HOW IT ALL BEGAN
So, Lets start at the beginning, I wanted to be an actor from the moment I watched Imelda Staunten in the film 'Vera Drake'. All I knew was that she amazed me, I wanted to be her. I thought about that film for weeks, re-enacting scenes every weekend for my sister and constantly grumpy cat, who were both equally more interested in, well, ANYTHING else.
Acting was not the common route to go down where I came from. I grew up in an interesting part of London. East ham, next to Stratford to be precise, the streets of London were definitely not paved with gold, more like years of abandoned chewing gum and crisp packets. The London borough of Newham never won any accolades, apart being voted the 3rd most deprived area to live in 2012/13/14 and probably 15, I stopped counting. So as you can imagine dreams of having an acting career were not not realistic or to be honest even discussed, but it was my home, what it lacked for in government funding it more than made up for with the humour of the locals. My childhood was spent roaming the streets 'people watching' and in East London there was an abundance of interesting people to watch. I was a quiet kid compared to the kids I grew up with so my parents enrolled me into the local drama school and I instantly fell in love with everything acting.
I often get asked how I started and I have come to learn everybody's route into the industry is very different. At 22 I applied to what felt like every acting agency in London. I had no work behind me and no clue about the industry, just an incredible urge to do what so many said I couldn't. As the weeks went by all of the agency's came back to me with a firm NO (this was my first taste of rejection and it stung a little) I sat on this for a about a week, I wanted to know why they had chosen not to meet with me? what did they look for in a client? and why was everyone saying NO!?
I decided if no one would give me a chance I would make my own opportunity and work from the inside out. I applied for an agents assistant role for a small boutique acting agency that I stumbled across by chance. I thought this could give me a crash course into the world of acting. They emailed me back asking to meet me (my mum didn't want me going as she believed it could be a fake plan fabricated from the minds of criminals who were intending to potentially mug me (I have to add, at this time she had developed an obsession with watching crimewatch)....
After researching I headed into London to meet with the agency, a week after the interview they rung me to say they were not offering me the agents assistant job but would I like an audition?! I couldn't believe it.! The one thing that I wanted the most happened when I least expected it to. On the day of the audition I got asked very sternly to remove all of my foundation/makeup which was three shades too dark for my skin. I am half Scottish and have my mums paleness, I am practically see through! I was given a wet wipe and ushered outside to come back after I had taken it off!
At this time in my life I wanted to be tanned,
when I was was younger I got teased for being as pale as I am, I longed to be tanned like Britney on MTV!!! it was never going to happen. I am the type of girl to burn in the shade.
The moment I wiped away the makeup was the end of my days of being a lovely shade of orange. Looking back I can only describe my skin colour to the shade of of my grans terracotta plant pot.
My first audition was horrendous flustered after removing my makeup I preceded to walk into a glass door and soak the casting director with a drenched umbrella.... but to my amazement I got the job..... that was the start of my journey
Along the way I've met, shall we say an interesting bunch off people from makeup artists, fashionistas, directors and producers and of course actors! in a strange twist of events one of the agents that signed me in the beginning of my career branched off to start his own agency called SAINOU, four years later I decided to switch things up, I decided to join him again and now I am represented by them! That is one thing about this career, you never know whats going to happen next! This I suppose will be my online diary, I want to share with you the ups and downs, my experiences as an actor and everything in between.
L x
