CHARLIE BROOKS
SHE’S KNOWN TO MILLIONS AS EASTENDERS SUPERVILLAIN JANINE BUTCHER, BUT CHARLIE BROOKS IS OUT TO SHOW SHE’S MORE THAN JUST HER KILLER SOAP ALTER EGO
After seven years away from Albert Square, Charlie Brooks is back on the box fronting Lie With Me, a new four-part drama that sees her character Anna relocate to Australia to save her marriage.
With locations that give Selling Sunset a run for its money, Aussie hunk Brett Tucker playing her on-screen hubby Jake and plenty of X-rated action, it’s a series that is sure to entice her army of fans.
And for Charlie, who’s best known as Walford’s wicked Janine Butcher, it provided a welcome distraction from the pandemic, as she swapped Britain for sunny Melbourne, which also gave her a boost after years of TV knockbacks.
We caught up with Charlie, 40, to find out how she’s handled lockdown, life after her booze ban and how she’s going to help her 16-year-old daughter Kiki navigate the darker side of life as an actress.
Hi Charlie! What can you reveal about
Lie With Me?
I play Anna, who’s moved to Australia to try to save her marriage, because it’s become very toxic and she’s been made to feel like she’s losing her mind. She was a very strong woman who did well, but she’s lost herself completely. She’s compromised herself to be with her husband. It all adds to her apparent paranoia, but little do we know what’s actually going on under the surface.
The family’s new home in Melbourne is very impressive…
Oh yeah, the house envy was real! I can remember the first day we walked into that place, I was like, “Holy s**t, she’s really rich!” There’s a pool, which I never got to go in unfortunately, a running track in the back yard, and a life-size dinosaur that actually moves in the garden.
You haven’t been on TV for a while, was that out of choice?
I wish. No, it’s really hard. Sometimes you’re working loads and sometimes you’re not. I made a choice to go and do some theatre because it’s so far out of my comfort zone – it’s terrifying but brilliant. You do self-taped auditions for TV all the time and don’t get them, which can be soul-destroying but you just continue!
How do you keep your confidence up when you suffer knockbacks?
I think it’s really important to have a life and for acting not to be the be-all and end-all of everything. I have a great life with really great family and friends, so that’s really important. You don’t always win with the confidence thing or feeling slightly rejected when you don’t get a part, but you just have to accept it and move on. And also trust that there’s a great plan and you are exactly where you’re meant to be and that everything happens for a reason. I think as long as I hold on to that, without sounding too spiritual, that’s kept me in good stead.
Were you nervous when you started filming this series?
I did feel nervous, yeah. I think that’s only natural – I always feel nervous whenever I start a job. I would worry if I didn’t feel nervous! I think it’s always quite daunting, especially when you go to a new country and are meeting new people and having to meet expectations at being good enough – all of those things. I think they all played a part in my psyche at some level.
So do you suffer from imposter syndrome?
Totally, yes. All the time. I don’t know if you do push through it – it can be really uncomfortable. What I’ve learnt is to just accept the way that I feel and know that most people in the room probably feel the same. If they don’t, then they are probably a bit of a d**k! Not because they don’t have imposter syndrome – just those confident people who think they’ve got it all made, I’m always like, “Shut up!”
How do you combat that anxiety?
I guess the past few years that I’ve started to feel more at ease with myself, so that’s definitely played a part. And just accepting all those insecurities about yourself and knowing that they are a part of you and that’s OK. That can be quite useful.
Have you been surprised by the reaction from fans to the news you’re returning to
Eastenders?
I was very surprised when I saw the messages on Instagram. Seeing all the love from fans has been quite amazing. It always makes me think fondly of the character and I’m just so happy that Janine’s been well received. She’s iconic!
Is there still a snobbery around soap stars?
I think people definitely have an opinion on soap actors – not all people and that might be changing. There have been some fantastic actors who’ve come from a soap and gone on to do some amazing things. But, for sure, there’s a stigma because soaps are quick and hugely dramatised. There’s a definite style that comes with the job and being able to step back from that is where the work is. As a training ground there’s no better job than a soap like Eastenders.
