{"id":304190,"date":"2025-11-23T20:41:13","date_gmt":"2025-11-23T20:41:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/304190\/"},"modified":"2025-11-23T20:41:13","modified_gmt":"2025-11-23T20:41:13","slug":"amanda-redman-says-shes-become-choosier-about-parts-as-she-opens-up-on-new-role","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/304190\/","title":{"rendered":"Amanda Redman says she’s ‘become choosier about parts’ as she opens up on new role"},"content":{"rendered":"

EXCLUSIVE: Amanda Redman stars in Murder Before Evensong, a new ecclesiastical crime drama, and says she’s ‘become choosier about the parts I’ll accept’ as she opens up on her new role\"AmandaAmanda Redman is a renowned English actress, best known for her roles in the BBC series “New Tricks” and “The Good Karma Hospital”(Image: BBC\/Wall to Wall)<\/p>\n

Amanda Redman\u2019s<\/a> nickname is Wysiwyg \u2013 short for \u201cwhat you see is what you get\u201d \u2013 and her latest character has a personality to match. A far cry from New Tricks\u2019 DS Sandra Pullman, Audrey Clement is a dispenser of tough love with a stiff upper lip honed in wartime.<\/p>\n

She is the mother of Canon Daniel Clement, the protagonist of Murder Before Evensong, an adaptation of the Rev Richard Coles\u2019 best-selling ecclesiastical crime novel. And she gets all the best lines.<\/a> \u201cShe\u2019s a wonderful character,\u201d says Amanda, 68. \u201cAnd such fun to play.<\/p>\n

\u201cParts like that don\u2019t come along very often. She\u2019s a woman, not unlike myself, who speaks her mind. Women like her just had to shut up and put up, as they say. I think that\u2019s a very healthy attitude. She doesn\u2019t suffer fools gladly. She just gets on with it. There\u2019s a line in the book I like: If she hadn\u2019t been a housewife, she\u2019d be running the United Nations.\u201d<\/p>\n

READ MORE: Rochelle Humes unveils new Christmas party collection with Next – and we love it all<\/a>\"AmandaAmanda is now starring alongside Matthew Lewis<\/p>\n

To play the role, the eternally glamorous Amanda had to don a permed wig and somewhat matronly outfits.<\/a> She adds: \u201cI always enjoy playing non-glamorous parts, perhaps more than any others.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt forces you to concentrate on the character, gives you something to get your teeth into. I\u2019ve become choosier about the parts I\u2019ll accept. But I can\u2019t think of anything more soul-destroying than retiring.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Rev Coles\u2019 Canon Clement series now runs to four books.<\/a> And the second, A Death in the Parish, has already been optioned for screen.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, I do hope so,\u201d she says when asked if there is more to come from Audrey. \u201cI loved the whole job, a really lovely gig, although perhaps next time, it\u2019ll be filmed later in the year. It was shot in January and it was freezing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fortunately, there was something else \u2013 nothing to do with the day job <\/a>\u2013 guaranteed to warm her heart. \u201cOn day three, my daughter, Emily, gave birth to my first grandchild \u2013 a little girl called Cora,\u201d she says. \u201cI knew I\u2019d be thrilled when the baby arrived, but the moment I first saw her at the hospital in Emily\u2019s arms, I was overwhelmed by a tidal wave of love. I was shocked. It almost knocked me off my feet.\u201d<\/p>\n

Emily\u2019s father is actor Robert Glenister, brother of Life on Mars star Philip, while Amanda is married to second husband Damian Schnabel.<\/p>\n

Unlike many actresses whose careers run out of momentum in their middle years, Amanda has enjoyed a seamless run: As Diana Dors in The Blonde Bombshell; as Deedee Dove opposite Ray Winstone in Sexy Beast; as lottery winner Alison in At Home With the Braithwaites and as Lydia Fonseca in The Good Karma Hospital.<\/p>\n

The acting profession has smiled on her and she has been happy to repay that good fortune. The Artists Theatre School, which she ran near her home in Ealing, West London, closed this year and morphed into the ATS Foundation, dedicated to raising money to help actors looking for work.<\/p>\n

\"AThe series is based on Richard Coles book of the same name(Image: Robert Viglasky\/AcornTV)<\/p>\n

Her objective is to persuade City institutions to donate money to bankroll productions involving these young performers. She is a keen follower of TV drama, in particular thriller series Slow Horses.<\/p>\n

And she adds: \u201cI\u2019ve never been interested in reality television, but I did watch Celebrity Traitors because a lot of my friends told me to. I was immediately hooked. For the last five minutes, I was literally on the edge of my seat. Alan Carr was a revelation although I was rather hoping Nick Mohammed and Joe Marler would win. I\u2019d love to be on it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok <\/a>, Snapchat <\/a>, Instagram <\/a>, Twitter <\/a>, Facebook <\/a>, YouTube <\/a>and Threads <\/a>.<\/p>\n