We’ve had Zoom parties to celebrate TV hit, says India
ONE of the breakout stars of Normal People has revealed the cast of the coming-ofage love story are having Zoom celebrations to toast the show’s success.
Dubliner India Mullen lights up the screen of the languidly shot series as Peggy, one of Marianne’s best friends.
Talking from her parents’ home in Dublin, where she is spending lockdown, she said it was hard to believe the series was being hailed as a modern masterpiece.
“In lockdown, it’s hard to compute because, obviously, we are all just in our homes like everyone else,” she said.
“We’ve done some Zoom celebrations like the rest of the world, but we haven’t been able to see each other.”
She is glad the cast spent time dancing in Rome after finishing an idyllic twoweek shoot in the Italian hills.
“Filming in Italy was just a dream come true. We started work obviously very early in the morning and the sunrises were just so beautiful. It was just such a dream because by that stage we were all really close and it was the end of the shoot.
“There was a wrap party in Dublin for everyone and then there was a kind of a mini one in Rome.”
India, who moved to London three years ago, is proud that the worldwide smash hit is giving a fresh window into Irish culture.
“Every shot is just stunning. I just feel like obviously I am so proud of Ireland and for me it represents the island I know.
“Gaelic football is not a sport that is very well known in other countries, so it’s great to have Gaelic football on screens globally, it definitely feels like it goes into details of our culture that aren’t otherwise kind of shared, so it’s great.”
The show, produced by Element Pictures, has been hailed by Vogue for its sartorial elegance with the female characters dressing in a mix of vintage threads and upmarket brands.
Her character epitomises millennial cool in orange fur coats and tasselled blue sequins dreamed up by Irish costume designer Lorna Mugan, who worked on
Peaky Blinders.
“Lorna had such a brilliant eye for all of the characters across the board, and I guess I was lucky in that Peggy is definitely somebody who clothes matter to a lot,” she says.
India had been previously best known for
Red Rock, and landing the part in Normal People ofa real “pinch-me” moment.
“Peggy is quite a colourful and complex character. She requires a lot of attention, out of insecurity really. While she definitely can be flawed, I just found her really fascinating and complex.
“Peggy can be definitely manipulative in terms of Marianne but I think Peggy is ultimately very dependent on Marianne.”
And she has been largely insulated from the huge fame of Normal People in lockdown. “I’m useless,” she said. “I have not had a single bit of recognition at all.
“I guess I’ve been like a hermit. I’ve obviously had lovely messages online but no interaction. So, if that happens when I go back to London, I think I’ll be completely surprised.”
The cast have been amused at the extraordinary reactions and memes created from the show.
“It’s so, so funny, there’s Marianne’s bangs and Connell’s chain, between the two of those, everybody finds it absolutely hilarious.
“We knew the show was going to be huge. I think the level of hype is really unprecedented so we’re in touch all the time, sharing funny memes about it. I was excited about Richard E Grant, he tweeted about us and I was just buzzing about that.”
The two leads,
Paul Mescal and
Daisy
Edgar-Jones, have been catapulted to fame since the show was released but India says they are taking it all in their stride.
“I really couldn’t think of two people that are more deserving of the success, but also would handle it so well because they are really both incredibly grounded people. The set felt so warm. So now watching the two of those just take flight is just so joyous because they’ve become two of my best pals.”
India has an interesting insight into the muchtalked about spark between the lead actors.
“I think Daisy and Paul are really good pals, and when it comes to screen chemistry, I think so much of it is down to trust.
“My observation of it, knowing them as people and actors, is they just had trust and respect for each other that reads on screen as this beautiful chemistry.
“When I met them, I was like I’m so happy such kind people got these roles. They really have that kind of X Factor.”
And while stars of the show are expected to be flooded with offers, India says everything is up in the air at the moment.
“It’s quite a precarious time for film and theatre generally. There’s nothing really I can discuss because it’s all so unpredictable.”
‘Normal People’ airs on RTE One on Tuesday at 10.15pm and on the RTE Player.