DUSTIN HOFFMAN, the Oscar-winning Hollywood star, is turning his back on America to make London his home. The actor says he feels more at ease in Britain and has become disillusioned with America under President George W Bush, writes Richard Brooks.

He joins a growing list of American entertainers, such as Kevin Spacey, Gwyneth Paltrow and Madonna, who have made Britain their base.

The 67-year-old has owned a house in Kensington, west London, for more than a decade.

In the past it has been a holiday home or a base while working in Britain. However, Hoffman has decided to make the house his permanent home.

In an interview with The Sunday Times he said: “I’ll be moving to London in September. I just love it there. I’ve loved it for years.”

Hoffman, whose latest film Meet the Fockers opens in Britain later this month, has never liked Los Angeles. Though he was born there, his principal home for the past 40 years has been New York, where he began his acting career.

He says his main reason for moving is that he feels more at ease in London. “My wife says something happens to me in London. I don’t know what.”

Hoffman, who won Oscars for Kramer vs Kramer and Rain Man, married his second wife Lisa in 1980.

His decision to come to London has been influenced in part by his disillusionment with American politics. A keen Democrat, he is particularly hostile to Bush.

“I have never had a stronger feeling that the basic tenets of what make up the United States, this democracy, have been compromised,” he said. “I think when people are fearful, they tend to go to extremes.”

Hoffman doesn’t have any work lined up in Britain. He last appeared in London’s West End as Shylock in a 1989 production of The Merchant of Venice directed by Peter Hall.

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