Emerald goes for gold
As Crown’s ‘Camilla’ heads for double victory at Globes, how partnership with Fleabag star was forged on a Dublin film set 10 years ago
IT may seem impossible to follow in the footsteps of Fleabag’s Phoebe Waller-Bridge.
But Emerald Fennell is poised to repeat her close friend’s success at the Golden Globes tomorrow.
The stars met a decade ago when they briefly appeared in a period drama filmed in Dublin and they instantly hit it off and became good friends.
Ms Fennell – who plays Camilla Parker Bowles in The Crown and Patsy in Call The Midwife – is nominated for best director and best screenplay for the black comedy Promising Young Woman.
Should she win, she will be emulating the success of Ms Waller-Bridge who claimed a Globe last year for best actress in BBC’s Fleabag, which she also wrote.
And while Emerald may be among the favourites to lift a trophy, a few citizens of the Emerald Isle are also among the favourites to go ‘global’. Brendan Gleeson has been nominated for his portrayal of Donald Trump in The Comey Rule in the Best Supporting Actor in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television category. This is his fourth Globe nomination, having been shortlisted for The Guard, Into The Storm and In Bruges.
Element Pictures’ Normal People and its star Daisy Edgar-Jones are among the nominees in the miniseries categories. Unfortunately there was no nod for Paul Mescal.
Irish animated film Wolfwalkers is also shortlisted.
Emerald Fennell, meanwhile, may have the added bonus of seeing The Crown scoop an award as it’s up for best drama series tomorrow night.
Ms Waller-Bridge must have faith in her friend’s talents as she handed script writing duties for the second series of Killing Eve to Ms Fennell, while she worked on the next James Bond film.
The pair – both 35 – met while filming 2011’s Albert Nobbs, which starred Glenn Close as a woman who poses as a man to become a butler in 19th-century Dublin. Ms Waller-Bridge had one line as a viscountess, while Ms Fennell had a non-speaking role. Before they met, they were wary of one another according to Killing Eve producer Sally Woodward Gentle: ‘They saw each other’s name on the call sheet and thought, “They’re going to be horrible.” And then they met each other and fell in love.’
Born in 1985 to jeweller Theo Fennell and author Louise Fennell, Emerald’s talent was obvious as a pupil at Marlborough College, Kate Middleton’s old school. Her drama teacher Nigel Bryant said: ‘She produced a performance so good that the examiner was blown away. They gave her an unheard of 50 out of 50.’
Ms Fennell is now making history as it’s the first time three female directors have been nominated for a Globe award, pictured left.