The Baker Street Babes
Podcast
Transcript, Episode 28: Louise
Brealey
Recorded 03/06/12
Released 23/06/12,
Transcribed by Melanie Fletcher
Kristina: So, how do
you feel being here at Collectormania?
Joanne: That's
weird. [about being recorded]
Kristina: (laughs)
I'm just getting reactions! Are you having a good time?
Joanne: Yes. We're
about to meet Loo Brealey. I'm fine.
Kristina: Yeah.
Super exciting -- I love Louise Brealey.
How about you, Ardy?
Ardy: I am
freezing my fucking feet off. (much laughter)
Kristina: It's
really cold here.
Ardy: Yeah...
Kristina: Really
cold, really cold.
Ardy: Yeah, I
bribed Joanne with a cookie earlier and then she snuggled up to me for a bit
but, yeah. It's no long-term solution, is it?
Kristina: No, it's
not.
Ardy: So yeah,
but Louise Brealey is here, so, exciting times.
Kristina: It is
exciting!
Ardy: Apart from
-- oh and I bought four badges, but apart from that there's nothing much
exciting going on here.
Kristina: (giggling)
Not a whole lot's going on. (background laughter) You have anything to say?
Maria: Apart from
that it's cold, yeah, it's fun. We have roof-dancing stormtroopers, several
R2-D2s--
Kristina: We've met
some listeners, which is cool.
Maria: That is
true.
Kristina: And a
Dalek!
Maria: We made
out with a Dalek.
Ardy: I think a
Dalek makes up for a lot of things.
Kristina: Yeah.
Maria: We just
met Jack Sparrow.
Ardy: Yes.
Maria: Well, I
say meet--
Ardy: There is a
distressing lack of pizza baguettes here.
Joanne: And we had
an awesome Fem!Croft.
Maria: Yes, true,
true.
Joanne: Our umbrellas
touched.
Kristina: Yes, I
liked her umbrella pin a lot.
Joanne: And their
scarf was pretty cool, as well.
Kristina: Yes, very
pretty. Is that warm stuff? Please come back!
Maria: It looked
like it! Please come back!
Kristina: We're
press!
(laughter)
Kristina: For some
reason I think this makes us entitled but it really doesn't. Okay.
Joanne: Yes, Curly
is certainly confusing press and VIP at these events.
Kristina: This is
the only moment I get to be somewhat VIP. It's not even. I don't wanna forget
it. Okay, I'll turn this off.
[BREAK]
(Darth Vader breathing)
Kristina: Have you
had a good day today?
Darth
Vader: Yes, it's been very, very hot. (laughter) How about you? Did
you get something on your programs here?
Kristina: Mmm, no.
Darth
Vader: More importantly, have you had a good day today?
Kristina: Yes!
Maria: A cold
one.
Kristina: It's cold.
Ardy: Are you
recording this?
Kristina: I am
recording this. (laughter)
Darth
Vader: Did you travel far?
Kristina: London.
Maria: Germany.
Darth
Vader: Okay.
Kristina: Germany's
a bit far. (laughter)
Maria: Farther
away than London. That's good.
Kristina: Yeah, no,
we do a Sherlock Holmes podcast, so, Darth Vader, do you like Sherlock Holmes?
Darth
Vader: I do indeed.
Kristina: Awesome!
Maria: Very good!
Good to know!
Kristina: Everyone,
you have heard it from us first.
Maria: Breaking
news!
Darth
Vader: Anything Junior's in, I like. (laughter) Trivia question --
what horror film was he in? As a young man?
Kristina: Wait,
what?
Darth
Vader: Trivia question -- the guy who plays Iron Man?
BSBs: Yeah?
Darth
Vader: What horror film was he in -- it was a number one.
Maria: Robert
Downey Jr.?
Darth
Vader: Yeah.
Maria: In a horror film?
Darth
Vader: Number one, in a sequence.
Kristina: Gothika?
Maria: No, he wasn't in that.
Kristina: Yes he
was.
Maria: Was he?
