“I liked that some people hated me!”
SARAH PARISH RETURNS AS THE DEEPLY DANGEROUS DETECTIVE…
In December 2017, we were gripped by a crime drama with a difference. Sarah Parish played that rarest of all creatures – a female anti-hero. DCI Elizabeth Bancroft was a wellrespected detective who’d risen through the ranks despite having a killer secret in her past, and who was willing to do anything to keep it hidden – even taking out young DS Katherine Stevens (Faye Marsay), who’d just been handed the cold case where Bancroft herself was the killer!
The first series ended with a cavalcade of cliffhangers – Elizabeth shot Katherine and not only got away with it, but was promoted! Now she’s back – yet how long can she remain undetected? Inside TV caught up with Sarah on set to find out…
What’s the scenario for series two?
It’s a very different journey for Elizabeth, because she finds herself in a situation she’s not in control of. So she’s playing catch-up a lot of the time. The case is a double murder and her son, Joe, is somehow implicated – and for Elizabeth, he’s her Achilles’ heel. She hasn’t spoken to Joe for two years – I think he’s written her off, and she’s very upset by that. So you see her really strungout in this series, making her even more dangerous than usual.
Does she feel any remorse for her crimes?
No, I don’t think she does – it’s not that she doesn’t feel bad, but she sees it as a necessity. It’s hard to explain how she thinks. She doesn’t go, “Oh, I’m glad I shot her in the head” – it’s just something that had to happen. Of course she’s thinking, ‘If she comes to, I’ll be in a lot of trouble’, but it’s just one of the things going on in her life.
How was the reaction to series one for you?
I was away with my husband, so I didn’t watch it or read reviews – but I remember looking at my Twitter feed thinking, ‘I can’t resist!’ And it was just going nuts. What I liked was that the reaction was very extreme. Some people hated me! And other people loved me. That’s the kind of drama I find interesting, that splits people’s opinions…
Is it difficult to play a character like that?
It is, because you have to make her likeable. I will be interested to see what the audience thinks by the end, because I suspect they’ll want her to succeed – even though she does awful things to get what she wants…