Fertile ground fordrama
the babies on set and then they go back to their mams, and when you’re trying to do a job it’s just annoying, isn’t it?” Jill says.
“Because they’re crying, or they’re not doing the thing that they should do. So you don’t get all the cute time that you get as a real parent. They’re all gorgeous. They’re lovely, but they’re unpredictable.”
THE OLDER MUM
COLD FEET star Hermione Norris plays older mum Roanna, a businesswoman who is embroiled in a bitter fallout with her husband after starting a relationship with a toyboy – and finding herself falling pregnant.
Add two teenage children from her previous marriage who are
Antenatal classes aretheperfect breeding groundforbuddingfriendships. But, asthe stars ofnewBBCdramaInTheClubreveal to KEELEYBOLGER, labourandsleep patterns aren’texpectantmums’only concerns
TO SAY the BBC’s latest drama In The Club is a family affair is an understatement. Written by Fat Friends creator Kay Mellor, produced by her daughter Yvonne Francas, and with younger daughter, Emmerdale actress Gaynor Faye, working as a script editor, it’s a true family project.
And it’s not surprising that there’s such a convivial atmosphere on set in Leeds, where the cast are huddled on plastic seats and nattering between takes, given the series centres around six pregnant women – three of whom are played by Hermione Norris, Katherine Parkinson and Jill Halfpenny – who meet at a local NHS parentcraft (antenatal) class and share their anxieties and excitement about their new arrivals.
Today, six newborn babies provide plenty of ‘oohs’ and ‘ahhs’ from the cast and crew, prompting Kay, pictured right, who has also directed the first two episodes, to reminisce about when her two were small.
The series is fertile ground for the award-winning writer, with one of the characters in particular, a teenage mum called Rosie, played by newcomer Hannah Midgley, having a special resonance.
“The fact I was 16 when I had Yvonne, and then I later had Gaynor... it’s an experience that forms you as a person, I think,” says Kay, who, at the time, hid her pregnancy from everyone for five months, apart from her boyfriend Anthony, who’s now her husband.
“I was at college and fearful of people finding out. It was the inevitability of it that’s terrifying really, because it won’t go away; the bump just keeps getting bigger and bigger. It wasn’t like I was an experienced, savvy young girl, I was much the same as Rosie.”
As well as teenage pregnancy, the series also delves into the impact of pregnancy on couples’ relationships, money troubles and domestic complications. Stars Jill, Hermione and Katherine share their thoughts...
THE TROUBLED MUM
JILL HALFPENNY takes on the role of stay-at-home mum Diane, who, along with husband Rick, played by Will Mellor, adopted two children after fertility problems meant they thought they’d never conceive. Now pregnant with their “miracle baby”, Diane is cautious and has genned up on the labour.
But Jill, who won the second series of Strictly Come Dancing, admits she was less studious in her own approach, when she was pregnant with her son Harvey, five years ago.
“The only thing I’ve noticed through other friends who are expecting (is that) the hysteria surrounding what you can and can’t eat has just, in my opinion, become ridiculous,” says the 39-year-old.
“‘Oh my God, I’ve had three cups of tea today, I was only supposed to have two!’ I’m like, ‘Just chill out, it’s fine’.
“I think my mam probably thought I was uptight, but even now, I’m looking at people five years on and I’m going, ‘Really? I think you’ll be fine, it’s one piece of sushi’.”
But her character Diane won’t have much chance to fret over eating raw fish.
“Diane and Rick are really excited but Rick, unbeknown to Diane, has been made unemployed,” reveals Jill.
Being around so many babies could make you broody, but she’s unfazed. “You get five minutes with “appalled”, and you have a disaster on your hands. Perfect, then, for a TV drama.
“She’s just on the roller coaster,” explains the 47-year-old Cold Feet star. “Her marriage was unhappy and she has fallen in love with an artist, who is probably young enough to be her son.”
Unlike Roanna, Hermione enjoys a happy home life and looks back fondly on her pregnancies with her children, son Wilf and daughter Hero.
“Giving birth is the most extraordinary thing,” she says. “That moment in your life is the ultimate. That is it. In that moment, there is more drama, more emotion, more awe and bewilderment than at any other time in your life.”
Like her fellow cast members, Hermione, who is married to screenwriter Simon Wheeler, was chuffed to be handed a fully formed female character to play, and is a “huge fan” of the “really impressive” Kay and the way in which she has become an “ambassador for women in television”.
“It’s nice to be with someone that involved, because if she’s written it, produced it, directed it and she’s ok, then you know that’s a good thing,” she notes.
THE LESBIAN MUM
KATHERINE PARKINSON, 37, makes no secret of the fact that she’s been enjoying the catering bus on set – but then, she jokes, she has a good excuse.
“I’m like, ‘I’m having a pudding. I have to eat for two!’”
Pregnant in real life with her second child, the drama’s been a perfect pre-amble to her baby’s birth.
“I was very surprised to get pregnant,” says the actress, who came to prominence in The IT Crowd and already has a daughter, Dora, with her actor husband Harry Peacock.
“There couldn’t have been a nicer set to be pregnant on,” Katherine adds.
“In my first pregnancy, I was in the West End having a breakdown on stage every night. In hindsight, it wasn’t the most comfortable experience and I remember worrying that my baby would come out traumatised because I had been screaming, but it hasn’t.”
While Katherine had a great time during filming, her character Kim, who’s in a long-term relationship with Susie, played by Tara Fitzgerald, is having a much bumpier ride.
“Susie had a child she conceived 15 years ago by artificial insemination,” she explains. “Kim is now pregnant by the same man, Neil, and Susie thinks she was also artificially inseminated, but actually, Neil and Kim have feelings for each other – so you could say things are a little complicated.”
In The Club starts on BBC One on Tuesday at 9pm