GIRL MEETS WORLD
ANNA FRIEL STARS IN A THREE-PART DRAMA ABOUT A FAMILY IN THE MIDST OF TRANSITION…
IF PEOPLE’S ATTITUDES CHANGE BECAUSE OF THIS, THAT’S GREAT”
Vicky Duffy has always prided herself on being a loving and devoted parent who’d do anything for her children, Lily and Max. But in this new three-part series, she finds herself unsure about how best to support Max, who has identified as a girl from a young age and has been allowed to express those feelings at home, but now wants to do so in public.
“I think she doesn’t know how to be supportive – she
learns how to be,” explains Anna Friel, who plays Vicky. “You can clearly see she loves Max very much. Something that was interesting was the fact that a mother has to grieve her son. She has to say goodbye to Max, and hello to Maxine.”
Matters are made more complicated by the fact that Vicky and her husband Stephen are separated, due to his struggle to accept Max’s gender non-conformity. In a bid to make a united show of support for their child, Stephen moves back into the family home, but he still feels that their child might just be ‘going through a phase’, and Vicky is hesitant about where they stand with each other.
“I think she has always loved her husband, and wishes that he could be more supportive,” sighs Anna. “Yet he just doesn’t have that ability, and she wants to protect her child at any cost.”
Anna admits that she wasn’t particularly well-informed about transgender issues before signing up for the part, but she threw herself into the research – and was surprised by what she learned…
“I didn’t know about puberty blockers or halting puberty,” she shares. “And I didn’t know how hard it was for the parents. I also didn’t know that there is this wonderful charity called Mermaids – it’s tremendous.”
As well as starring in the drama, Anna had a co-producer role. She tells us how she felt a responsibility to the actors who auditioned to play Max.
“We saw six extraordinary children,” recalls the actress. “It’s difficult to be on the other side because you know how it feels. I went out and met the parents of each child and said, ‘I’m going to look after them!’ It was really tough, but Callum [Booth-ford, who plays Max] had a really solid confidence.”
Way back in her Brookside days, Anna was part of a groundbreaking storyline
when her character, Beth Jordache, kissed her friend Margaret in the first pre-watershed lesbian kiss on UK TV. Now, she hopes Butterfly can similarly increase awareness.
“We didn’t go out to shock – it was just a story, and people’s views changed because of it,” recalls Anna. “If this can shine a light in the same way, that’s great.”