Interview with Henry Lloyd-Hughes

1 March 2016

Where do we find Ralph at the start of this series?

It’s three years later, and he’s a few rungs further along the ladder, in terms of his aspirations and his ambition. His ambition hasn’t been dimmed by the events of three years ago – if anything, it was a successful swerve on his trajectory right to the very top. If anything, the events of the previous season sharpened his resolve. He’s stronger than ever, and has his eyes even more hitched on the prize.

He’s a very complex character, isn’t he? By turns ruthlessly Machiavellian and very sympathetic.

Yeah, it’s a challenge and a real thrill to get to play a character who swivels and pivots and surprises me. Even as an actor reading the script I’m surprised by some of the moves he makes. But that is incredibly satisfying, because Paul, the writer, is always trying to add another level of depth rather than oversimplify things. I think it stirs up some complicated emotions in the eyes of the viewer. Ralph divides people, and I think you should be, as a viewer, torn, and in two minds about what you want Ralph’s fate to be. My line is this – he does manipulate people, but his motives aren’t always evil. Sometimes he does things for the greater good. He’s an operator, and very adept and manoeuvring people and situations for a purpose.

What’s his attitude towards India and Indians?

That’s probably the greatest source of inner conflict in himself. Although he looks like the archetypal Englishman with the suit and the Bryllcreamed hair, spiritually, if you were to take him out of India and back to England, he would feel like a fish out of water. He’s a creature of that environment, India is his world.

He also has this complex relationship with his sister. What do you make of the ambiguity of their closeness?

I think the relationship he has with his sister is emblematic of the relationship he has with a lot of people, in that he is trying to have some element of control. The only difference here is that she is a very strong character. Ralph has a very idealistic image of his sister – it comes across as if he almost fetishizes her, which seems a bit creepy. But I think all he wants is her to be happy, it’s just that by his nature he’s quite controlling in the way he goes about it.

Her husband, Charlie, emerges in this series, played by Blake Ritson.

I’ve worked with Blake before – we did a play together called Rope, in which he played a murderer who invited me over to dine off a trunk with the dead body in it. When it comes to mischief, in front of the camera and off camera, Blake Ritson is your go-to guy. His character is a delight in Indian Summers. He is super cunning, and has Ralph over a barrel, because he’s bankrolling him.

A lot of your scenes are with Julie Walters. Have you enjoyed working with her?

Oh yeah, yeah! There’s not one aspect she doesn’t completely over-deliver on. She is a delight to be around, a complete laugh, never takes herself or any aspect of the job too seriously. She’s never po-faced, always incredibly generous, and uber-professional. She never forgets a syllable, never mind a word. It’s unbelievable. In my scenes with her, I’m just trying to keep up with her razor-sharp reactions and delivery of really, really pithy, deliciously macabre lines.

Does the fact that you’re all so far from home bring you closer together as a cast?

Yeah, I definitely think so. It’s one of those things that you have to do, but we’ve been lucky in this job that it happens anyway – you all pull together, and you have to be a kind of family in the face of performing what is quite a sizeable task. There’s no other way to get through it, to be honest. I will spend more time working with my peers from Indian Summers than I will with my actual family over a year – by a long way. Once you do that maths, you realise you need to invest in these relationships. So you treat people with a bit of decorum and attention, because they are such an important part of your working life. And we’ve lucked out on this job, because it’s such a terrific ensemble of compassionate, generous people. It doesn’t matter who you go to on that cast list, I’d be delighted to end up in a scene with them, because I know they’re going to bring interesting stuff to the table, and that is a treat.

What are the main things you miss about home when you’re away filming?

My wife and family and friends aside, I suppose being able to walk around my neighbourhood and go to the park and go to my local coffee shop, or my local restaurant – I suppose the comforts of my local area. And I miss the chance to go to Loftus Road to watch QPR, or to turn out for my cricket team. Normally a large part of my summer sees me underperforming with both bat and ball in various East London parks. But that’s nothing new, that’s the life of an actor, and it comes with the job description.

What are the best things about filming in Malaysia?

It’s a window into a completely different way of life. I’m a Londoner, and I can’t tell you how different the experience is living out there. The sights, the smells, the sounds, it’s all different. It’s an amazing county, with three parallel cultures, an amazing culinary scene. And on weekends I can take a 20-minute flight and be on a tropical island. Were it not for this show, I’d never have got to explore that part of the world.

Would you say that Ralph Whelan has been the most significant role of your career so far?

Oh, without a doubt. I did The Inbetweeners, so if you’re a teenage boy, you’re more likely to recognise me from that role, but in terms of time on screen and time building a character, I’ve now worked on over 20 hours of TV with this character. That’s insane! All of The Inbetweeners episodes, including the movies, are probably not over ten hours, so we’re talking about so much time spent exploring different aspects of Ralph. Very few actors will ever get to spend so long with a character, and I feel incredibly grateful that I’ve got to do that.

You mentioned The Inbetweeners – you played Donovan, the school bully. You’re not in much danger of getting typecast, are you?

Hopefully not! They’re pretty different, it’s true. I’m adamant that I won’t ever do something that feels like I’m repeating something that I’ve just done. So if Weinstein phoned me tomorrow and said “I’ve got this script, 1935 India, you play a civil servant,” I’d struggle to get excited. It’s so fun, when you get to blow away the cobwebs and try using completely different muscles as an actor.

I’m guessing it’s no longer just teenage boys who recognise you. The demographic must have changed a bit?

A little bit, yes! The people who have mentioned Indian Summers tend to be a little bit older. The first person I met after returning from filming series 2 was an elderly Brazilian woman in Spitalfields Market, who’d watched the show back in Brazil and loved it. I had someone tweeting me last night from Canada. And old friend of mine spent Christmas in California, and they said that people out there were talking about the show. It’s got a global reach, which is mind-blowing. Much as I loved The Inbetweeners, and am a huge fan of everyone who’s in that show, I never got stopped by a Brazilian woman in her 70s and told that she’s a huge fan. I’m curious to see, as we go deeper into the story, where the demographic goes.

Is it true that Paul Rutman has 50 hours of scripts in his head going right up to partition?

I believe so! I don’t think he has every single minute mapped out, but I know for a fact that when he sat down and wrote the first episode, he also wrote the last episode. It takes so much brainpower to navigate a political backdrop and a cast of characters this layered. It’s an amazing achievement. Obviously I hope it continues, and I hope that people are waiting to find out what’s happening