Trainspotting Kelly tackles puzzling new role as a jigsaw whizz
SHE made her acting debut in Trainspotting as Diane, the schoolgirl lover of Ewan McGregor’s heroin-addicted Renton. And in the 22 years since, Kelly Macdonald has discovered an obsession of her own – jigsaws. The 42-year-old became hooked thanks to her latest film, Puzzle. Miss Macdonald, a mother of two, plays Agnes, a downtrodden wife whose life is transformed when her uncanny ability to solve even the hardest puzzles at lightning speed leads her to start competing in major competitions. The actress, also hailed for her role in American TV drama Boardwalk Empire, said in a US interview: ‘I actually do puzzles. I’d done a lot of them in my twenties, but I’d forgotten how much I enjoyed puzzles. ‘I was surrounded by puzzles on the set and I became this nut. I’d do them all over the place – when I was on the hair and makeup chair or in between takes. ‘The crew would be ready for me on set, but I’d run off somewhere to work on a puzzle. I have been pretty obsessed with them ever since.’ Macdonald, who has two sons with her estranged husband, Travis guitarist Dougie Payne, said that for many people jigsaws were a guilty secret. She said: ‘It’s amazing once you bring up puzzles, how many people admit, “We love them and do them, too”.’ Macdonald also told how turning 40 had been a watershed for her career – in a good way.
She said: ‘I was never the leading lady, now I think there are a lot of stories to be told about women my age. Agnes is quite enigmatic and has got a huge inner world.
‘I’m quite excited because I feel there’s a lot more I can do at this age – more than when I was younger.’
Puzzle is due to have its British premiere this week at the opening of the Edinburgh International Film Festival.