View from my sofa: Samantha Bond
The Marlow Murder Club star loves crosswords but loathes the term “cosy crime”
Jonathan Ford
- Laura Rutkowski
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What’s the view from your sofa?
The other sofa! There’s an awful lot of art on the walls. I’ve inherited a lot from my mum. For my 40th, my husband [actor Alexander Hanson] bought me a beautiful painting of the Philharmonic Orchestra. There are family photographs on every surface, as well as little onyx angels my father-in-law sent that guard the family. I’m quietly spiritual.
What have you enjoyed on TV recently?
I’ve absolutely loved Alma’s Not Normal, which is made doubly enjoyable because I know Siobhan [Finneran] from Downton Abbey and Lorraine [Ashbourne] from A Bunch of Amateurs and The Queen and I. I enjoy watching mates.
Who controls the remote at home?
We try to make the choice of what to watch as a couple, but there are things where I’ll tell my husband, “Watch that when I’m not in the house.” Literally in terms of controlling the remote, it’s him, because I don’t know how anything works any more. When I’m away filming The Marlow Murder Club, I can only watch the BBC, because it’s the only button I know how to work.
Samantha Bond in The Marlow Murder Club. UKTV
What’s your earliest TV memory?
I was about four and my father [actor Philip Bond] was in Sherlock Holmes: The Hound of the Baskervilles. I’m sitting on his knee, watching him die in the sand dunes, sobbing my heart out. He’s got his arms around me going, “But darling, I’m here.” I could not separate the two things. I don’t know why he thought it would be OK to let me watch my father die!
The Marlow Murder Club is part of the cosy crime genre. Why do you think it’s so popular?
I loathe the term cosy crime, but if the plots are intriguing, challenging and thought-provoking, and you don’t actually have to see the violence, that has a huge appeal. I loved Happy Valley and I’m a huge fan of Sarah Lancashire, but most of the time, I don’t want violence on my television. I think that started when I had children [daughter Molly and son Tom] 30 years ago.
You do a lot of swimming as your character Judith Potts — you even have a swimming double. What’s that like?
Judith really only swims breaststroke and my double, Belinda, is such a strong swimmer; she’s swum the Channel! We’ve had lessons together and she’s adorable. There are bits when even I don’t know if it’s me doing it or her!
Judith is a crossword setter — are you a fan of them yourself?
I love cryptic crosswords. I was in a play called Amy’s View with Judi Dench, and for opening night I made a crossword with clues for the cast. I don’t suppose it was terribly challenging! But Judi’s a great crossword doer.
When you left Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, you got your start in theatre. Do you think all actors should experience that?
Given the opportunity, yes. After drama school, you had to get a job, which provided an Equity card. Then you had to work in the provinces for 32 weeks before you could go to the West End. When we had a repertory system, which is now in dire straits, that was what you did. Shakespearean parts are challenging – one of the first ones I did was Romeo and Juliet with Kenneth Branagh [in 1986]. I did something like 27 plays in my first three years in the business. The problem when people go from TV to the stage is that they haven’t learnt the craft.
Did you always want to be an actor?
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No, I wanted to be a ballerina, but I went from being a stick insect to a curvaceous 15-year-old, so I didn’t get into the senior school. Then I appeared in the school play Electra and I said to my mum, “If I can’t be a ballerina, I’ll be an actor.” She was appalled and made me do shorthand and typing, which I’m happy to say, I haven’t had to use. Although, there’s a wonderful moment in Murder Club where Judith solves something because she knows about touch typing.
Authors
Laura RutkowskiCommissioning Editor
Laura Rutkowski is a Commissioning Editor at Radio Times magazine, where she looks after the View From My Sofa slot, and the "What it's like to…" column, which spotlights behind-the-scenes roles within the TV and film industry. She loves finding out how productions are made and enjoys covering a wide variety of genres. Laura is half-American and half-British and joined Radio Times in 2022. She has a degree in Psychology and a Master's in Magazine Journalism.
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