COVER STORY theatre is much more demanding than TV . I suppose in television the most demanding job I ever did was probably Bonekickers because it was very physical and I got injured quite a few times doing stunts .
Do you have to turn the emotion on instantly when the cameras start to roll ?
Yes , you do , but then you have to do it again and again and again so that can be very tiring .
Are there any roles that you regret taking ?
No . I don ’ t believe in referencing … I mean , I ’ ve taken jobs for different reasons over the years . When I was young , I turned down a lot of stuff because I didn ’ t think it was good enough . But I was young , carefree and I didn ’ t have a mortgage so I could afford to be selective .
When you become a grownup and you have kids and responsibilities , there are certain jobs that you probably would not normally have taken but you kind of have to because you have to pay the bills . I would never be tacky enough to mention jobs that I didn ’ t think were up to scratch because I don ’ t think it ’ s a very healthy way to operate . My mum taught me that if you ’ re going to do something then do it with good grace . So if you decide to do a job then that ’ s the decision , do it to the best of your ability . There are definitely jobs that I have taken where I ’ ve thought , “ Actually , this is s--- ,” but I ’ ve had to take it as they ’ ve offered me silly money .
The one thing I do regret is turning Derek Jarman down . He offered me a part in a film when I was really young and my agent at the time was very high powered and she thought it was beneath me so I turned it down on her advice . I regret that because Derek Jarman ’ s the most amazing filmmaker and I regret that I missed out on working with one of the greatest filmmakers that Britain ’ s ever produced . So that ’ s my only real regret actually . I fired the agent , eventually .
Do you prefer TV to theatre work ?
You know , the simple fact is that theatre pays so badly now . I turn down theatre all of the time because you simply can ’ t afford to do it . It can be less then £ 300 a week and certainly never more than £ 500 a week unless you ’ re in the West End and you get a big show . If you ’ re doing small theatre jobs , where the most interesting jobs are and you ’ re touring you can ’ t live on £ 500 and pay for digs and be away from your family . It ’ s impossible to do .
What do you look for in a role ?
It ’ s all about the scripts ; it ’ s all about how good the words are . You can work with the most brilliant director in the world , you can work with the most brilliant actors in the world but if the script ’ s s--- or not up to standard then there ’ s absolutely no point .
What makes you think , “ this is the one ”?
When you continue to want to read it and you ’ re not flicking through to see what your bits are . If it ’ s got the flick factor then I think it ’ s probably not worth doing . But if you want to keep reading then it is probably worth doing .
I ’ ve read scripts that I thought were really good and the whole project has turned out to be a disaster but that can be down to the director , it can be down to the actors , it can be down to the way
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