THE AUSTEN HEROINE

Rose Williams, 28, starred in the ITV period drama Sanditon and is in the upcoming film Mrs Harris Goes to Paris

Mrs Harris Goes to Paris is about a 1950s cleaner, played by Lesley Manville, who goes to Paris after falling in love with a Dior couture dress. Did you enjoy filming it?

Yes, it brought a bit of glitz and glamour after months of lockdown. My character was inspired by Jayne Mansfield, so I bleached my hair blonde. I’ve always wanted to play 1950s dress-up, so it was a lot of fun. Your mum worked in costumes for the BBC?

Yes and I worked in [upmarket boutique] Dover Street Market and thought about pursuing a career in fashion. I started helping mum on odd jobs and ended up on set, then suddenly had this urge to act. I had no idea how the industry worked so I cold-called agents and landed a job in a historical drama based in Toronto. I’d never been on a long-haul flight before. It was very character building.

How did your leading role as Sanditon’s Charlotte Heywood come about?

Another actress was offered the part but dropped out, so at the last minute it came to me – I couldn’t believe it!

What would people be surprised to learn about you?

I’m a Lego geek. Yesterday I made a bunch of flowers that I’m going to keep in a vase and at Christmas I got a set based on the Friends café Central Perk.