Speaking with a charming politeness and accent that only has the slightest Gloucestershire twang, Daisy May Cooper is far removed from Kerry Mucklowe, her on-screen persona in the hit BBC Three mockumentary, This Country.
Despite a penchant for unofficial football shirts, a foul mouth and broad Gloucestershire accent, the characters of Kerry Mucklowe and her cousin Kurtan have gained a place in the hearts of thousands, with audiences watching their daily escapades as unemployed, unenthused youngsters, living life in a Cotswold town.
With season two of the show now concluded and three RTS awards under their belts, Daisy May speaks to SoGlos about how she’s coped with her newly-found fame, along with becoming a Mum for the first time. Plus, Daisy May discusses her exciting plans for season three, including a potential live show at Gloucestershire’s newest theatre…
It’s strange to hear you without that broad Kerry accent!
[Laughs] A lot of people say that, actually! Apart from when I have a few drinks and it starts getting into a Kerry state!
What’s been the reaction since season two of This Country ended? Things were left on a bit of a cliff-hanger…
It’s been really weird, because I’ve got a 13-week-old baby, so I’ve been quite busy just trying to be a mum! So, I only hear odds and ends of when Charlie [Cooper, Daisy May’s brother, who plays Kurtan in the show] says ‘people have been asking about what’s going to happen after series two.’
It’s been incredible. The response has been unbelievable! He’s [Charlie] coming over today, actually. We’re going to be sitting down and starting to write the third series now. But my brain! I’ve still got baby brain, so I need to get back into it again!
How have you found juggling early motherhood with all of this press attention?
It has been really hard, but it’s been so amazing. It’s also so amazing to have both of the big things in my life going on at the same time. But it is nice to have a bit of time out, just to be a mum and to do really boring household things.
Tell us about your work with The Barn Theatre in Cirencester?
I was approached by Iwan Lewis who’s the creative director there, and he asked whether I’d be interested in going to see the theatre’s Christmas spectacular that was put on at the parish church in December. I went along and it was West End songs from musicals, and it absolutely blew me away.
From that moment on, I thought I just have to get involved with this. Then recently I went to go and see The Secret Garden and it was the best show I have ever seen. It was so well put together and choreographed. You just don’t see something like this in the Cotswolds. This is West End or even Broadway quality stuff. This isn’t something you find down in Cirencester!
I really do think they’re going to end up putting Cirencester on the map for creativity and the arts. Especially for me; growing up there really wasn’t anything around it that catered for people that were interested in drama. I think they’re going to be able to find a wealth of talent down here and hopefully we’re going to find a lot of stars of the future from this area, and create something really special.
I think Iwan is going to be the next Andrew Lloyd Webbber because he’s so passionate. He’s got so much creativity and talent, I think he’s going to really start making something quite spectacular!
Is there any way This Country might link up with The Barn Theatre? Maybe a This Country Live?
Well, we’re in very, very, very early discussions. But I think it would be great to do a Barn Theatre, sort of, punch drunk version of This Country, to see whether it works.
So it’s very early days, but it would definitely be something we’re interested in doing.
This sounds amazing! Do you think the rest of the cast would be up for it too?
[Laughs] Oh I absolutely think so! I just think it would be so fun to be able to interact with an audience and actually let people be amongst the characters and see that improv that goes on and I think it would be more fun for us than the audience.
It would be something really exciting though.
For more information, see The Barn Theatre, call (01285) 648255, or visit barntheatre.org.uk directly.
By Melissa Hamblett
