None of us are strangers to the unique intrigue of biopics and historical drama – the success of Netflix hit The Crown and the hype surrounding upcoming Marilyn Monroe drama Blonde attests to it – but how do we feel about a TV show telling a story that is still unfolding?
Actor Ophelia Lovibond has been tasked with telling such a tale. She has brought Boris Johnson’s wife Carrie Johnson (née Symonds) to the small screen in Sky’s TV drama This England out this Wednesday, 28th September. Also starring Kenneth Branagh as the former Prime Minister, the show follows the monumental events that occurred after the Covid-19 outbreak at the beginning of 2020, as well as the government’s handling of the “first wave” of national lockdowns.
Ophelia catches up with GLAMOUR as the world is reeling from the passing of Queen Elizabeth II – we speak the day after her death was announced. “I was cycling back from yoga this morning, past all the digital billboards of the Queen. It’s surreal to be living through,” she says. “We’ve witnessed so much history the past few years.”
She describes feeling “curious” about how This England will be received by audiences as a different moment in history, seeing as the impact of Covid-19 and the lockdowns that followed are still felt keenly by all. “It’s still so current,” she says. “People have got such strong opinions… [and] might already have made their minds up about [those] involved.”
The thought of the real Carrie watching This England has crossed her mind, Ophelia admits, especially because of the decision she made not to contact the Johnsons while preparing for her role. “Typically, playing a real person is a gift,” Ophelia says, referring to the opportunity to ask questions. “But I felt that speaking to Carrie would’ve made me less objective.”
After going back and forth, she decided to only speak to some people who knew Carrie from her school days, so as not to let too many opinions disrupt the formation of the character. “There’s so much written about Carrie in the tabloid press that is inherently unreliable,” Ophelia explains. “I thought it would be more even handed to do as much of my own research as I could and take the facts as they are.”
Kenneth and Ophelia’s physical transformation into the former PM and his wife is really quite extraordinary – a true masterclass by make-up artist Vanessa Martin, who has worked on huge titles such as Bridget Jones’s Diary and Gravity. Ophelia sent a picture of herself as Carrie to her mum, who immediately assumed it was an IRL picture of Mrs Johnson (“I thought to myself ‘okay, that’s a good sign!’”).
Phil Fisk