Speaker 1: It's in the news today, but it was actually on
Speaker 1: TV Reload, the podcast last week Their Life. Welcome back
Speaker 1: guys to TV Reload. My name is Benjamin Norris and
Speaker 1: this is your podcast to get all the inside goss
Speaker 1: all the popular TV shows you may be watching from
Speaker 1: around the world. Undeniably, our TV sets are a major
Speaker 1: part of our home entertainment, and yet very little is
Speaker 1: known about how our favorite shows get made. So I've
Speaker 1: been finding guests that want to dive just that little
Speaker 1: bit deeper into the shows they're currently making, so that
Speaker 1: you can hear all exclusive stories and gain access to
Speaker 1: the biggest names in Australian television. I want to thank
Speaker 1: you for downloading or subscribing to this podcast. I particularly
Speaker 1: love hearing your feedback, so make sure you leave a
Speaker 1: comment on your chosen podcast platform. This chat, I'm joined
Speaker 1: by Kat Stewart, one of Australia's most loved actresses. This
Speaker 1: week I had the exciting excuse of calling Kat to
Speaker 1: discuss the fourth season of Five Bedrooms, which launched last
Speaker 1: Sunday on Paramount Plus and will be released weekly from there,
Speaker 1: I can tell you very exciting. The people at Paramount
Speaker 1: Plus have been very kind they've released the first three episodes,
Speaker 1: so there's a massive kickstart to this brand new series.
Speaker 1: If you don't know Cat's Stewart, I believe you might
Speaker 1: be living under a rock. She is definitely an actor's
Speaker 1: actor and all the actors that have worked with her
Speaker 1: will tell you that. And it's no wonder that she's
Speaker 1: always getting ready to talk about a new exciting role.
Speaker 1: And Five Bedrooms, which started out as five friends all
Speaker 1: at very different stages their lives making this bold decision
Speaker 1: to pull their funds together and buy a house, has
Speaker 1: really blossomed into a much loved series set in Melbourne,
Speaker 1: and all audiences have loved it and they can really
Speaker 1: relate to it. I will ask Cat Stewart about why
Speaker 1: she keeps coming back to Five Bedrooms and why she
Speaker 1: has chosen to stay in Australia and not to try
Speaker 1: to chase that elusive US market. Cat will talk about
Speaker 1: her iconic roles and we will get some insights into
Speaker 1: which of her most iconic characters are the most like her.
Speaker 1: We will discuss if Kat thinks that she could survive
Speaker 1: the premise of Five Bedrooms, and which beloved actor had
Speaker 1: his role unexpectedly extended due to COVID last year. Plus,
Speaker 1: we will also get plenty of exclusives from behind the
Speaker 1: scenes of Five Bedrooms, which, as I mentioned, is out
Speaker 1: on Paramount Plus. Now, anyway, let's bring Kat into the
Speaker 1: podcast and guys, I really hope you enjoyed this episode. Hello, Hi,
Speaker 1: how are you. I'm well, I'm very very excited. I
Speaker 1: have to tell you, Oh, me too. You know, the
Speaker 1: amount of times that I have seen you at my
Speaker 1: supermarket and wanted to just quickly pull you aside to
Speaker 1: unpack your career is quite disturbing.
Speaker 2: Do we have the same supermarket? We do?
Speaker 1: Yes, we do.
Speaker 2: Next time you have to stop me.
Speaker 1: Well, during COVID, i'd often see you with your family
Speaker 1: at Homo Oval Yep. Yeah, and so and my partner
Speaker 1: would be like, stop looking at Kat Stewart. She does
Speaker 1: not want to have a sit down interview.
Speaker 2: Oh so you've seen me in all my bedraggled glory ben.
Speaker 1: Yes, and you've also seen me and mine as well,
Speaker 1: except that you don't know who I am. So I'm
Speaker 1: just the creepy guy, the creepy guy at the park.
Speaker 2: Well that's the end of all that. Now I'm going
Speaker 2: to be watching.
Speaker 1: Out Well, look, five Bedrooms is back, and I just
Speaker 1: have to ask you what makes you want to keep
Speaker 1: coming back to and exploring this character.
