Interview with Camille Coduri (Peggy)

How much fondness do you have for Peggy?
We’ve been on quite a long journey together. We shot the pilot at Jack’s Auntie Rose’s house, which was really something. That could be seven years ago this year, maybe more. I remember lying on her bed, chatting with Jack and Dylan, while they set up. We all got on like a house on fire. But it was really special, because the real Auntie Rose, is Jack’s mother’s sister, and a massive part of her life. I’ve loved Peggy from the off, and down the line when I don’t play her anymore, there will be such sadness, but fond memories. I’ll miss her.

 Actors often say they take parts of a character away with them. What have you learnt from playing Peggy?
There’s definitely a part of me that is like Peggy. I am the proud mother of a gay son, so I do feel that there’s the kindred spirit there anyway. Also, she’ll always have my voice, naturally, and I do lighten it up a little bit with Peggy. What will I take away? Her heart but mostly being a widow, I will take with me. If I do become a widow, which is probably plausible because my husband’s 10 years older than me, I would know how to have that dignity. Peggy has real dignity with being a widow, and I’ve learnt from that.

How much interaction did you have with Jack’s real-life mum? In terms of nailing down specific mannerisms and quirks.
I met Josie; got the quirks, got the mannerisms. And I’d have the odd video sent to me by Jack, not, ‘Here’s my mum, this is how you should be,’ but ‘Mum’s saying hello.’ If I could just have an inch of her balls - I’ve got some cajónes, no problem, but she’s got this thing, you would never mess with her. She is wonderful. I just wanted to honour her. As an actor, your job is mainly, I think, to honour your writer. And of course, it’s so personal to Jack, his mother, the whole thing, so I had to get it right.

Peggy’s relationship with Russell is handled so delicately - the whole idea of growing close to someone else after losing a significant other. 
Completely. Peggy just couldn’t go there after Jack’s dad died. It was unthinkable. She becomes a little bit selfish in a good way. She decides it might be a really nice thing to give it a go. The last series, we saw Peggy and Danny have that chat, when they were having a ciggie about, ‘Well, yeah, I’m not going to rule it out, seeing someone else, but don’t tell my son, he’ll have kittens.’ She goes for it because she really likes Russell. She just wants to be out with a nice guy. 

 What comedy does so well is wiggle from a comedy gag to something that tugs at the heartstrings. 
Jack’s amazing at that, isn’t he? It’s hilarious, you’re really laughing, and then back to, ‘Oh God, he’s dead, that’s a sign, Laurie’s dead, Laurie’s telling me.’ I love those moments. That’s what makes the show such a success, such a hit with everybody. It’s actually a show about bereavement, about loss, and sometimes through loss and grief, it can be hilarious; the journey of sadness, of losing that person. 

What kind of messages do you get from fans? What do people say to you?
It’s just complete love. I went to America and did a Doctor Who thing over there. Lots and lots of fans of Dr Who had got hold of Big Boys and were watching that.

The show has been praised for exploring grief, sexuality, and mental health. But in the series three opener Peggy raises awareness of another tricky subject… making sure you zoom in when you send a selfie.
That was funny, wasn’t it? I wasn’t very well, so I’d lost all my muscle density. My arse looked terrible. It couldn’t have been worse. My husband said to me, ‘You’ve got a great arse, it’s going to be amazing.’ But because I wasn’t very well, I hadn’t eaten for, like, three days, it was just all over the place. I thought, oh no, it’s really bad. But it’s a funny old arse. There’s something funny about an old woman’s arse, isn’t there? I was definitely up for that. I’m doing it for the girls in their 50s and 60s.

Can you share a memorable behind-the-scenes moment?
One of them was actually away from set. Harriet and Jon and I went down to the beach in Malta. It was dark, the sea was lapping. We all really love each other, it’s quite a big deal, we were talking about that, and then all these fireworks went off in the sky, like it was just for us. That was beautiful. We looked at each other, then Jon took his shirt off and ran into the sea… We have laughed like drains. We’re very connected, and we will be for life. I said to them all, ‘You’ll be at my funeral,’ and they were like, ‘Camille!’ 

Jack has spoken before about wanting to celebrate the women in his life, specifically working-class women, in a rich, warm, loving way. Is that a rare thing to find in scripts these days?
Entirely. They are exceedingly rare. I think women are getting a bit of a second chance and things are more diverse, which is great. But it’s quite hard to – we are in a world full of misogyny. It’s really quite difficult. Not to get political but it’s hard to be in any minority, because you do get a bum deal. What works is, actors and people that can sell, can get bums on seats, and a lot of drama schools, they do take more boys than girls. Obviously, now it’s different… it’s so nice to be able to play rich, warm, and working-class women. We exist. We are here. Like it, get used to it.