Friday, May 8, 2015 follow us on Twitter @Argus_The Guide
taking her talent on tour, playing Sandra in the iconic play Beautiful Thing
Walford’s inest doing beautiful things...
THE ‘Walford witch’ has finally left the East End, and now you’ll be see- ing Charlie Brooks in a wholly dif- ferent incarnation. The actress has appeared in epi- sodes of The Bill, Jonathan’s Creek and, of course, EastEnders, but come spring, she’ll be taking on the theatre, appearing in Beautiful Thing. The play follows two young men, Jaimie and Ste, and their blossom- ing romance in an inner city hous- ing estate. Together the two boys find comedy, warmth and the music of Mama Cass through their loud- mouthed next door neighbor Leah.
Theatre
Brooks plays Sandra, Jamie’s mum and the local barmaid. “What doesn’t attract me to the
play?” Brooks grins. “I was ob- sessed with the film when I was a kid, I watched it like 100 times, I was one of the cult followers really. I re- member seeing Surrane (Jones) in the play last year and going ‘ooh, I want to do that, put me in it! Lo and behold, a year or two later here I am, so it’s like a dream come true.” It’s hard for bubbly Brooks to pin- point exactly why the iconic play resonates with her.
NEW ROLE: Actress Charlie Brooks “Just the content of the story,”
she began. “I went to theatre school where I had lots of gay friends - I had a boyfriend that was gay!” she laughs. “So it’s always been important, the performances in the film were just amazing and it’s a great character for me, so it’s a rally big draw all round really.” And Beautiful Thing still endures
to this day, despite being more than 20 years old. “There are still, especially in the
regional areas where we are tour- ing, people going through this very same issue and people still terrified of coming out, they don’t knowhow to do it and they are scared of talk- ing about it. I think that it’s a time- less play, it’s brilliant, it’s funny, it’s sad, and I think that it speaks to a lot of people still.” We suggested that the role of strong young mum Sandra seems a happy fit for Brooks. “Are you saying I’m a feisty single mum?!” the actress laughs. “What I’m hoping to do is to bring a great deal of warmth to it, know what I mean? She’s feisty, she’s loud, she’s not afraid to speak her mind, she’s had a hard life and fought to be where she is, fought to bring up that little boy, so the relationship that they have is one that’s very special in the end.” She then added: “I’ve got some of
the best lines – I just can’t wait to say them.” Calling this ‘completely different’
BEAUTIFUL THING: Charlie will play Sandra
from the television work for which she is best known, however, Brooks is feeling the nerves. “With learning lines in EastEnders, they go in very quickly, it’s in and out because it’s so quick and so fast paced. I haven’t done a great deal of theatre so this
is all quite new, so I’m shi**ing it to be honest! I just hope I’m ok. But it’s so exciting.” It’s nerve-wracking, but it’s
a positive step forward for the actress and mum of one. “I am busy, but it’s great because I feel like I am achieving what I set out to when I left Eastenders, so I feel really, really lucky,” she says. The 18-week tour will also
take her away from her daugh- ter, Kiki, and it wasn’t an easy decision to come to. “I love be- ing at home, I love
it.Mydaugh- ter is 10 now, which is such an important time and I’ve never been away or gone away with work, so when this came up I had a lengthy conversation with my immediate family members and decided that it was now my turn to be able to go off and spend time away. We have a few days off in-between theatre moves so I’ll be able to get back and she’ll also come down and see me, so we’re go- ing to make it work. But I am a bit nervous about it. She is very adaptable and mymumis there and her dad is there, so I have a brilliant support system, we have a close knit family.” Andevenwhen the tour comes
to a close, the stage will be call- ing once again. “I’m starting another play called Contact at the Park theatre in Finsbury. It’s a new play about swinging! It’s a bit raunchy, which I’m a bit nervous about, but it’s excit- ing!”
Charlie Brooks stars in Beau-
tiful Thing at Cardiff New The- atre from July 14 to 18. Call 029 2087 8889 for tickets.
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Best knownas EastEnders troublemaker Janine Butcher, Charlie Brooks is now
Fight for your vote
DRAMA: Selma
SELMA, the film which portrays the his- tory of the 1965 Selma to Montgomery voting right marches led by Martin Lu- ther King is set to take the cinema screen at The Riverfront from May 11-13. In 1965, Americans took to their TV screens as they waited for a revolution to begin in Selma, a small townin lowerwest Alabama. Selma shows us the vicious and long awaited victory for Martin Lu- ther King and his ongoing fight for equal rights. King is faced with three months of opposition as well as the government try- ing to ruin his marriage all in the pursuit for securing the right to vote. Directed by Ava DuVernay and written
by Paul Webb, Selma is a winning mix of vulnerability, intensity and strength that will leave you feeling emotional yet upbeat. David Oyelowo’s performance of King is one to be praised as he captures his distinctive way of speaking and pres- ence. Oprah Winfrey also stars in this film that documents a history of struggle so well.
9 entertainment extra
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gwent-wales.co.uk matthew.berry
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