GREAT COMEDY
Fleabag 2, BBC3 / Amazon Studios
in terms of the DNA of the show,” says Hammond. “It had been received really well and had a loyal fanbase. We just pushed our little Fleabag in a new direction, we watched her fall in love.” For Fleabag, it isn’t just the main character who is central to the show, Waller-Bridge stars in, writes and exec produces the programme, and that helps a lot, says Hammond. “With Phoebe, it’s a dream. She is the anchor of the show - so as a producer it’s really a joy to work with someone who has the complete vision of the show and its character’s world.”
The right balance Much of the show’s success comes down to the fact that it manages to perform that hardest of comedy
balancing acts, being both dramatic and heartfelt and, at the same time, very funny. “I think that’s all down to Phoebe,” says Hammond. “She’s a master at walking that tightrope between comedy and pathos. Both in her writing and her performance. The rest
SHE’S A MASTER AT WALKING THAT TIGHTROPE BETWEEN COMEDY AND PATHOS
of the cast too - they managed to deliver that same balance. It isn’t an easy thing to do.”
Dramatic looks The show also manages to look great, and that’s important to its success too, says Hammond. “I
think you want to do justice to the character and the world of the script. For us it was essential to give it that cinematic flair, to make Fleabag’s world feel rich but also real.”
Director Harry Bradbeer “is a great lover of independent cinema, especially the French New Wave,” says Hammond. “There’s something about capturing the freneticism of a city in that clandestine, single camera way - it imbues the show with the same youthful, exuberant energy as our lead character.” Important also, of course, was “Fleabag’s breaking of the fourth wall - we shot on anamorphic lenses which gave us the ability to present her story in cinematic widescreen, but also gave us that rich depth and connection when she looks directly in to our eyes.”
Special Supplement Spring 2021
televisual.com
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