It’s 1964 and girls are expected to be flirty, fabulous and fertile – but Barbara Parker is different. Labelled a bold, brash force of nature, the beauty queen turned wannabe comedy superstar goes against type in the title role of Funny Woman – based on Nick Hornby’s bestselling 2016 novel Funny Girl.
The six-part drama follows Parker, played by the brilliant Gemma Arterton, as she journeys from Blackpool to London on a mission to reinvent herself and find her voice in the male-dominated world of the ’60s sitcom.
The ensemble cast includes Rupert Everett as Barbara’s agent Brian and Arsher Ali as love interest Dennis.
“I read the book when it first came out. It was such an iconic time for comedy, for culture, when this whole wave of new comedy started happening,” said Arterton.
“More edgy working-class humour started to come through and for a woman to be in that world was unusual at that time. I could hear her voice in my head. Years later, I got sent the pilot episode by Potboiler Productions and it was amazing. Morwenna (Banks’) writing was bang on. And I just loved the character.
“There’s something about her I connected with; I think it’s her sense of humour and her wit and what she comes up against. She wants more from life than just being a beauty queen, working in a rock shop and becoming a wife. So she goes to London to try to make it as something – and finds herself auditioning for a Comedy Playhouse.
“From there on it’s the journey of her becoming a sitcom star and finding her voice.”
Since her breakout role as head girl Kelly Jones in St Trinian’s, Arterton has racked up stand-out performances like Bond girl Strawberry Fields in Quantum Of Solace. So, does she recognise some of the barriers Parker faced?
“There were things that I could relate to,” she says. “But I think we’ve come so far, even just since the #MeToo movement. But definitely in my earlier stuff, with accents and things, people going, ‘Oh you’ve got (a regional accent)’ – I don’t any more. I’ve chickened out and taken on some other accent but there was a little bit of that.
“We’ve all had our experiences. It’s way better than it was but there’s still an undercurrent because old-school people still work in the industry.
“Morwenna and I have channelled some of our own experiences into this – but I’m not telling which ones they are!”
Funny Woman, Sky Max, Thursday, 9pm
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