Keeley’s tears
Keeley Hawes opens up about her harrowing new crime drama, Honour – her toughest role to date…
Chameleonic actress Keeley Hawes is known for playing complex, difficult characters – and this week, she’s back on our smallscreens with powerful new drama, Honour – a two-part ITV series recounting the horrific true story of Banaz Mahmod, a young woman murdered by her own family, in a so-called ‘honour’ killing for falling in love with the ‘ wrong’ man. Mum-of-three Keeley, 44 – who is married to fellow actor Matthew Macfadyen – plays reallife DCI Caroline Goode who tirelessly fought to bring Banaz’s murderers to justice (she is now retired, after 33 years in the London Met police force). In one powerful scene from the show, Keeley’s Caroline asks, ‘ What kind of people think anything in the world is more important than their children’s lives?’ Indeed, Keeley, star of Bodyguard and The Durrells, breaks down as she discusses her most emotional role so far…
What drew you to Honour?
Well, when I was sent the script, I actually felt ashamed – as it was a subject I knew little about. I went through every emotion, and I was so embarrassed that I didn’t know. I thought, I can really learn about this in-depth.
Coronavirus happened in the middle of filming, didn’t it?
Yes, of course we had no idea when we started making this show that lockdown would happen – and it would make this shocking story all the more timely – at a time when cases of domestic violence were on the rise here.
What drew you to the role of DCI Caroline Goode?
Honour is the story of two extraordinary women, and she is one of them. I read the script, sat down and watched the 2012 documentary film, Banaz: A Love Story and I was able to see this woman – that I was about to play – in action, talking about her experience, which is very unusual! She’s such an extraordinary person. In her determination, her love – I don’t want to put words into Caroline’s mouth – but in her love for Banaz. Her determination to achieve justice for her was unlike anything I’d ever come across. It was a role I could not have turned down.
Did you meet Caroline, in person?
I did, very early on in filming. She came to set, and we had a cup of tea and a chat! It’s always odd meeting someone you’re going to play – it’s a
strange thing. But in Caroline’s case, we did have some artistic licence. Unless you know Caroline personally, you don’t know her – it’s not like taking on Margaret Thatcher, or the Queen. For one thing, I’m 5ft 10in and Caroline is very… petite! But yes, seeing her as a real person and being able to ask her questions was amazing.
What did you ask her?
She did this job day in, day out. In our drama, the team are on this one case. But there could be 10 going on at any one time. So, I thought, you can’t expend that kind of emotional energy on every case. But Caroline said yes, it was most of the time highly emotional. You can’t be seeing and hearing certain things and not be touched.
Was she as you imagined?
She’s a real force to be reckoned with, but she’s very lightlyspoken. I couldn’t have imagined her commanding a room full of police officers! That was quite surprising. We’ve toned down her looks, too – she’s a very stylish woman. She wore heels all the time, working in the police force.
With a real-life story, is there more pressure to get it right?
Oh, we were all so mindful that we were dealing with real people. Banaz, Caroline, their families, everyone this terrible crime touched. More than on anything else I’ve ever worked on. The responsibility is huge, I felt it every single day… [Keeley starts to cry]. You want to give Banaz the upmost respect and do right by Caroline. What Banaz and her family have been through is unimaginable. And Caroline – she dedicated her life to this case.
This couldn’t be further than your sun-soaked show, The Durrells! How did you decompress, after intense days on set?
Oh, I’d go home and just… do the normal things, you have dinner with your children… chat to your husband. When you’ve been in a literal morgue all day, simply being in an environment like that has an effect. But you hold on to the knowledge that you’ll be helping shine a light on so-called ‘honour’ killings. If one girl or woman doesn’t have to go through what Banaz had to go through because someone’s seen this – then Honour has been a success.
Honour’s second and final episode is on Tuesday at 9pm, on ITV. If you missed the first episode (on Monday), catch up on ITV Hub.