10 Things You Didn’t Know About Benedict Cumberbatch
9. He Taught English In A Tibetan Monastery
After receiving his less-than-stellar A-level results, like many young men Cumberbatch decided he would take a gap year before resuming his studies. However, despite his Harrow education he does not come from a family of great wealth, and was only able to attend the elite public school through financial support from his grandmother. As such, Cumberbatch worked for six months in the perfumery Penhaligons to save enough money for his trip, and soon departed for Darjeeling, India, to teach English in a Tibetan Buddhist monastery. Cumberbatch revelled in the austerity and opportunity, calling it a fantastic experience and commenting: I could actually stay with monks in their home and watch them at work and at prayer, and get the chance to teach them and interact with them. Cumberbatch learned some valuable lessons from spending time with the monks, discovering an ability to focus and have a real sort of purity of purpose and attention and not be too distracted that has clearly been brought to bear in his captivating performances in Sherlock.
I watch movies and I watch sport. I also watch movies about sport, and if there were a sport about movies I'd watch that too. The internet was the closest thing I could find.
