Jason Isaacs spontaneously married wife to get 'medical insurance' for her
Jason Isaacs spontaneously married his wife Emma in Los Angeles so she could get "medical insurance".
'The White Lotus' star has recalled how he had no insurance - apart from his Screen Actors Guild insurance - to cover hospital bills when his then-pregnant spouse was "sick and had lung problems" in Los Angeles, California.
So, Jason and Emma - who have daughters Lily, 23, and Ruby, 19 - decided to get hitched at a "registry office" in the city and then go to the hospital so their hefty medical costs could be covered.
He explained to Jessie and Lennie Ware on the latest episode of the 'Table Manners' podcast: "We were in Los Angeles. She was pregnant, Emma, she'd been sick [and] had lung problems, and we wanted to fly home.
"And I phoned my brother, who's a doctor, and he put us on to a lung specialist.
"The guy said you need to go to a hospital and have a check for pulmonary embolism right now, because you shouldn't get on a plane, because she's had two courses of antibiotics and still got lung ache. And we went, and I didn't have medical insurance for her, but I get SAG insurance (Screen Actors Guild).
"So we went to a registry office in Los Angeles, and then we went straight to the hospital. Then she got medical insurance."
Elsewhere during the podcast conversation, Jason admitted he finds being famous "naff" and is always surprised when people are excited to meet him.
The 61-year-old actor - who famously played villain Lucius Malfoy in the 'Harry Potter' film franchise - said: "It's a bit naff being famous. It feels empty.
"And I get embarrassed by the social status you get when you meet people who are genuinely impressive and do extraordinary things.
"But if you can use it sometimes to lighten people's load or do something good, it just feels like it's swinging the pendulum."
Jason has a close bond with Great Ormond Street, a London-based children's hospital, and he enjoys going to meet the kids, as well as "give them autographs" and perform "magic tricks".
Jason said: "I have a relationship with Great Ormond Street, and I get to go and help them raise money.
"It's the best place to send your kids if they're sick. Hopefully, nobody listening will ever have to send their kids if you do. There's no better place in the world to send their kids.
"And they're also a centre for incredible research, and at the moment, they're building a brand new giant Cancer Centre. So I'm hoping to raise money.
"But also, when I go, if anyone's interested in meeting someone from 'Harry Potter', I go around and meet the kids, give them autographs, and do magic tricks and other things like that."
'Table Manners' is released weekly and is available on podcast streaming platforms.
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