Here’s a trailer for Hugh’s upcoming film Mr. Pip, based on a novel by Lloyd Jones. It doesn’t have a release date yet. He’s also going to shoot a Disney film in Vancouver this summer called Tomorrowland, with George Clooney.

Update: More photos of Hugh in Paris today.

Photo credit: FameFlynet