Meet knitting's famous fans

See which top celebrities can't stay away from the wool...

Scarlett Johansson
Holed up in her Tokyo hotel in Lost in Translation, Scarlett knitted a scarf as part of her role (later included as a pattern in the book Mother of Purl: Friends, Fun and Fabulous Designs at Hollywood's Knitting Circle by Edith Eig, £11.99), and is reputed to be a knitting fan off screen too. Scarlett may also have taught someone else...

Ryan Reynolds 
He used to be married to Scarlett Johansson, so she may have taught him the basics. If not, it certainly sounds like he's keen to learn. As he played comic-book character Deadpool in the X-Men movie, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, he was asked what he would choose as his super-power in real life. He said: 'I would go with the much less violent approach - my super power would be something more like knitting, my mutant ability would have a calming effect.'
He added that it was 'a challenge' learning to handle knitting needles, sorry, swords, for the role.

Debra Messing
We can't always do what we like, but spare a thought for Debra Messing, of TV's Will & Grace, who loves to knit but unfortunately suffers from an allergy to... wool.
Knitting expert to the stars Edith Eig, who taught Messing to knit and helps her find non-wool yarn, says, 'She's allergic to anything that's wool. She can't even touch wool and if she wears it she breaks out in hives.' Edith also reveals that Debra's first knit was a blue sweater for her dog.

Tracey Ullman
Recently returned from the US, the comedian learnt to knit as a child, but didn't take it up as a hobby until she was filming in Baltimore, and a wool shop gave her the knitting bug.
'It was the window,' she says. 'It was like, edible - the colours and the textures of this wool - and it was bamboo baskets and needles and it was so different from when I was a child: all this awful acrylic post-war wool.'
After taking a refresher course in Baltimore Tracey was hooked, taking her craft to painful extremes. 'I knitted with some very tough wool,' she says. 'I was obsessed and I was making a bag and I couldn't stop. In the morning, I literally had blisters on my fingers.'
Undeterred, Tracey has since co-written a knitting book, Knit 2 Together with Los Angeles yarn-store owner Mel Clark.

Jimmy Hill
Former footballer and commentator Jimmy Hill knew his 'yarn forward' from his 'centre forward'. Back in 1996, he was at a longest knitted scarf fundraising event in aid of St Catherine's Hospice in East Sussex, when he was asked to pose as if knitting the scarf. He commented that he didn't feel a fraud with the needles as he did actually learn to knit as a boy. My sources don't reveal whether he ever knitted his own football scarf or hat...

Uma Thurman
Better known for wielding a sword in her Kill Bill role, Uma Thurman is nifty with the needles. She was spotted at an LA knitting supplies shop, having bought over 30 balls of wool (including cashmerino - mmm, soft!), plus some needles and a T-shirt featuring a woman knitting.

Sarah Jessica Parker
The actor likes to knit during a break in filming. And apparently, she's keen to share her skills. A source said: 'As soon as shooting stops, Sarah's back to her knitting. She's introduced lots of other people to it - everyone is hooked.' Sarah Jessica was taught to knit by her Sex and the City co-star Kristin Davis.

Kate Moss
Knitting has many benefits, but Kate Moss may have discovered a new one: partying substitute. The model/fashion designer, seen here sampling the softness of her scarf, was given a knitting set one  Christmas by ex-husband Jamie Hince, to wean her off her hedonistic tendencies. According to a source in the Daily Star: 'Kate is trying to keep her new obsession a secret as she thinks it's seriously uncool. She carries her needles and wool hidden away in a big black Chanel bag.

Catherine Zeta Jones - and Antonio Banderas 
Teaching someone else to knit is a great thing to do, and Catherine Zeta Jones was happy to pass on her skills during the filming of The Legend of Zorro. Catherine is a well-known devotee of knitting - it's on record that she knitted loads of ponchos and scarves as Christmas gifts a couple of years ago - and she taught her Zorro co-star Antonio Banderas, to help occupy himself while he recovered from an injury.

Julia Roberts
Life on a film set involves a lot of sitting around between shooting, and several actors have discovered that knitting is the perfect pick-up, put-down pastime. Julia Roberts certainly finds it's the case: 'It's just great to make things. To have a pile of yarn and make it into something.'
Rumoured to be starring in The Friday Night Knitting Club, she's sure to find knitting an aid to killing time between takes – and perhaps getting into character. The film is still in development, but you can read the novel it's based on.

Lily Allen
The singer declared her love for - among other things - knitting!
The singer-turned-fashion designer is taking some time out from enjoying marital bliss and saying goodbye to her wild party lifestyle by picking up the knitting needles. She said: ‘I'm being taught how to knit. I'm so not rock 'n' roll any more.’