‘The Bastard Executioner’ Postmortem: Flora Spencer-Longhurst on that Lady Love Twist
Spoiler alert! If you haven’t watched the fourth episode of The Bastard Executioner, “A Hunger/Newyn,” stop reading now. Flora Spencer-Longhurst’s Lady Love took a trip to Windsor to learn the fate of Ventrishire and made a game-changing move. The actress spoke to Yahoo TV about the twist, Love’s relationships with Wilkin and Milus, and more.
Related: ‘TBX’ Episode 4 Recap: Crying Fowl
Before we get into this episode, TBX creator Kurt Sutter has said that he knew after hearing you read three lines that you were someone he wanted for this role. What was the casting process like from your perspective?
That’s so amazing hearing that Kurt said that [Laughs] because it was quite a lengthy casting process for me. I initially went on tape with a casting director in London and Kurt and [fellow executive] Paris [Barclay] weren’t present, and then I think I had three more auditions where they were there. It was actually a bit of a rocky start, actually, for the process. There was some drilling going on in the next door room, and so we had to keep stopping. Literally, it was like each time I started to do the scene and the camera was rolling, we had to stop. In the end, after about four or five attempts, Paris very sweetly said, “Look, enough, we want to see you again. Can you come back tomorrow, and we’ll make sure you have a quiet room available?” I was actually doing a play at the time in Stratford-upon-Avon. I went back, did my show that night, and then got a very early train the next morning for Take 2, which was more successful, should we say.
What did you see in the character?
I didn’t have the full script for my audition, but even in those three or four scenes that I did, the complexity of the character — that she is in this crazy place of being terribly divided between her duties as nobility and as the baroness, and the true feelings, the Welsh pride and devotion to the people. It struck me how dutiful and loyal she is. She’s a highly moral character and yet conflicted because she’s also having to rule. I think she’s very intelligent, so she knows what is required of her, and a woman in a very male-driven world at the time, to be successful, to get people’s respect, and to actually be able to assert her authority. She knows that she can’t compete with the soldiers and the knights. She doesn’t have that strength in terms of governing and ruling, which her husband did, but I sensed immediately that she has other things. She’s got guile, and she uses her femininity sometimes to her advantage in a smart way.
That leads nicely into this episode. Love goes to Windsor expecting to meet with King Edward II (Jack Greenlees), and instead, she’s greeted by his trusted advisor Gaveston (Tom Forbes). How did you approach those scenes?
We did have a lot of fun filming those scenes. What she’s expecting from her visit to Windsor and then the reality of how it plays out are two different things. That’s quite fun. You witness with her, almost bit-by-bit, how far removed it is from what she’s expecting as an experience, why she’s been summoned there, and then her dealings with this guy, Gaveston, who [Laughs] is a character to say the least, then how she’s forced to behave because of the rules of the time. She’s at Windsor, and she’s there in the presence of the king at one point, but she’s belittled and humiliated and kept waiting and just treated in a really awful way. And I just have to say, it’s lovely the way the relationship between Lady Love and Isabel seems to be panning out. I think they’ve been side-by-side for years, but it’s quite fun that that seems to have been explored as the season goes on.
When Gaveston finally informs love that Ventrishire is to be divided into thirds, two parts for the neighboring shires and her coastal home for him, she tells him the decision is moot — she claims she’s pregnant with Ventris’s heir. How do you think she arrived at that decision?
I suppose the first thing is, it’s a “classic desperate times call for desperate measures.” I think she is really pushed to her limit the night before. My feeling is that she’s had a pretty sleepless night and feeling fairly desperate about the whole thing. I think it’s perhaps an idea that might have crept in, but she said, “No, this is obviously ludicrous. How would that ever work?” I think in the moment, it sort of comes out before she can stop herself.
What can you tease about Love’s mindframe in the next episode? How is she going to make this work?
I think Kurt would kill me if I let go what happens in the next episode. I suppose I can say that it’s driving her into decisions she has to make. … because it’s an announcement that she can’t back away from.
It’ll obviously make people think back to the premiere, when she had the vision with Wilkin in the chapel of a baby being born. How do you think Lady Love interrupted that moment at the time?
What’s exciting about it is that I actually don’t know what it means exactly [Laughs] because Kurt reveal bits to us as we go but not everything. It’s been quite fun to play with: which scenes does it inform? And it’s funny the times that I have remembered that scene in that vision. I think something like that, it can’t be ignored, and yet, I suppose what I mean by her being such a complex character is there’s always so much other stuff going on for her — she’s having to rule and deal with everything that’s going on in Ventrishire, the rebels and everything — I don’t think the vision’s at the forefront of her mind. I think it’s something that pops up and perhaps she would spend a few moments, particularly now that she’s announced her pregnancy, trying to work out what this means and how it relates to her growing connection with Wilkin.
