Evangeline Lilly was nicknamed 'Bacon Monster' as a child.

'The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug' actress seemed to always be eating as a teenager because she was so active, with her ravenous desire for one food in particular leading to her father giving her the odd moniker.

She confessed: ''With puberty my appetite had finally exploded. I became extremely active and physical - soccer, weights, ice-skating, climbing. Dad would call me his Bacon Monster because I'd eat half a pound each Saturday.''

However, the 35-year-old star - who has three-year-old son Kahekili with boyfriend Norman Kali - admitted she didn't always have the same passion for food, and liked the idea of it more than consuming it.

She explained: ''As a girl I spent most of my time in a fantasy world and you don't need to eat there. I enjoyed seeing all the candy in 'Willy Wonka', reading about the cakes and potions in 'Alice In Wonderland' and the hunger of 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar'. But actual food didn't interest me.''

And mealtimes followed suit, which drove the 'Lost' star's father ''bananas'' because he couldn't stand to see her eating at such a sluggish pace.

She said: ''I was an extremely slow eater. And because of my father's ADHD, he was frustrated by my slow eating and very vocal about it. I sent him absolutely bananas.''