So many people who would normally be working now aren’t, and that’s disastrous
As Tudor drama The Spanish Princess returns, star Laura Carmichael talks to GEORGIA HUMPHREYS about Covid’s effect on the acting industry and her fears for the future of theatres
LAURA CARMICHAEL rose to fame as Lady Edith on the hugely successful ITV show Downton Abbey. But now she’s the star of another period drama, The Spanish Princess, available on streaming service Starzplay.
The Tudor-era series, which is inspired by the world of historical-fiction author Philippa Gregory, is written by Emma Frost and Matthew Graham and continues on from previous Starz series The White Queen and The White Princess.
It centres around the story of Catherine of Aragon (played by Charlotte Hope), the strong-willed Spanish royal who was promised the English throne from childhood, and eventually became the first wife of King Henry VIII.
The drama is a fascinating look at the period from the perspective of women, and Southampton-born Laura, 34, plays Lady Margaret Pole, a cousin to Henry VIII.
As the show returns for Part Two, she tells us what viewers can expect.
Where do we find Maggie at the start of the new episodes?
MAGGIE is back finding her feet in the Tudor court, having been exiled in the last series.
It’s still painful for her. Her cousin Edmund de la Pole is a political prisoner, in the tower, so there’s a complete guilt in her. Can she be loyal to the Tudors, can she live this life?
What’s happening with her family life? HER youngest child Reggie isn’t talking and has been completely scarred by his experiences living in the monastery. So she’s trying to bring him back into the family and help him adjust. And Thomas More is a new friend to her and helps her with Reggie.
Were you a history buff before starring in The Spanish Princess?
I NEARLY did history at uni. I thought that would be interesting. I think it’s quite common with actors. There are just loads of great stories.
I thought I knew a bit about this period and then discovered I knew nothing!
How do you think the story resonates with viewers today?
IT’S WONDERFUL to see this time period, but told very much from the perspective of the women in the court, because I think there’s a lot that feels very modern in it.
The feeling of them doing their duty, and living within this restricted view of what’s available to them as women, I think is something that really resonates with the writers and they write really well for these characters.
Whether it’s being a mother or finding your voice in the workplace, those are things that are actually popping up, even though these women lived centuries ago.
What do you think makes the Tudor period so fascinating?
HENRY VIII is popular history, isn’t it? I feel like everyone’s got an image of him and his many wives; there’s kind of a very macho image of him.
The first series was before Henry VIII was famous, and now this series is kind of how he got to be that tyrant that we have that image in our minds of – and you see that from the point of view of his poor wife.
There are amazing costumes and props in this show. Did you manage to steal anything from set? I’M TERRIBLE at taking things! I was always asked about it on Downton Abbey and I didn’t.
And then I think on the last day I did end up taking a handbag, like a small purse.
As actors, you don’t feel like you’re walking around like, ‘Oh I’ll just help myself’. You’re very much a visitor. My interest on set was, ‘Where did you get these thermal tights from because they’re keeping me really warm?’.
You recently played baby snatcher Agatha in thriller The Secrets She Keeps. It was a very different role for you...
IT’S funny, I do feel like in lockdown, I have been recognised in a different way, and people are a bit alarmed.
My mother-in-law (Laura’s partner is her Downton Abbey co-star Michael C Fox) runs a nursery, and I went with her to work and I suddenly was aware, as all the parents were coming to pick up the kids. I was like, ‘I don’t think I should be here, I think I’m just going to be freaking everyone out!.’
But yeah, it’s been great. I loved the show so much, so I’m really pleased the BBC got it and it went down well.
How was your personal experience of lockdown? IT’S definitely been a weird time. I’m very aware though, in these quiet times, that you’re just so lucky to be coming off a job, for all of the reasons, for financial reasons...
There are so many people who would normally be able to be working now who aren’t, and that’s disastrous, and I really want to rally together.
Particularly for people who work mostly in theatre, and for our theatres, it’s just a really scary time.
For everyone, no matter what you’re working in, it’s been a very reflective time to think about your community.
So I think for us, coming off the back of a job like The Spanish Princess, you feel very lucky, and then you feel very lucky to be celebrating it coming out.
And meanwhile, what’s going to happen to the West End, and the regional theatres at large? Who knows...
■ The Spanish Princess Part Two premieres on Starzplay tomorrow.