The fun of the Fair
Rising star Olivia Cooke on leading a dazzling new adaptation of classic novel Vanity Fair...
The Summer of sport is finally over, and it’s time for a sumptuous period drama to whisk us away. ITV’S new adaptation of William Makepeace Thackeray’s 19th-century novel Vanity Fair breathes new life into one of the most independent and audacious women in literature, the irrepressible Becky Sharp.
The seven-part series (which kicks off with two episodes this week) sees orphan Becky start out with nothing after being sacked from her job as a French teacher at an academy for young ladies.
Becky sets out into the world determined to seize any and every
opportunity to make her fortune – no matter who she tramples on to get to the top – and meets suitors and setbacks along the way.
‘Becky’s completely her own woman and everything is on her terms,’ says rising star Olivia Cooke, who plays her. ‘She’s very selfish, unapologetic and completely manipulative when she wants to be, but she’s also fun, strong and sees the light in every situation – she never pretends to be virtuous. Some viewers may see her as the villain, but it’s subjective.’
Becky’s snooty former employer, headmistress Miss Pinkerton (played by Doctor Foster’s Suranne Jones), punishes her with the threat of working as a governess in ‘darkest Hampshire’ – a fate Becky dreads and sets out to avoid at all costs.
‘Becky enjoys the chase for wealth and status,’ explains Oldham-born Olivia, 24, as she chats to TV Times on set in Surrey. ‘Her upbringing was awful, so she always had to be a survivor and she lives off her own strength. She’s always craving more, so I don’t think she’ll ever be truly happy.
‘Sometimes when you watch a period drama everyone’s very stoic and rigid, but this is different. These are really outrageous characters and the story is accessible to a modern-day audience, but still has all the carriages, bonnets and gorgeous houses of a period drama.’
Olivia leads a star-studded cast in the lavish series, acting opposite the likes of Michael Palin, Martin Clunes, Frances de la Tour and Claire Skinner. ‘It’s been amazing to work with the people I have grown up watching,’ smiles Olivia, who starred in Steven Spielberg’s science-fiction film Ready Player
One earlier this year.
‘Everyone was starstruck working with Michael, but he was such a gentleman. There’s a bit of
pressure on us because Vanity Fair is a beloved novel, but this is the most proud my mum has ever been of me because I’m going to be on Sunday-night telly!’
While Olivia has enjoyed the chance to star in a classic British period drama, she admits the one downside is the unglamorous process of getting dressed up in the elaborate costumes.
‘There’s a lot of faff and you’re never really warm either,’ she says. ‘I’m used to it now, but at first it’s weird having someone arrive at
6am to help you to pull your chest and waist into a corset. It does help you transport yourself to that time and place, but it is quite restrictive. No wonder women wanted to be liberated – it’s just so uncomfortable!’