Related: ‘The Bastard Executioner’ Postmortem: Director/EP Paris Barclay’s Deep Dive Into Episode 3
Talking with Paris for last week’s postmortem, we spoke about how it seems Wilkin is at his lightest with her, and how you all have a lot of conversations about how to play those scenes. What are you discussing?
I would say mostly it’s all dictated by the words, and Kurt’s brilliant and clever writing. He does write a lot of stage direction in terms of what might be being felt, the subtext. He helpfully often supplies us with that. That’s a big thing for Love when doing the scenes with Wilkin: Often I feel like she’s saying one thing but means or is feeling something else. I feel very lucky. It seems like me and Lee have quite a natural chemistry and get on really, really well, so it’s very easy to feel comfortable with him. So in a way, what’s lovely is just trusting that that level of comfort is there, which I think is absolutely right that the characters have that, and yet you almost have to fight against it, resist it because of their situation, the social standing, and, well, everything is kind of wrong. [Laughs] They can’t allow themselves to feel too comfortable because it’s inappropriate and it’s highly frowned upon.
In terms of approach of the scene, I take it as given that the chemistry and the spark and the affection for each other is there — or might be there — and it’s really finding how you don’t let it show, or when you let it show a little bit, how much you show the audience and each other and how much you keep internal.
Speaking of Wilkin, one of my favorite moments in this episode is when he chokes Pryce’s chamberlain with a “fowl bone.” What was the reaction when you all read that at the table read? When you get to scenes like that, table reads must be hilarious.
[Laughs] I haven’t seen [the episode] yet. That’s one moment I’m looking forward to seeing. But you’re absolutely right, the table reads are hilarious. Well, I shouldn’t say hilarious… Well, they sort of are. It’s so often the case: if you’re doing a comedy, quite often one has to be quite serious to get the comedy right, whereas if you’re doing something that’s got real drama and gore and awful stuff happening, I think everyone tries to find the humor around it. There is somebody that will read all the stage direction as we do our table read. That’s often where the points of light relief are, because you are just listening to it and then everyone’s imagination thinking, "Oh God, how is this going to play out?” I think it was quite fun around that table read from my memory.
Let’s talk about Love’s relationship with Milus, which I think will be especially interesting in light of her pregnancy announcement. How do you and Stephen Moyer approach that relationship?It’s a really fun one because it feels like it’s ever morphing. It’s changing a lot. Since the baron has been killed, there’s a huge power shift obviously. He is now under my control and authority. I think there is a deep mutual respect for each other, but there’s also a clash of ideas and a clash of approach. Weirdly we’re driven by one common goal, the welfare of Ventrishire, and yet there’s such a different emphasis for both of us. For Love, it’s about the people as much as anything else, as much as holding on to it to be in a position of power. Whereas the power, and having the best army and the most number of knights, is obviously very important for Corbett and drives him. What’s interesting about it is they do both need each other. To what extent is what I think will be explored and revealed.
What Stephen and I have said is fun is, [Milus] feels she’s an intellectual equal. I think although sometimes Love totally disagrees or feels that he’s handled something in a very inappropriate way, she does still get a certain satisfaction and even enjoyment from the sparring, having an intellectual equal and that side of it.
Will Love ever get to do any physical jousting? There was a scene in last week’s episode when she was handed a blade but didn’t have to use it. Will we see her use a sword?
You know what, I don’t know. I think I’m allowed to say so far I’ve not had to spend much time with our stunt and fight coordinator. But surely she’ll have to defend herself or get involved with it at some point, just because it’s that world and she’s living it. Though I suppose at her status and her position, as a woman and that level of power, she is very protected, and the idea is that there’s people that do that for her… We’ll have to wait and see what Kurt’s got planned and whether she’s going to be exposed at any point and does have to fend for herself.
You did have to ride side saddle. How difficult was that? Had you even ridden a horse before?I had ridden but not very much and only as a kid, like a handful of times really. But I think the main thing is, I’m not at all scared of the horses. All the guys who are in charge of the horses, look after them, and help us have practice sessions are so brilliant. They said, “You don’t seem at all nervous with them, and the horses feel that.” They feel if someone is terrified when they’re sitting on a horse. I found it not at all scary — so far.
The big challenge was, of course, side saddle. It’s bizarre and a very weird sensation initially, just feels all wrong. You feel like you’re going to topple off one side, but once you’ve got used to it and the lean and the counterbalance of it, it actually, weirdly, feels more secure than sitting riding normally because the saddle has this kind of split pommel thing that you just grip on to with your legs. Once you’re up and on it, and you’ve got your legs up and hooked on to the saddle, you do feel quite secure. As I say, touch wood. [Laughs] So far so good, and I’ve really, really enjoyed it. In fact, I was saying just the other day, “I hope there’s going to be another horse scene soon.”
The Bastard Executioner airs Tuesdays at 10 p.m. on FX.
