‘Going to Hollywood was a privilege, but I’m at home in River City’: Holly Jack on LA, moving behind the camera, and soap turning 20

It was the phone call that changed her life on a night she will never forget.

Holly Jack was out for dinner with friends from drama school when her mobile rang and the conversation that followed made her dream come true.

She had earned a major role on River City, a programme she had been watching at the family home in Airdrie since she was a girl.

She was only 19, not long graduated, and had never worked in television before. Twelve years on, Jack describes it as the best job ever and her character of Nicole Brodie remains an integral part of the drama as it celebrates its 20th anniversary, a notable event in the cut-throat world of TV and one which will be celebrated with a special episode this week.

“I remember it so well,” she smiled, speaking from the Dumbarton studios where Shieldinch is brought to life. “I had auditioned for another part a few months before and was gutted I didn’t get it. The casting director said I did really well and would get me in for other things, but I thought they were just saying that to make it less painful.

“Lo and behold, they did, and it was for Nicole. I remember reading the part and telling myself I needed to get it because she’s brilliant. She was 14 and so getting to play the sassy teenager again was fun. She’s been great to play, and has been through so many challenges and stories, which is what you want as an actor. She’s really evolved over the years.”

The same could be said for Jack. Her run on the show has come in two parts, with the break in the middle taking her to Hollywood, where she matured as both an actor and a person.

“I very much felt like I had to try other things and see what the real world was like,” she explained. “I’d been doing the job for four years, and I wanted to see the world and try other jobs, but I was also very aware that the world of acting is hard, so it took me a while to work up the courage. I’m glad I did.

“Los Angeles was crazy but amazing. I went out to do a course which was meant to be for a couple of months but I ended up getting signed by a management company and they said if I wanted to make a go of it, I needed a visa.

“So I came home briefly, filled in all of the paperwork, got the visa and went back out and ended up staying for nearly three years. LA is a really hard place to survive as it’s so expensive but the opportunities for really successful shows and films are there and it’s what kept me. Every time I said I was done and was coming home, a big audition for a show came in and I would stay. It was exciting and almost addictive.

“The one that hurts the most was The Handmaid’s Tale. As soon as I read it I knew it was going to be massive and I loved the premise. It was a good part I was up for and I had a couple of call backs. The casting director was nice and got me in for a few things, so I didn’t feel a million miles away from landing something big like that.

“It was a sore one when I didn’t get it and I do think how different life would be if I’d got that role, but I still love the programme and have watched every episode.”

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Looking back at her Hollywood experience now, 32-year-old Jack says she can see it as a success that she got as far as she did and was seen for so many major productions. She also treats it as a valuable life lesson.

“It maybe didn’t feel like a success at the time but now I think it was an achievement, as very few people get into those rooms to do the auditions. It was a privilege to have even been there and I learned so much.

“Everything had fallen into place relatively simply until that point, so it was very much a case of saying, OK, this is what it’s like to be a jobbing actor. It was great life experience to survive in another country, where I didn’t know anyone when I went out, but I managed to make it work for the best part of three years and I’ll always have that.

“I would love to go back if I had work, but slogging it when you can’t do normal jobs – because with the visa I was on I could only do performing jobs – made it hard to survive. I was doing princess parties – going to kids’ parties dressed as a princess and pretending to be one for a couple of hours. Crazy jobs like that just to get by, but also going into big casting offices and auditioning.”

Jack had only been home in Scotland for a short time when she received a call from River City’s casting director in 2018, saying they would like to bring Nicole back.

“When I went for a meeting with the then-executive producer, he seemed a bit nervous and awkward, and then he broke the news that Nicole was coming back as a stripper. It was a bit of a shock, but I knew it was on before 9pm so it couldn’t be too wild. It was still a bit cringey to shoot, though,” admitted Jack, who also had a featured role in the final series of the original Waterloo Road.

Jack’s no stranger to racy storylines on River City. Desperately seeking affirmation, teenage Nicole would often look for it in the arms of older men, including pimps and gangsters. She would later become a single mum to baby Grace.

“It’s great to play the bad guy,” she smiled. “You get to do and say things you could never get away with in real life. I always try to find a moment of vulnerability with Nicole, so there’s a reason why she does what she does. She’s always had to defend herself and has this strong exterior but she’s a vulnerable young woman underneath.”

Jack has had a love of acting for as long as she can remember, attending dance classes when she was three and falling in love with the stage.

“I did drama all through school in Airdrie, but also went to stage school from when I was 13. Two nights a week and all day on Saturday I would attend Glasgow Academy of Musical Theatre Arts. I didn’t have an interest in anything else – it was my hobby and I was also planning it as my career. As soon as my school exams were over, I did the three-year, full-time course there.”

Jack has also taught at drama schools over the years, teaching children aged four to 16 about what to expect in TV and film.

“It can be very technical – hitting marks and angling to the camera in a certain way,” she explained. “I had no clue about any of that when I turned up at River City on my first day and had to learn over time, so it’s nice to pass on information I would have liked to have known at the start of my career.”

Jack is now stepping behind the camera, and has received tips from one of the world’s best screenwriters, The West Wing’s Aaron Sorkin.

“I produced my first short film last year and I’m going to direct one in December. I’ve been wanting to do it for ages and finally worked up the courage. It’s an entirely different skill set but I like pushing myself out of my comfort zone and trying new things. We’ll shoot it in Airdrie, because I can call in favours left, right and centre there.

“I’m not overly confident about writing. It took me a while to be brave enough to let someone read any of it because it’s like baring a piece of your soul. I had sent a tweet out asking if anyone had any advice for working on second drafts, and a few days later I was tagged in a video that Aaron Sorkin had made where he answered questions about screenwriting and the first one he read out was mine. I couldn’t believe I’d got a response from him. It was unexpected, but very cool.”

River City is her priority, though, and she says she’s loving it even more the second time around.

“I have such a huge appreciation for the show – for the job and for the lifestyle I get to live. I get to stay at home and sleep in my own bed every night, but I’m also paid to act every day.

“I love being here, so as long as they want me, I’ll still be here.”

Into the Shieldinch multiverse

The 20th anniversary episode of River City will be extra special for long-time fans, with a host of familiar faces returning.

The standalone story sees Bob (Stephen Purdon) – the only character to have been in the show from the beginning – and pal Angus (Scott Fletcher) drink from a bottle of mystery booze on Montego Street, which leads them to wake up in a multiverse where many of their lost friends from the past still exist.

It allowed fan favourites like Libby McArthur, Gary Lamont, Deirdre Davis and Michael Nardone to make cameos, alongside the current cast like Holly Jack.

Jack said: “Fans will go nuts when they see it, because it’s a who’s who of the ghosts of Shieldinch. Every couple of minutes someone else from the past appears.

“I laughed the whole way through when I first read the script. It was great catching up with people I hadn’t seen in years and we all went out for a drink afterwards.

“There’s a buzz about the place right now. It’s an achievement to still be going 20 years later and everyone is proud of it.

“It takes a lot of people to make this show, so it has given a lot of work to crew and actors. We also take on many trainees and so a number of people have built their careers here. We’re lucky to have it.”

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River City, Monday, BBC Scotland, 10pm, Tuesday, BBC1 Scotland, 7pm, and on the iPlayer