Interview with Tamsin Greig (Natasha)

9 July 2024

What drew you to Suspect?
I had seen some of the first series and I had been captivated by the class acting militia - the smorgasbord of really great talent. Also, the fact that the episodes were mostly two handers which is very unusual for television because usually we need lots and lots of action characters and complicated storylines. But this is almost like a series of little plays. So, I thought that was very, very interesting from an acting perspective and also knowing that I would be doing stuff with Anne-Marie Duff and Ben Miller. That was a big draw for me.

What are the challenges you face as an actor with the two-hander structure?
There's no let up. You have to be thinking behind the eyes all the time. So, you're either in the moment with how you need to respond, but also thinking about what's being heard. So that's exciting as an actor - it keeps you on your toes.

And it's filmed very quickly in just four days. Is that challenging?
It was. In the way all changes had to be fast, but it does mean that I can't get bored. I think that there is an immediacy about the work.  You've got this amount of time to get the story and so there is no warming up. It's about being present to what's happening now. So, the fact that we're shooting in four days means the whole episode is a challenge but exciting at the same time because you are always forward thinking, forward leaning. You can't lean back into something. You are kind of having to respond very quickly and think quickly on your feet and be ready for the moments when they turn up.

Are you excited to work with Carolina, (the director)?
I know Carolina weirdly from where we live in London, so we've sort of orbited one another socially and geographically. I know that she's been building up this great reputation as one of the female TV directors and film directors to go to. So, yes, I was very excited that these factors came together.

Can you tell us about your character?
I play a character called Natasha, who is a high-end corporate lawyer who had worked for the CPS, the Crown Prosecution Service, and has given that up in order to make a name for herself as someone at the highest level of the legal system, but also within the corporate world. She's elegant and at the top of her game, she enjoys money and likes being in environments that have money attached to them.

What is Natasha's connection with Susannah?
Natasha is the wife of Richard (Ben Miller). Richard's is a Detective Superintendent who is Danny's boss. Danny is Susannah's ex-husband. These two women, Natasha and Susannah (Anne-Marie) are now stepping into that central position of who knows what and when they are they going to reveal what they know....

Are you excited to work alongside the likes of Ben Miller and Anne-Marie Duff?
What's really lovely is that you can go along in a career and know about people and you've sort of been growing in the same nursery, but you never cross paths. So I know both of them (sort of) socially. I had done one scene in a show called Episodes and Ben Miller came in to play himself, but I've never actually worked with Anne-Marie. Both of them have magnificent reputations as performers. So to then suddenly cross paths with them this late in the game feels like when someone turns up at a party, when you're about to leave and you go, I think I might stay for a while right?