In a raging storm in the Peak District last winter, a blue Toyota Yaris was parked in a remote roadside spot with a sex scene being filmed inside it. We were in the car, ready to shoot, but outside the entire film crew were being buffeted by high winds. They said: ‘You guys stay in there, don’t get out!’ while all the lights were getting blown away.” What did the co-stars do while the camera crew battled the elements?
While everyone else was trying to save the show, we were sitting in the car, like: ‘Well, I’ve heard he’s a total nightmare!’” The in-car tryst is a pivotal moment in new drama Adultery, created by Bafta-winning writer Danny Brocklehurst (Shameless, Fool Me Once, Brassic). The six-parter is billed as a “steamy, scandalous romance” about a whirlwind fling that threatens to unravel two families. Personal trainer Beth (Garai) and GP Tom (Cooper), both married, are thrown together when their teenage children start dating.
Insatiably drawn to one another, the pair embark on an intense illicit affair. Will the guilt get too much? Might they even leave their respective spouses?
There are shades of Doctor Foster, Cold Feet and The Affair as the story unfolds. The 44-year-old actor – who helpfully explains that her name is pronounced “Romola with the emphasis on ‘Rom’, not ‘ola’, and Gary as in Neville or Barlow” – admits the premise gave her pause. But some of my favourite books, like Madame Bovary, are so much more than that.
Happily, Danny’s scripts were brilliant. They go into the complex area of marital disappointment. Beth’s dissatisfaction isn’t based on anything big.
Her husband is a good guy but she’s had to suppress herself. By the time Beth realises she’s given up too much for her marriage, it’s too late. When you have an extreme physical connection with someone else, growing in the fertile ground of marital disappointment, disaster ensues.” Garai immediately connected to the character of Beth.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
