Dawn French on the darkness in all of us
Dawn French makes a surprising admission about her latest role as the village gossip. It seems, even Dawn is ‘a bit of a Maggie’ when it comes to telling tales…
The altogether fabulous Dawn French is taking the lead role in sixpart ITV drama, The TroublewithMaggieCole, which also stars former
Corrie actress Julie Hesmondhalgh. Filmed in South Devon and Cornwall (where TheVicarofDibley star, 62, lives with second husband, Mark Bignell), the drama explores the spectacular fall-out for busybody Maggie, when she’s caught out telling villagers’ secrets to a journalist. An interesting role for Dawn who, let’s face it, as a celebrity finds her own life is often under scrutiny – so she knows exactly what it’s like to be grist to the gossip mill…
Dawn, what does your new show capture so well about village life?
Pretty much everything. It’s looked at all the little corners. There’s a bit of darkness in how everybody responds to each other, and how you can be entrenched in your thinking with little knowledge about the subject.
A dramatic event kicks off each episode, doesn’t it?
Yes, there’s a montage at the beginning of every episode. There’s been an accident in the village. We don’t know who is involved and, as each week goes by, we find out more. The accident draws the characters together. That tension runs through it all.
What sort of a person is your character, Maggie?
She has a high opinion of herself! But she’s like that, actually, because she’s the opposite – she has a low opinion of herself. When Maggie’s asked what she does, she says she’s an historian. She runs the gift shop at the castle! But Maggie wants to matter. So, asked if she’d like to do an interview for local radio, she couldn’t think of anything better. Suddenly, someone’s listening to her.
It gets her into deep trouble doesn’t it but, in a way, it could happen to anyone…
Oh, it’s a moral dilemma any of us could get into. All of us tell stories. All of us enjoy elaborating. All of us are open to flattery. Before this, Maggie had a lovely, ordinary marriage. She and Peter have a son and spiky daughter-in-law. They’re just a family, muddling along. But Maggie interferes, many will recognise that person. She was born in this village, knows everybody’s business, and likes it that way.
Have you met a lot of ‘Maggies’, in your time?
We’re all a bit Maggie, to be honest! Humans have told stories since the beginning of time. You don’t need stories to survive. It’s not food or water or shelter or clothing. Yet we’ve all
done it, because it intrigues us. But the danger with the elaboration of stories is the damage you can cause. We live in a society where reputation is all. And Maggie carelessly throws reputations down the toilet, because she’s had a few too many gins and she’s been flattered. We used to say, ‘Today’s news is tomorrow’s fish and chip paper’, that’s not the case now, with social media.
How do you feel about social media?
Well, I’m on Twitter. Jennifer [Saunders] encouraged me. She said I’d have fun, because there are good jokes! I’m also aware that some of my work is hard to let people know about. When you write a novel or do a one-woman show, you need to let people know. But I wouldn’t want to be just selling on social media. You need to entertain or connect properly.
Maggie swiftly tries to rectify her awful mistake. Are you a big believer in forgiveness?
I can be like anyone else – quick to condemn. But we all know, in our hearts, there is no future to anything, unless you can forgive. It’s just, some things are harder to forgive than others. Very personal things. Being misrepresented can feel akin to bullying. A big untruth or injustice about you out there publicly is a horrible thing to deal with.
Your character is partial to an Eighties tune – are you?
Well, that Bros documentary did take me back to when we dressed up as them, for Star Test on French and Saunders. The unfortunate thing is, I have a bad memory… I remember a lot of Eighties music being awful, and a lot being brilliant. I saw Bananarama last year, with Siobhan (Fahey). That was wonderful.
Did you film this in some stunning locations?
We filmed on beaches that I played on as a kid, like Mothecombe. Launceston Castle is somewhere I also spent time as a girl. We did film in a lot of places that are my manor, shall we say. Of all the cast, I am the one who does know this area a bit!