This article first appeared in Radio Times magazine.
It’s surely a sign of a great characterisation – comic, tragic, sometimes delightfully both – when a fictional figure feels instantly recognisable in our own lives. We all know a David Brent. Everybody in TV has met an Alan Partridge. All both admirable and aggravating, made of equal parts self-belief, self-aggrandisement and self-sabotage.
A newer, worthy addition to that list is Amanda Hughes, first seen as the self-anointed blonde vixen of Motherland, now tirelessly trying to ascend more social rungs in her own eponymous show. So who is the real Amanda? If anyone knows, it’s Lucy Punch, Bafta-nominated for her turn in the first series of Amandaland.
“Everyone says they know an Amanda, but she’s based on a lot of people I’ve come across,” says Punch. “She’s lots of little pieces. She’s not a caricature; there’s stuff that’s endearing, and stuff that’s horrific and obnoxious. She can’t just be one thing, otherwise she’d have no friends and not be able to function.”
Does the actress recognise herself? “I’m hopeful like she is, and can find the positive in a situation,” she begins. “I hope I’m a lot more self-aware, not as pretentious and snobby.” Does she like her screen counterpart? “I do. She’s a hustler. She falls flat on her face and gets back up. She just wants a big life.”
Punch isn’t alone in getting a Bafta nod for her work on the show. Alongside her in the category of best actress in a comedy are two castmates (Philippa Dunne and Jennifer Saunders, who appeared in the Christmas special), with the comedy itself also nominated.
With a second series now on BBC One, why does she think it found an appreciative audience so quickly? “I think it’s the writing, which started on Motherland. It’s a really tight script, the writing is specific to each of the characters and their voices are really clear.”
Does any actor dare tweak a line? “We might play around a bit, but the jokes are thick, fast and brilliant so we stick to it pretty much.”
Other familiar faces in the series include Joanna Lumley, on scene-stealing form as Amanda’s negligent mother Felicity, who flickers with vulnerability in the new series. Punch says all the characters need to evolve: “We want to do this as long as people enjoy it; every character needs to feel fleshed out, so people can relate.”
Punch was brought up in London, the only child of parents who worked in marketing (mother) and advertising (father), and found acting via school plays and the National Youth Theatre during her summer holidays. “I was lucky enough to get little job after little job, and one of my earliest roles was with Jennifer Saunders. I was obsessed with Ab Fab, so I was beside myself. I did speak to her, but I was timid.”
She now lives in California with her partner, artist Dinos Chapman, and their two children, neither of whom are interested in their parents’ professions. “I’ve got a very little one, he’s oblivious, and my elder son is not particularly impressed, which is how I like it.”
One of the many upsides of Punch starring in her own hit British TV comedy is that filming brings her back here to the UK. “I don’t really feel very at home in the States,” she admits. “I get back here and it feels like a relief. Occasionally, I’ll miss cultural references just because I’m not here enough, but I feel very British and connected to the people, the attitude, the sense of humour.”
With her recent success, plus juggling transatlantic family life, Punch would be forgiven for becoming pickier about taking roles, but she laughs at the notion. “I’m currently in a very special, unexpected situation. I’ve never had an opportunity to be selective; I love what I do, but it’s how I make my living. Being in something that’s done well means maybe I can be a bit more choosy or specific about what will be next. But truthfully, I love working and it’s hard to get a job as an actor. People think there are endless offers coming in, but sometimes you get a job you think is going to be huge and it isn’t, and the little jobs turn out to be something bigger.”
Did Amandaland and its predecessor originally feel like a big job or a little job? Punch smiles widely. “It felt special. I couldn’t have imagined 10 years later I’d be here, but that first script was incredible, as was the cast. And here we are.”
Philippa Dunne – Anne Flynn actress
Interview by Huw Fullerton
Amandaland is sweeping the Bafta Television Awards this year, including three actress nominations for you, Lucy Punch and Jennifer Saunders. You signed on for a small role in Motherland – could you have imagined the current situation?
That was 10 years ago! No, I couldn’t have imagined it. In the Motherland pilot, I had a handful of lines, and I tried my best, and I didn’t know where that was going to go. Even coming back for Amandaland – I dreamed of it, because I knew that me and Lucy had something special with our two characters.
This week, you’re also in a very different, dramatic series – ITV1’s Believe Me (Sunday/Monday 9.00pm). Do you think comedy is harder to make than drama?
Yes. Comedy, I think, is held to a higher standard. It has to make you laugh, laugh, laugh all the time. Whereas dramas like space to breathe and roll on and fluctuate. With comedy, people don’t give it a chance. If you don’t make someone laugh out loud within the opening scene of a new series, good luck!
Holly Walsh – Co-creator and writer
Interview by Huw Fullerton
Amandaland has a huge number of Bafta nominations. How do you feel?
“Relieved” I think is the word. I’m particularly happy for our cast who got nominated. I love our cast – all our cast. And they deserve it, because they are excellent.
You used to be an “on-screen” performer yourself as a stand-up – why have you stepped behind the camera?
Well, when I was a stand-up, there were loads of jokes that I felt like I couldn’t say, that weren’t really in my voice. When you’re a stand-up, you have to be conscious of your persona. When we do Motherland or Amandaland, I can write jokes for people who I am not, in any way, shape or form.
Do you think that’s something other sitcom writers feel?
I think nowadays there’s a big push for writer-performers in sitcoms. Our show is kind of unusual because we’re a group of writers who write for a group of actors. We’re not in the show. But that, for me, is the sweet spot. Why not get a specialist to do the thing they can do really well, so I can do my job, and they can do their job, and together we make something really great?
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