View from my Sofa: Eleanor Tomlinson
The former Poldark star is enjoying spreading her wings – and loves a quiz show
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- Morgan Cormack
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What’s the view from your sofa?
Normally it’s a lot of Ms Rachel and Peppa Pig because I’ve got a young baby. But when I get the chance to watch things myself, I love Australian Survivor and quiz shows. I’m a big quizzer. The Chase is always on!
What else have you been watching?
I’ve been catching up on The Jinx, which I thought was wild and fascinating. I love a true crime documentary where you figure it out along the way.
Who controls the remote?
My husband [rugby player Will Owen]. There’s me suggesting a 90s chick flick movie that he shoots down immediately. He wants to put Game of Thrones on or something.
In The Fortune, you play a woman who has been left an enormous inheritance by a man she’s never met. Do you prefer playing period or contemporary characters?
They’re so different. I find it more of a challenge sometimes to find the character in a contemporary piece, because when you do period, you’re so informed by the etiquette of the time. There’s a vulnerability in doing something that’s modern-day because it’s harder for me to not let Eleanor bleed into that. I’ve been very lucky in that I’ve done a lot of period drama, but it’s also nice to show I do exist outside of wigs and corsets. It’s not that I want to break away from period drama; I just want to have a career where I do a bit of everything.
You and your co-star Matthew Lewis [Neville Longbottom in the Harry Potter films] started acting from a young age. Were you able to bond over that?
I didn’t mention Harry Potter, because the poor guy must get it every day! We got on really well, he’s a gem of a human.
Your breakout role was Jas in Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging in 2008. How do you feel about that film now?
I look back fondly on it. It’s amazing to realise what that film meant to so many people. When I first met my husband, it was his younger sister’s favourite film. She grew up watching it and suddenly Jas is in her living room, which was wild for her. She didn’t tell me that till years later because she didn’t want things to be awkward! I hope they do a sequel and see us all as old haggard people.
I do exist outside wigs and corsets
Do you stay in touch with the cast?
Last week, I met up with Georgia Henshaw, who played Rosie. We’d not seen each other for 18 years and it was like no time had passed at all. Aaron [Taylor-Johnson] has gone on to be a megastar and it’s amazing. We first worked together on The Illusionist [in 2006] so we go way, way back, but our paths haven’t crossed again since.
How has the industry changed since you first started?
It’s changed enormously. When I started out, people could smoke on set, which seems prehistoric to me now. In terms of women’s voices and the storylines we’re seeing, there are much more interesting roles coming out. I think women have a much stronger voice in the creative arts. There’s still a long way to go, but we’re getting there.
Which role do fans recognise you the most for?
Poldark is the main one and I get a lot of One Day, and The Forsytes. It’s always nice when they get it right and don’t say, “Were you in Game of Thrones?” “No, wrong redhead!”
After Poldark, did you want to move away from the role?
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I’d done it for five years. There are elements I miss but it was time to do something else, spread my wings and push myself in a different direction.
Authors
Morgan CormackDrama Writer
Morgan Cormack is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering everything drama-related on TV and streaming. She previously worked at Stylist as an Entertainment Writer. Alongside her past work in content marketing and as a freelancer, she possesses a BA in English Literature.
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