James Blunt is reflecting on his friendship with the late actress Carrie Fisher.
The Who We Used To Be artist recently discussed how he formed a lasting bond with the Stars Wars icon in an interview with The Guardian.
His “wild rollercoaster” of a friendship with Fisher began in 2003, when he was invited by his girlfriend at the time to have lunch with her family at a restaurant in Notting Hill.
“I was dating a girl whose parents were friends with Carrie, and I ended up sitting beside her at lunch,” Blunt recalled. “I had just signed a record deal and was moving to LA.”
“Carrie’s first question was: ‘What do you do?’ I replied, ‘I left the army to make an album in LA.’ Then she asked, ‘Where are you going to live?’ and I said I didn’t know,” Blunt shared. “Her response – the third thing she ever said to me – was: ‘Well, you’re going to live with me.’ So that’s exactly what I did.”
According to Blunt, he didn’t see Fisher at all during the first month of living in her house. But eventually, as he had breaks from recording, they spent more time together and became extremely close friends.
“One night, I came home and sat at the end of her bed and we talked until morning. After that, whenever I returned from the studio, I would go into her room to chat, no matter if it was 11pm or 3am,” Blunt recalled. “She became my closest friend.”
Years later, on Dec. 27, 2016, Fisher passed away from a heart attack at the age of 60. The following day, screen legend Debbie Reynolds, Fisher’s mother, also passed away after suffering a severe stroke. She was 84.
“I have a song on my new album called ‘Dark Thought’, which describes the moment when I went back to Carrie’s house after her death,” Blunt shared with the publication. “I put my hand on her gate and started crying.”
“Shortly after, one of those open-top Star Map vans that drive tourists around LA arrived. The guide on the PA system said, ‘On your left, you’ll find the late, great Carrie Fisher’s house… As you can see, some fans are still deeply moved by her passing,'” he continued. “That was me. I wanted to tell them to go away, but it eventually became funny.”
In March 2017, Fisher’s brother, Todd Fisher, spoke to ET and revealed that Blunt had written a “special” song for a memorial service honoring Fisher and Reynolds.
“It’s quite special,” he shared, mentioning that Blunt and Fisher became fast friends, and “You’re Beautiful” was written in Fisher’s bathroom. “I actually think it’s one of his best songs.”
Watch the video below for more details on the bond between Fisher and Blunt.
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