Jodie Comer is turning heads once again thanks to a fantastic performance as Ivy Moxam in hit BBC3 drama Thirteen, but despite the success of her new show, the actress says people still want to talk to her about *that* slap in Doctor Foster!
“It was so choreographed,” said Jodie, who launched at Suranne Jones, who played the wronged wife in the hit BBC1 drama of 2015. Jodie played the girl having an affair with her husband.
“We spent a while on it because we couldn’t quite get it right, but in the end my hand was a long way from Suranne’s head. They did a really good job in selling it though because it looked great. I remember on Gogglebox Miranda Hart said ‘That was quite a slap!’ which was amazing!
“I got all the names under the sun for that role!” continued Jodie. “A lot of people have something to say about her, but then people meet you and say ‘Wow, you’re actually not a bad person!’”
In Thirteen Jodie plays a girl trying to piece her life back together after being held captive in a cellar for 13 years and she admits that some days on set were quite intense.
“There are some heavy scenes so I have to make sure I’m in the right head space,” she said. “It was going all right and then I woke up and one morning and I did feel really emotional! There have been a lot of phone calls home to mum and dad after I finish on set. They’re great for that kind of stuff!”
Her family couldn’t be on set, but Jodie was delighted to find that one of her fellow cast members hailed from the same part of Liverpool as she did.
“Katherine Rose Morley, who plays Ivy’s sister Emma, actually went to the same secondary school as me back home in Liverpool,” explained 23-year-old Jodie. “We have friends of friends and stuff. It’s bizarre. People say we look a little bit like each other as well, although she’s older than me even though I’m playing her older sister.”
While the pair shared a few laughs on set, Jodie admitted Katherine was jealous when she heard how little time her co-star had to spend in make-up every morning!
“That’s what’s really nice about playing someone who’s been underground for 13 years. When I arrive in the morning they just brush my hair, pale my skin down and add bags under my eyes, which is good because if I’ve had a bad night’s sleep it’s not that much trouble!”
Thirteen continues on BBC2 on Sunday night, with next week’s episode available on the BBC iPlayer the same evening.
The second series of Doctor Foster will begin filming this autumn.
