All posts tagged: Scanlan

Joanna Scanlan on the death of her childhood friend: ‘At boarding school, emotions were packed into a small, tidy box’

Joanna Scanlan on the death of her childhood friend: ‘At boarding school, emotions were packed into a small, tidy box’

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Joanna Scanlan was just 14 when she experienced major grief for the first time. Her childhood friend Sarah, to whom she’d been joined at the hip since they were small, was 15 and just on the cusp of womanhood when she was hit by a car and killed. “I had to accept that Sarah wasn’t actually just around the corner or gone to Australia on holiday,” she said. “The shock of that lasted a long time.” Scanlan, Bafta-winning star of The Thick of It and After Love, is speaking about Sarah’s death publicly for the first time, 50 years on. She is one of 11 actors and poets, also including Alison Steadman, Ophelia Lovibond and Lemn Sissay, who are reading poems in memory of their loved ones to commemorate Celebration Day, an annual moment dedicated to remembering those who have died. …

‘Poetry helped me find my feet again’: Joanna Scanlan and Ophelia Lovibond perform readings in memory of loved ones for Celebration Day

‘Poetry helped me find my feet again’: Joanna Scanlan and Ophelia Lovibond perform readings in memory of loved ones for Celebration Day

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter One of the most difficult things about grief is that it leaves us with feelings that can be so hard to articulate. Luckily, says Joanna Scanlan, “Poets do the job for us, and thank God that they do!” The Thick of It star is one of 11 actors and poets, including actor Alison Steadman and bestselling poet Donna Ashworth, who are reading poems in memory of their loved ones to commemorate Celebration Day, an annual moment dedicated to remembering those who have died. Held annually on the last Monday in May, the movement has gathered steam since it was conceived in 2022 by Sir Alan Parker in partnership with the National Trust and Hospice UK, and backed by figures such as Stephen Fry, Richard E Grant, and Prue Leith. Inspired by festivities around the world like Mexico’s Day of the Dead, …

Missed Call cast | Who stars alongside Joanna Scanlan?

Missed Call cast | Who stars alongside Joanna Scanlan?

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get ready to clear your schedules this week as 5 thriller Missed Call continues to air nightly. With the series having premiered last night, we were quickly thrown into things as Sarah (Joanna Scanlan) was left reeling when she couldn’t get into contact with her daughter Katie (Emily Coates). With Katie staying in Saint Michel for a school trip, Sarah was left at a loss at what to do after receiving a missed call from her daughter late one night. Flying to France for answers, Sarah is met with evasiveness and reluctance to answer questions – but will she be able to find Katie? Series star Scanlan has already warned that things don’t even “end well”, telling Radio Times: “I won’t even say it ends well. It’s not a guarantee that we’re going to run through this and have the answer we want at the end of it. “It’s multi-layered and what happens in that village when Sarah arrives and starts, you know, kicking the hornets nest is that it all sorts of really nasty, …

Riot Women star Joanna Scanlan reveals the big difference with her new role in thriller Missed Call

Riot Women star Joanna Scanlan reveals the big difference with her new role in thriller Missed Call

Published by Daniella Wilson

Having just been seen on our screens in BBC’s Riot Women, Joanna Scanlan is now heading up brand new thriller, Missed Call. In the new five-parter, Scanlan stars as single mother Sarah who is delivered every parent’s worst nightmare when she receives a missed call from her daughter Katie, who is abroad on a school exchange. With the local forces appearing not to take her concerns seriously, Sarah takes matters into her own hands to find out just what’s happened to her daughter. The role itself certainly feels like a world away from Scanlan’s role as Beth Thornton in the Sally Wainwright drama, but did it feel as such when embodying the character? “It did actually [feel worlds apart], because Beth is depressed,” Scanlan told Radio Times. “She’s a depressed person. And yes, she goes on a journey and kind of finds herself to a certain extent. But I think she’s sensitive, highly intelligent and worried about everything going wrong. “And you know, she’s in a gloom state. She’s, let’s face it, suicidal and Sarah …