Has it been hard to shed Janine as a character?
Yeah, I haven’t done many roles, so clearly! Janine is iconic as a character so it’s hard for people to see you in anything else. I think I’m A Celebrity probably helped with that because people got to see Charlie and Janine are very different. I can either choose to think it’s screwed me over, that I’m only ever going to be seen as that, or you can think that Janine is brilliant.
Your daughter Kiki is now following in your footsteps as an actress. How do you feel about that, knowing the ups and downs she’s going to face?
She knows all about them, she’s witnessed them and we speak very openly about it. I don’t think anything will come as a surprise to her. I was blessed with very, very supportive parents, so I can only offer what I was given to her. My parents did a great job of making me feel supported and loved, and I want to do the same for Kiki. But at the same time I also want to encourage her to keep her options open. She’s expressive in many ways – she’s a brilliant writer, a fantastic photographer, and she has great leadership qualities. So who knows where that might take her?
Is there any advice you give her that you wish someone had told you when you were starting out?
I wish that I trusted myself more and I wish that I listened to my own opinion and believed in myself a little more. I also wish that I was able to be more truthful about who I was and what I had to offer, know that everything doesn’t have to be perfect – some of the best stuff as a human and an actress, is in the flaws. It’s OK to have those and to own it, to be unafraid of who you are. People compare themselves all the time and it’s really tough, especially for her generation. There’s a reason suicide rates have gone up in young people and self-harming, it’s worrying. All you can do is nudge them in the right direction and hope that they listen.
How has turning 40 changed you?
It’s definitely fair to say I feel liberated. Making certain changes in myself, having an idea and acting on it, taking a good look at who I am and who I want to be, all of that. There are loads of different ingredients which amounted to me feeling in a really good place at 40.
You’ve given up alcohol, have you seen a real change in your life since then?
Not drinking has freed up time. You don’t sit in front of the TV and have a glass, which turns into a bottle, so you have your evenings. You rediscover things you love and get productive, make stuff happen. I think consistency and balance have been introduced and all those benefits are huge. I’m just starting to look after myself more and it’s really liberating to put yourself first. Some people don’t get it, they will see you as selfish but I simply don’t care! If I don’t want to go out somewhere, then I’m not going to go and I don’t care what you think, sorry! I am so tired of caring what people think and people-pleasing all the time, I’m just not doing it any more. I’m going to do things that make me happy.
How has lockdown been for you?
I like to knit, I’m basically an old woman in a 40-year-old’s body! I’m just down with the slower pace of life, if I’m honest. It’s been a revelation, just actually being really content getting into bed with my book at 10 o’clock.
Have you got a bucket list, career-wise?
I’ve got loads of ideas. I’ve got a film that I want to get adapted and made into a play. I’m also co-creating a series with a friend of mine, who’s a writer. I would never have been able to have these conversations or feel confident enough and believe that I could do something like that. But now, something’s changed. Something’s switched in my head and I absolutely know that all of that is possible. I’m really excited about that. And I’m really excited about exploring comedy and a period drama – there’s loads I want to do.
It sounds like the pandemic has reignited your creativity?
It has somehow. I think it started just before, but when you feel like your life is standing still and you feel a little bit stuck, it’s finding ways to get unstuck and finding ways to reach your potential and to do things that bring you joy. It’s all about stepping out of your comfort zone and really learning to trust yourself, be curious and go out in the world and play. There are loads of different facets of my personality that I really want to explore.
‘It’s ok to have flaws and to be unafraid of who you are’
When was your last pinch-me moment?
I think flying first class to Australia to film Lie With Me, it made me feel so lucky. I feel so blessed. I have an enormous sense of gratitude and I have to say I have that all the time. When me and my daughter are sitting side by side in the car, she trusts me and we have a really deep conversation about something. That’s just like, “Thank you, thank you, thank you.” I feel really grateful and really blessed at the moment. words: katie begley photos: rex/shutterstock
LIE WITH ME, Mon 12-thurs 15 July, 9pm, channel 5