Romy Madley Croft's My London

The xx singer buys her vinyl in Camberwell and drinks frozen margaritas in Soho
17 May 2013

Home is...

I grew up in Wandsworth and was constantly on public transport, as there wasn’t much going on around there. Now I live in Hackney and it feels like a real luxury to have so much happening nearby.

Best place for a first date?

A walk along the South Bank. It’ll give you lots to talk about if you run out of anything else to say.

First thing you do when you arrive home?

Sleep for as long as possible and see the people I’ve missed.

Last gig you saw?

Jessie Ware at the Shepherd’s Bush Empire. She’s fantastic, and you could see how much it meant to her to play there.

Best place for a nightcap?

La Bodega Negra in Soho. The entrance looks suspiciously like a sex shop and once you’re inside it’s very dark, with great music and amazing frozen margaritas.

Favourite shops?

For food, The Grocery on Kingsland Road. I lived above it for a year and spent far too much money on organic food, but I felt like I was being healthier. For clothes, LN-CC in Dalston is more an experience than a clothes shop. It sells brands including Ann Demeulemeester and Jil Sander. Rat Records in Camberwell is where most of my record collection has come from. It’s like someone with my exact taste in music has handed them all their old vinyl.

Earliest memory?

Going to Holland Park with Oliver, who’s also in The xx. We’ve known each other since we were three years old.

What would you do as Mayor?

Give everyone the day off, like a snow day at school, so everyone could feel free for a moment.

Last album you downloaded?

I’ve been listening to James Blake’s new album, Overgrown. It’s beautiful; there are some incredibly delicate, soulful moments on it.

Best thing a cabbie has said to you?

When they ask what I do, I’ve stopped saying I’m in a band because they always try to guess what type of music it is, and more often than not they think it’s heavy metal. Which, if you’ve listened to The xx, couldn’t be further from the truth.

Most romantic thing someone’s done for you?

One evening my girlfriend picked me up and took me to the top of Centre Point to watch the sunset. The sky looked like it was on fire — it was very romantic.

Ever had a run-in with a policeman?

I got stopped for skateboarding in front of St Paul’s Cathedral when I was 15, but it was hard to take the police officer seriously — he was wearing a Lycra uniform and riding a bicycle. He wrote down my description as: ‘Hair: black; clothes: black.’

Animal you’d like to be?

My friends call me an owl. Apparently it’s a combination of being wise and having big eyes.

Best meal?

Bottega Prelibato on Rivington Street, a tiny and very personal Italian. There’s a different menu every day and the pasta is always delicious.

Best advice you’ve been given?

‘Always treat people the way you would like to be treated.’ My mum told me that and it often comes into my mind.

Favourite pub?

Boho Mexica on Commercial Street. It does a drink called a boho zombie. If you’re unsure which way your night’s going to go, that drink decides for you.

At the moment you are...

Off to Berlin for our second Night+Day event, where we play and invite our favourite bands to play, too. The final one is at Hatfield House in Hertfordshire, in June. The vision is to put on a night and a day of our favourite music and give people a different festival experience.

Who’s your hero?

My Auntie Cheryl. If you only knew what she’s experienced in her life, she’d be your hero, too. She’s had some of the most heartbreaking things happen to her, yet she always has a smile on her face. I love her.

What do you collect?

Postcards, unintentionally. I have ten postcards of koalas that I meant to send when I was on tour in Australia but forgot to. I don’t know what to do with them now.

Night+Day is at Hatfield House on 22 June (thexx.info/nightandday)

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