Kristina: He was in
Gothika.
Maria: Oh, was
he? I forgot.
Kristina: It was before
his last cocaine binge.
Maria: Yeah, that's
true. Horror film. (pause)
Darth
Vader: Need a clue?
Maria: Yep.
Darth
Vader: Burnt face.
Maria: Oh, he was
not in Mike Myers -- was he in Halloween? No, no, in the other one -- Nightmare
on Elm Street?
Darth
Vader: He was. Number one.
Maria: Oh, Freddy
Krueger. Was he one of the teenagers? Oh, sorry. We'll let you get back to
your--
Kristina: Our
interview's ready. (background noise, interspersed with Louise saying
"Hello" and someone saying "I didn't know") Sorry, sorry,
sorry -- we were interviewing Darth Vader, just because.
Maria: Wow. We
just learned that Darth Vader likes Sherlock Holmes.
Kristina: He does!
Louise: (laughs)
Oh, great, that's good to know. Good old Darth.
[BREAK]
Kristina: Oh, did
someone bring you Quavers?
Maria: That’s
adorable.
BSBs: Awwwww!
Louise: Great. Is
that yours or mine, 'cos mine looks exactly like that -- look.
Kristina: Ah. It's
the cool one to have. (laughter) It's the highest rated on Amazon.
Louise: I just
emptied my entire incredibly impressive bag within a bag (laughter) but let's
not waste any more time on me and my matching tape recorder-- go on, shoot.
Kristina: This is
sort of, like, your first big fan event, isn't it? Yay! We have matching
recorders. Super exciting.
Louise: Yes it is,
it's my first fan event of any description -- and it will be my last.
(laughter)
Kristina: Oh, my
God, you're too cold.
Louise: One time
only. No, no -- yeah, it's extraordinary, and just really nice. Although I did
get a bit of a sore face in the photo shoot, which was just… walk here, stand
there, smile...smile...smile. And yeah, sixty-seven smiles -- sixty-eight,
sixty-eight smiles in a row. Extraordinary. Anyway, no, it's great, it's cold
but it's very nice. I’ve got a hot water bottle between my legs and
everything's all right. (laughter) Everyone seems nice -- I've had two little people
dressed up as Molly, one really mini person with a fake sort of hair ponytail,
she was so sweet.
Kristina: How
precious!
Louise: And the
best, the best was her badge. She'd deliberately taken a hideous photograph of
herself, because the badge on my coat on SHERLOCK is absolutely ghastly. So
this beautiful little child had this terrible photo of herself, with these
really, really wrong glasses, so she'd gone all, all the way.
Kristina: Awww,
precious.
Maria: Do you know anything about season 3?
Louise: I don't,
actually. All I know is that I'll be back -- and so will Rupert and Una and Benedict.
And Martin. Yes, no, I don't know anything -- they're writing them as we speak.
I do know things, I'm not telling. (laughter) See how good my acting was there.
My amazing acting.
Kristina: Molly just
started out as a really small part, and she's sort of grown into this giant --
so many fans are just completely heartstruck by Molly Hooper. What's your
reaction to it -- did you expect it at all?
Louise: No, not at
all. I did my day on the third episode, 'cos we had to shoot all of my scenes
in one day because I'd been doing a play. So I did my day, had a wonderful,
magical day, then went back to London. I don't know. I kind of hadn't realized
how important the character is in that episode because I just hadn't really
thought about it. It was like, "That's a nice scene, and that's another
nice scene," and I hadn't really thought it through. And then when I
watched it, it was like, "Ohhhh."
But yeah, it was staggering, the reaction was absolutely amazing and completely
exceeded -- I didn't even have any expectations, because I did the first season
and that was great, everyone really liked it, which was obviously gratifying
and just a great thing to be a part of. And then -- I dunno, just the writing,
I suppose, just made Molly mean something more than I think she did the first
season. I might be repeating myself but I think people identify with her
because she's an ordinary girl in an extraordinary position. She works with
this...freak. (laughter) This wonderful, beautiful freak, and you know, I think
it's terrific because she's the sort of -- I don't know if you're all too young
for DIRTY DANCING, but there's this sort of --
Kristina: I've seen
DIRTY DANCING!
