10 Minutes With … I Love You Too’s Yvonne Strahovski

Flashback to last June and Yvonne Strahovski, 27, is lunching on prawns and salad on the East Brighton, Melbourne, set of the comedy I Love You Too with writer and co-star Peter Helliar and WHO senior editor Simone Casey. Born and raised in Sydney, Strahovski has flown in from Los Angeles while on hiatus from her role in the hit US series Chuck (Season 3 returns to Fox8 in July). “We got her at a good time,” says Helliar. “Her role [as star Brendan Cowell's English girlfriend, Alice] doesn’t have as many punch-lines as everyone else – she had to find her moments, and she has.”

You’re pretty settled in Los Angeles.
Yeah, now I’ve got my own place, and my parents actually moved over. My parents [Peter and Bozena] left Poland, came to Australia, had me and there was only ever the three of us together. They’ve got a very young vibe, they hang out with my friends when I’m not around. It’s hard for them. LA isn’t the most sympathetic town – it’s not like Melbourne or Sydney where there’s a central city and it’s friendly. It’s really spread out.

Have you got a bloke, a special man?
Yeah, there’s a special man. He came to visit me twice [on I Love You Too], he’s an American boy, his name’s Tim [Loden], Timmy! He’s an actor as well.

You play a CIA agent in Chuck. Are you really fit?
I have a trainer. Her name’s Michelle Lovitt – she trains Courteney Cox. I do a lot of cardio, but I’m not anal about it. When I work, my sleep is my No. 1 priority. I do a lot of hiking in the canyons and my dogs, Chazzie and Willy, come with me.

Do you run into Courteney now and then?
I have, actually! I went to the premiere of Dirt, and met Courteney and her husband, David [Arquette].

So you get to rub shoulders with the people you used to watch on telly!
I do! When I was 12, I used to be obsessed with Friends. One of my best friends, Ornella, and I would go over to each other’s houses and cook dinner for our families, and then go and watch Friends. And to have been to Courteney’s premiere, and Matt Perry was there, and we’re all hanging out, talking … As a kid you idolise these people – it’s so funny making that transition.

Sometimes, you feel you know someone because you’ve seen them on TV.
Absolutely. Hollywood is a world in its own right, and having been there now for three and a half years, I can see how easy it is for people to slip into bad habits. The pressure to look a certain way, dress a certain way, and the hours you have to put in, it’s unrealistic.

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