Interview with Faye Marsay for Glue

3 September 2014

Faye Marsay plays Janine Riley

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What is Glue and what can we expect?

It’s darker than people will be expecting. It’s gritty, but set in a place that you wouldn’t expect, in this idyllic countryside, so the things that go on there you wouldn’t necessarily associate with the area. It’s fast-paced, it’s energetic, it has that sense of mystery to it which is going to keep people wanting to watch it and keep people guessing. I think it’s a very special show because I don’t recall seeing anything for this age group which has been written so well – Jack Thorne is a bit of a genius. It’s going to be one of those ones which you can get addicted to. Well, I hope so!

Can you tell us about the character that you play and her backstory?

I play Janine, who’s moved to the village maybe four years ago – everyone else is from there. No one actually knows where she’s come from, and she doesn’t really talk about her past. She is a vet and is completely in love with her job – she’s really good at her job. She’s part of the gang. I would say she’s a little bit more on the periphery in terms of being close to all the members of that gang, but she’s definitely got people that she’s close to, like James and Cal, and in a way the girls too, Tina and Annie, but she’s…there’s a little bit of mystery surrounding Janine. I think she’s quite a strong character, but internally, she encounters a lot of things in the show which would test anybody. She deals with them quite admirably, I think.

What did you first think when you read the script?

Just how well written it was. The first two pages – it’s kind of a visual scene, there’s no dialogue as such – and I could just see everything, and I could imagine that person doing what he’s doing in the initial scenes. I thought the detail and the characters, the way that they are presented, you can’t argue with it. The way that it’s written it’s just a dream for actors. It reads really well off the page so you’re just transported to that world through the writing. It’s just straight in with Jack’s stuff. He’s just a genius so it’s not difficult to read his scripts.

The countryside is a big part. Would you describe yourself as a city or a country girl?

Well I grew up on the outskirts of Middlesbrough which is quite a big industrial town in the North East, so I had the best of both worlds. We lived in a small town just outside of that and were surrounded by fields and horses. For me, it wasn’t really a shock to my system. Not having mobile phone signal was a bit annoying! When you were shooting there would be no signal at all – you’d be in your hotel room and you would have to go outside and balance on the roof to get signal!

Did you hang out with the other cast when you weren’t filming?

We all got on really well – it was a proper gang off camera as well as on camera. For me it’s one of the nicest jobs I’ve done in terms of the socialising. We had a really wicked time with each other, and that wasn’t just the actors, it was the crew, the make-up artists, the stylists, the costume girls. Everyone got on really well and that was what was really nice about this job, it was like a massive big gang.

Any favourite crime dramas?

Breaking Bad blew my head off, and if you look at the British stuff – I’m in love with Olivia Colman, she’s an amazing actress and would love the opportunity to meet her – so Broadchurch was a big one, and Happy Valley with Sarah Lancashire and a mate of mine, Sophie Rundle. There is so much good stuff out there… Luther… There are so many. If I had to pick a favourite British it would be Broadchurch and American would be Breaking Bad, or Dexter. Dexter is cool as well. There are too many basically.

One reason to tune into Glue?

For its originality and its writing. For the mystery of it all.

Did you know when you started filming ‘who dunnit’?

We were only released scripts one at a time, it was kept from us right till the end. We had bets on and everything! I remember one day the whole cast was there - the eight or nine main ones - and we were all writing down names and putting on bets and going through all these different scenarios and the producers kept us doing that for weeks, months. So it was nice to finally discover what really went on!

Can you tell us a secret?

I can play ‘Superstition’ by Stevie Wonder upside down on a guitar.

ENDS.