Paula
Denise Gough plays Paula.
Tell us about your character
The basics of her character is that she is a chemistry teacher who is involved with a guy, although that isn’t the thing that defines her. She comes from a very complex family background especially with her mother.
What is brilliant about Paula is how little she cares about being liked. She’s not a likeable character on the page or playing her on screen. So often when you play lead female parts on TV, you have a duty to get the audience to like you and get them on side. What I love about Paula is that she doesn’t do that and makes all of her mistakes on camera. We see that she is very complex and very irritating! She is 'all of everything' so I’m glad to be able to play that part in a TV series.
What happens when she meets James?
I wanted to be very clear that this wasn’t going to be a woman besotted and starts behaving in a certain way because of that. This man (James) comes in and upsets her routine and we see her having to deal with somebody encroaching on her space. And it’s not just with James that she is like that. She is like that with any man that comes in and tries to control her or get something from her that she isn’t prepared to give. Paula does anything to protect the life she has created for herself – even if that means going to extremes!
What is it that drew you to the script?
Conor’s (McPherson) writing! It settles everyone in and then rips the rug from under you. I think that’s a talent that Conor has from writing for the stage. I come from a stage background and that’s how you tell the story for two and half hours on stage. Even if I wasn’t in this TV drama, it’s something I’d be really excited to watch.
Anyone who knows Conor McPherson‘s work knows that you don’t get a Conor McPherson project without the link to the supernatural. Even the dream sequences I filmed are weird and creepy! There's that sense of foreboding that you want when you’re watching an hour’s drama.
Have you worked with Conor McPherson before?
I worked with Conor years ago on a play called The Birds and I have loved Conor’s work for a long time even before that. We’ve had a great experience back then. After that I had a very quiet period in my career for a bit. I then struck gold with a beautiful play called People, Places and Things which lots of people came to see so I think it’s a result of me playing that part that I’ve got this part. So I thank that play for reintroducing me to Conor and introducing me to the people that cast Paula!
