I was pregnant while filming... as I grew so did the number of body doubles
AS DC COMICS’ HIT BATMAN SPIN OFF SHOW PENNYWORTH RETURNS FOR A SECOND SERIES, DANIELLE DE WOLFE SPEAKS WITH STARS PALOMA FAITH AND JACK BANNON TO LEARN WHAT’S IN STORE FOR FANS
FAITH is not one to stand on the sidelines.
However, during her most recent filming stint for Pennyworth series two, the performer had no choice but to let someone else undertake the action sequences.
She has recently given birth to a healthy baby girl following a planned C-section, but speaking to her prior to the new arrival, she reflects on being pregnant during filming in the midst of a pandemic.
“I had a whole new experience,” recalls Paloma, 39.
“Throughout the bit where we returned to film, which was after the first lockdown, I was in a pregnancy, so I was growing bigger and bigger by the minute.
“And then as I grew, so did the number of body doubles.
“Because I’m somebody who likes to do all my stunts myself, it was quite difficult at times.
“’I was like ‘can I just do it?’ and the stunt coordinator was very worried about his insurance.
“So, I just kept getting put to one side and [had to] watch someone else do the mutilation that I wished I was doing myself.”
Adored by DC Comics fans on both sides of the Atlantic, Pennyworth is a dark Batman spin-off packed full of twists and turns.
The tale of the Caped Crusader’s loyal butler
Alfred Pennyworth, played by The Imitation Game star Jack Bannon, the series sees Paloma flex her acting muscles as sociopathic Raven Society member Bet Sykes.
Villian Sykes is an anarchist with sociopathic tendencies and Paloma says she drew inspiration from a variety of sources ahead of filming, including serial killers.
With Pennyworth following the misadventures of Alfred, a former SAS soldier, during his 20s, series one saw him form a security company and undertake work for young billionaire Thomas Wayne, the father of Batman star Bruce Wayne, played by Our Girl and Fleabag actor Ben Aldridge.
After initially becoming a target of the fascist Raven Society – a group conspiring to take over the British government, the action became frenetic, as Alfred found himself fighting against them, helping an American group known as the No Name League.
Series two picks up one year after the events of the first, where EngPALOMA land finds itself in a civil war.
Alfred and his SAS friends lead a resistance force in North London and are tasked with holding the city, but really he yearns for a new life in the United States.
According to Paloma, her recalcitrant character is “promoted for her loyalty,” in the new series, something that brings out the worst in her.
“She flourishes but she starts to take the law into her own hands and create her own rules – irrespective of what side she’s on – and sort of be the ruler, or dictator, of her own mini universe.”
Paloma notes that her days spent at a northern university put her in good stead for Bet’s accent.
“I do keep saying to people I really worry that it’s too Coronation Street.
I keep saying ‘I’m trying to be high-brow! I’m trying to be Alan Bennett!’
“I spent three years doing a dance degree when I was 18 in Leeds, so it did have a big impact on me.
“Observing northern colloquialisms – and obviously because I’m a touring musician, I go back there quite a lot and revisit and check in that some of the slang is still maintained and stuff.
“But it feels every time I go too northern, I get called in for additional dialogue recording to overdub the actual words.
“They’re like ‘we don’t understand what ‘owt’ is. Can you just overdub ‘nothing’?”
Despite its period setting, Paloma thinks the show is still relevant to today’s issues. “I feel like its origins are always influenced by the time in which it’s written or authored.
“So, for me, when I watch the show, there’s definite acknowledgement of current political climates on a global level and there’s parallels, because unfortunately, history repeats itself over and over again and humanity’s not clever enough to stop making the same mistakes.”
Starring Jason Flemyng (Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels) as Lord James Harwood and Emma Paetz (Gentleman Jack) as roving journalist Martha Kane, a host of familiar faces
are set to return for series two.
“The events of season one have taken their toll,” notes Jack, 29, of his character’s storyline.
“[Alfie] is flourishing in the sense that he’s running a large nightclub in the middle of Soho, which is a neutral zone.
“He wants to get enough money together to get to America and start afresh. He’s sort of a bit disillusioned with life and certainly not the kind of happy chappie he was at the start of season one.”
It is a show entirely removed from the Gotham that Batman fans traditionally know and love, focussing on an alternative London that combines fictitious events such as public executions with stylised elements of both the 50s and 60s.
“Obviously Michael Caine was a big influence,” notes Jack of his character. Caine played Alfred in several of the Batman films. “He was also the archetypal film star of the 60s, so we were able to watch Harry Palmer films and stuff like that.
“We tried to get more and more slang and things like that in there, it’s been quite fun.
“But obviously, because it’s made for an American audience, you can’t go too obscure because they don’t really understand what you’re on about half the time.”
I worry that it’s too Coronation Street...I’m trying to be Alan Bennett
Paloma Faith on her character’s accent
■ Pennyworth Series 2 is on Starzplay now
YOU can usually tell the strength of a TV drama series by the calibre of its guest stars.
During the first run of McDonald & Dodds, Robert Lindsay, Hugh Dennis, Freddie Fox and Joanna Scanlan all appeared alongside Tala Gouveia and Jason Watkins, and this second run has seen even more big names joining the lead duo.
In this weekend’s second episode the pair are joined by one of the best young acting talents around at the moment.
Sharon Rooney, known for her roles as Rae Earl in My Mad Fat Diary, Sophie in Two Doors Down, Dawn in Brief Encounters, and who was more recently seen in Finding Alice, plays Doreen, a woman who has organised a weekend away for her best friend’s birthday.
On their first night in town, the ladies meet a group of young rugby players and end up at a house party.
The next morning they wake with hangovers from hell, and when one of the rugby players is found dead on the railway lines near the house, all the party-goers become suspects.
Sharon says she couldn’t wait to get involved with the hit show.
“I read the script, fell in love and really hoped I would get the part,” she says.
“I really enjoyed the first series. I just loved it because the relationship between the two main characters is so great, so I was excited to work with Jason and Tala.
“Also, it is very aesthetically pleasing. The city [Bath] looks great, all the colours are gorgeous and it is perfect for a
Sunday night watching on the sofa under a blanket.
“It is nice to be a part of something like that.”
Sharon says she found it easy playing the part of Doreen as she can see a lot of herself in the character.
She says: “I am a bit like Doreen, I organise it all and I’m like, ‘Here is where we are going, here is your itinerary, here’s our budget.’ I’ll get us all matching outfits, matching towels, the whole hog. When I’m busy with work, I don’t get to see my friends a lot, so when we get time for a girls’ weekend, I like to go all out.”
Another of those gueststarring tonight is John Thomson, the Cold Feet and Fast Show actor who recently took part in the second season of The Masked Singer. He was Bush Baby.
“I play Jimmy, who is the chairman of Bath Eagles rugby club,” the 51-year-old explains.
“He is throwing a party at his house for some of the rugby players.
“The boys go out for drinks before the party and they meet some young girls who are on a hen night.
“They invite the girls to the party, but unfortunately one of the players dies and he is found dead near the railway tunnel.
“That is when things start to get interesting...”
When I’m busy with work, I don’t get to see my friends a lot, so when we get time for a girls’ weekend, I like to go all out
■ McDonald & Dodds is on Sunday, ITV, 8pm
Sharon Rooney