Louise: The idea
of this sort of extraordinary man -- well, it's not necessarily that way round,
I'm just being ridiculous -- but she's the sort of, you know, she's Everygirl,
isn't she? With her ordinary face and her ordinary, you know, thing. And she's
the audience's way in, the female audience's way in, I think. She's not
threatening -- she's the girl next door. So I'm really surprised, but also I'm
really happy that they like her, I think it's great.
Maria: Everybody
loves her. Everybody was just really sorry, but just the first – “…okay.”,
everybody just fell in love with Molly.
Kristina: I think
we've all been there -- that person we've been completely smitten with, and
then it goes into, "Even though I know how much of a dick you are, I'm
going to be completely infatuated with you."
Louise: Well, I
think the thing is, also, it's like love makes fools of us all, you know? Who
hasn't been an idiot when you've been smitten? I know I have. I mean, I'm not
like her at all, but I think when I really like someone, I'm perfectly capable
of blundering around making a complete tit of myself. And I think that's the
thing -- people have underestimated her because she takes a lot of shit from
him. But the fact is that what was obviously delightful about the last series
was that you realized she's not an idiot. She's quietly taking it all in, and
yeah, she's there. I dunno, I just feel really lucky. It's like a miniaturist
sort of portrait of her because she's barely in it, really, but that's just not
any sort of an issue. It's the most wonderful part I've played on telly, no
doubt, and yet it’s sort of tiny, so it's a real tribute to the writing because
you get, there's a real journey.
Kristina: There is.
Louise: And as I
say, when I did my day I hadn't really thought it through. I just thought,
"Oooh, this is nice. This is nice to have a lovely scene in stuff
about--" Oh, I think I've a break in my hot water bottle. I feel like I've
wet myself. (laughter)
Kristina: Oh, dear!
Louise: (laughs)
I'm sorry, we've had to suspend the interview because Louise Brealey wee'd herself.
[BREAK]
Kristina: So many
gifts! See, everyone adores you to pieces.
Louise: Oh, that's
nice!
Maria: What I
find really interesting is that Molly is obviously not a character that Arthur
Conan Doyle had written. Were you nervous about trying to fit in, or were you
just being there because it's modern anyway?
Louise: I hadn't a
single thought about canon. I was just given a part to play and I tried to make
her as truthful and full and real and human as possible. I didn't really think
about Arthur Conan Doyle. I'm really pleased that they invented her -- I think
they're pleased that they invented her now. They weren't sure originally, and
now they're happy. So yeah, it's great, and no, it didn't trouble me in the
slightest, because it's not the book. It's something new, isn't it? So I think
there's room for -- I mean, I feel very flattered that I'm the only one that's
not in the books, actually. I mean, obviously that means that I am prime fodder
for the chop at some point because I'm not in the books, but you know, that's
an occupational hazard down in the mortuary. (laughs)
Maria: You're
kind of turning into -- I mean, your character now is sort of in the Holmes
canon, it kind of belongs there now.
Louise: Oh, thank
you very much.
Kristina: So do you
have any backstory for Molly that you sort of made up? Or is it just whatever's
on the page for you?
Louise: Um, do I
have any backstory? I just think the writing's so good, I just go with
what's...it's just all there. I mean, yeah, obviously, you try and...sorry, I'm
slightly distracted by the sound of Darth Vader's breathing. (laughter)
Kristina: He's,
like, lurking right outside.
Louise: He's
breathing down my neck. Did I do any research? No, I didn't even do anything
like run around a mortuary with a mortuary person. Although when I was there I
got to chat to the real mortuary workers and talk about how quickly a
post-mortem happens, how much time it takes, and how people's lungs are black
even if they don't smoke if they live in a city. Got my wellies on and had to
look down the drains and wished I hadn't. And there's all sorts of things like
chef's knives and brains in buckets -- it's great. Did I do any research on who
she was? Not really -- I mean, they did that website, didn't they, about
kittens and GLEE and stuff. I just feel like that's there for people to enjoy
if they want to. In my head, she's...she's kind of a hopeless case.(laughter)
No, she's not. She loves cats. So no, I didn't really--
Kristina: Fair
enough.
