Hugh Laurie's House Concerns

Hugh Laurie was convinced 'House' would flop.

The actor - who has portrayed title character Gregory House in the medical drama series since it launched in 2004 - refused to buy a home near the TV studios and lived in a Los Angeles hotel for eight months because he was adamant it would be unsuccessful.

He said: "I was so convinced the whole thing was going to fail, I couldn't contemplate committing to any long-term arrangement. I thought a hotel was a safe bet.

"Those first years, that was tough going. It was hard keeping morale up and keep concentrating, keep forging ahead.

"It's a way of living, had you described it to me 20 years ago, I would have just found absurd beyond belief, inconceivable. But here we are. Yes, there were plenty of times when it was pretty overwhelming, I think for everybody."

The 50-year-old hunk was stunned by the prompt success of the show, and believes the past six years of his life have flown by.

The British actor explained to The Times newspaper: "I still am shocked. There are a lot of days when I feel as if I have been woken from a coma and told six years have gone by, and I have no awareness of it. Is Queen Elizabeth still on the throne? So we still drive on the left? Do we still have pounds?"

Hugh has worked so hard on the show, he is convinced he could have trained as a physician in the same amount of time.

Speaking about the number of episodes he has starred in, he added: "I don't know. It's more than 100, because we're coming to the end of our sixth season. Maybe 120? It's ridiculous. I have almost been playing 'House' long enough to have qualified to become a doctor."