A MERRY MONARCH
Jenna Coleman on Victoria
Actress Jenna Coleman may be wowing TV viewers around the world with her portrayal of Queen Victoria, but the young star admits playing the iconic monarch has helped her change as a person.
Jenna has returned to our screens on TVNZ 1 with the second series of Victoria, which chronicles the tempestuous love affair between the Queen and Prince Albert, as well as changing times in Great Britain’s history.
The latest series, written by royal writer Daisy Goodwin, picks up a month after the birth of Victoria’s first child in 1840, and sees the Queen surprise the court by insisting on returning to her duties.
Daisy has teased “a decade of revolution, famine and unrest – and for Victoria, much child-bearing“this season.
But for Jenna, the role has been one that has made her see the British royal family in a new light.
“It has been quite a revelation, actually,“admits Jenna (31). “From beginning to end, she is quite surprising and I was surprised how little I knew when I started. A lot of people said to me, ‘You can’t play Victoria. She is stern and old, and wore black for the rest of her life.’
“But, actually, I don’t think people realised how vivid she is and what a lust for life she had. Considering the way she was brought up, none of that quashed that spirit.
I find that fascinating.
“As we see her go from teenager to Queen, we see her balancing this relationship and this dynamic. She grows through the series into this formidable woman with a vein of steel, but never loses her humour or selfconsciousness. There are definitely moments when we see her undignified. The wonderful thing about her is that she is so flawed and human, and you get to see that.
“I did not imagine the week before I got the script that I would play the greatest monarch that ever lived. It never feels real until it lands on your desk and you find yourself in costume. That has been really interesting.”
Jenna and real-life love Tom Hughes (31), who plays Albert, have won praise for the series, despite the pressure to get the historical accuracy of the show right, as well as the costumes.
“When I got to wear a crown for the role, it was nerve-wracking – more challenging, I would say,” tells Jenna. “On the day of her coronation, the crown was too big for her head and the ring got put on the wrong finger. A lot of it was green screen so a lot of it was reacting.
It was meant to wobble.
That was done on purpose.
“We started off in dresses we felt she would have been dressed in by other people – very girlie and young – and as we go through the series, we see her business wear and formal wear, then as Albert comes in you see the romantic wear. The costume designers told a real story there.
“When you take on something very iconic, you want to be sure you can do it to the best of your ability.
You have to consider those things, but it unfolded in front of me and it was impossible to turn down. I would have been crazy. It was a gift to explore and to live this life.
“When I left Doctor Who, the first thing I said was, ‘I don’t want to do another series for a while,’ then I was taken out for lunch. It has been such an adventure. I’ve loved it.“
As well as the costumes, brown-eyed Jenna had to wear blue coloured contact lenses for the role to make sure she had Victoria’s eyes perfect.
“I must have gone through about 70 pairs with different camera tests,” she reveals. “If you look at any portraits, the first thing you see are her eyes. They pop out at you and it is great to look so different.“
And despite the complicated dialogue in the script, Jenna had no problem at all learning her lines, saying, “I don’t really learn them. Somehow, it goes in. I know other people who do all sorts of things, like recording the other person, then reading it against yourself. If you read your scripts, it kind of happens.
“When you read a script, you immediately engage. Matt Smith, who used to play Doctor Who when I was in it, once said it is like having an imaginary friend you hang around with for a while and you get to know them.“
As well as winning praise from critics, Jenna says her biggest fans are her family, who came to see a day’s filming.
“We shoot the show in an airport hangar, so you get hit with a bit of reality when you walk outside. You walk out of the studio and, if it has been raining, you have to put on your wellies, pick up the dress and walk over to your trailer. The practicalities of filming bring you down to earth.“
Finally, she adds, “It is not how you play the part, really. My grandma and Mum came to watch the coronation scene. It is just bringing stories to life. There is so much material in her diaries. But when you walk into our sets, you forget where you are.
“What I have grown most to love about her is her frankness – she says exactly what she thinks. Unapologetically, so. I feel I’ve got to know her more and more, I’ve found that she is so incredibly human – vital and full of secrets hidden behind misconceptions.“
‘ I don’t think people realised how vivid she is and what a lust for life she had’