Louise: I just
think it's all there. It's like a blueprint -- you just have to try and say it
with feeling. No, I don't know anything about her -- who is she? I don't know
how old she is, I don't know where she's from. I dunno -- I quite like that,
though. I quite like that it's all open to people to make that bit up if they
want to. Yeah, I think they're so imaginative, the fans and everything -- I'm
always getting told who she is and what she means. And I think that's great,
'cos then there's room for the audience, isn't there? You can write on her what
you want (pause) not literally of course, that’d be weird.
Joanne: What do
you enjoy the most about playing Molly when you're on the set?
Louise: It's just
great to be part, genuinely to be part of that team, actually. Because even
though I'm not in it very much, I feel very much like I'm one of them. And
that's just a really nice feeling.
BSBs: Well, for us you are. (laughter and
agreement)
Louise: It's
just...coming back, the first season...we've done it three times because of
course we did the pilot. And each time you go back, it feels it's kind of more
wonderful because the show has grown in people's estimation and in their
hearts, and you just feel like the writing's a joy to say, and the team who
make it are a delight. And it's very family -- Sue and Steven are obviously
married, the executive producer and writer, and so there is a genuine sort
of...it's a nice place to work, SHERLOCK. People are good, they have good
hearts.
Kristina: I think
that's why the show does so well because everyone loves doing it. And you can
just tell that, in the production.
Louise: Well, the
boys don't have to come back, you know -- they're enormous, they're absolutely
massive, they don't have to come back. I think it’s an indication of how dear
the show is to them, and those characters are to them, that they want to come
back despite the fact that they're megastars and make another series. And I
think if it was an unhappy set or in any way an unhappy experience, you
wouldn't see them for dust. So it's just obvious. The material is so brilliant,
too -- you really don't get, you know, once in a blue moon you get to read
something that's as good as that.
Kristina: So, we
really only have one more question -- we asked on Twitter, but everyone just
asking things we'd already asked you. But pretty much everyone just wants you
to know that they loved you to pieces, they love you and they think you're
awesome.
Louise: That's
nice, isn't it?
Kristina: It IS
nice!
Louise: Could you
tell them how lovely, charming, attractive and likeable I was without the
bright red nose and the little old lady drip?
Maria: We're
asking you for a picture, but, like, one where we’d all be really dorky? Could
we do that?
Louise: (bravely)
Do with me what you will! (laughter and discussion about handling the camera)
Kristina: Oh, just
one last question -- if you could have tea with anyone from SHERLOCK, who would
you want to have tea with?
Louise: You know,
Rupert Graves comes straight to mind… Graves, Graves, Graves! (laughter) Um,
yes, of course, Rupert, Una and Rupert. And -- it's favoritism, it's awful,
Rupert, Una, Rupert, Una. We're going to have tea next week -- oh, my dream’s
come true. (laughter)
BSBs: Thank you
so much, good luck for series 3 and everything else you do. Enjoy your Quavers!
Жаль, что не на русском... Читать интересно :)
ReplyDelete"Amazing acting" indeed. I'm not entirely sure what 'heartstruck' means - I'm not in love with Molly (not alone there!), but I cringed when her all-too-obvious ploys were dissected so coldly
ReplyDeletewhilst she stood and listened.
[Good (bad) stuff from Benedict too - I think I loved and hated him him for being so unknowingly
callous during that scene.]
But then there's that crumb of contact before the end of series two: we all knew Molly would be back. Best non-canon additon to the cast since . . . ?
You tell me. I'll be at the Holmesian Monthly Meeting (London) in the Metropolitan Bar above Baker Street station this Thursday (28th).
Near six as I can make, probably seven.