Speaker 2: I was already in love with the writers. I'd worked
Speaker 2: with Michael Lucas and Christine Buttlett for you know, ten
Speaker 2: years or so oh nine years or something over that
Speaker 2: only many years of Offspring, and then having them asked
Speaker 2: me to do this was just such a kick, because
Speaker 2: I thought, this is really they write enough space that
Speaker 2: I really love. It's not often, obviously, but they know
Speaker 2: how to walk that fine line between heartbreak and comedy,
Speaker 2: and they did that so well, so I knew I
Speaker 2: was in safe hands. And then I fell madly in
Speaker 2: love with the cast. It's a show that I really
Speaker 2: It's the kind of show i'd watch, and it's an
Speaker 2: Australia that I recognize and want to see more of.
Speaker 2: It's inclusive and it's not cookie cutter. They kind of
Speaker 2: there's this disparate group of people that somehow kind of
Speaker 2: managed to make it work with a sense of humor,
Speaker 2: and that's what it's all about.
Speaker 1: Do you think that the show's popularity is a sign
Speaker 1: that more and more Australians have add family archetype. I
Speaker 1: guess you could say, well, yeah, I.
Speaker 2: Think we have for a long time. I mean, I
Speaker 2: think I mean to refer to offspring too much, but
Speaker 2: that was something that was you know, that idea of
Speaker 2: it's not families are the people you choose as well
Speaker 2: as the people that you are born to, and sometimes
Speaker 2: the people you choose, you know, are your real family.
Speaker 2: I think that idea of a kind of a contemporary
Speaker 2: family is something that Australia the world has been a
Speaker 2: part of for a long time, and it's been reflected.
Speaker 2: But yeah, I think Five Bedrooms takes it a step further,
Speaker 2: and I think it also gives us an indication of,
Speaker 2: you know, the housing crisis and you know what the
Speaker 2: challenge is that we face today, but also celebrates what
Speaker 2: kind of holds us together as well. It's an incredibly
Speaker 2: positive and generous hearted show, which is really important to me.
Speaker 2: I feel like we're putting something not sugarcoated, but just
Speaker 2: something positive about into the world.
Speaker 1: I just keep thinking every time I watch a season
Speaker 1: when it comes back, I'm like, can I live with
Speaker 1: four adults? Because I reckon, I'm a nightmare that live
Speaker 1: with I don't think four adults would want to live
Speaker 1: with me. Could you live with four other adults with
Speaker 1: their interconnect loves.
Speaker 2: These four or these five? I could because I adore them.
Speaker 2: In fact, we went away for a weekend with all
Speaker 2: our families and all our kids last series, and that
Speaker 2: was just so much fun. I could. I would make
Speaker 2: an exception for them. I never lived in a sharehouse.
Speaker 2: I stayed at home, and then I moved in with
Speaker 2: a with a boyfriend. So I skipped that hole, and
Speaker 2: I kind of feel a bit sad about that looking back,
Speaker 2: like I skipped that whole era. But yeah, I don't
Speaker 2: know if I could do it. I'd have to be
Speaker 2: very picky with these guys. I think they could.
Speaker 1: You're living sort of vicariously through les anyway, so you've
Speaker 1: had the experience exactly.
Speaker 2: But the other thing is this series is for me,
Speaker 2: the central theme for certainly Liz, and I think you know,
Speaker 2: for the series generally, is when does this arrangement stop
Speaker 2: being a good thing? You know, they were soft landing
Speaker 2: and they looked after each other. They were all kind
Speaker 2: of you know, floating around in the in their lives
Speaker 2: and needing a safe landing space, and they provided that
Speaker 2: for each other. They did become a de facto family,
Speaker 2: But are they now hindering each other at all? And
Speaker 2: I feel that, particularly with Liz and Harry, that perhaps
Speaker 2: maybe they're stopping each other from you know, being, you know,
Speaker 2: pursuing who they really should be. So there's that question
Speaker 2: at the heart of it too, like at what point
Speaker 2: does it out live its usefulness.
Speaker 1: Once you mix people like this. I mean, I feel
Speaker 1: like I'm a fairly extroverted social person, but then I
Speaker 1: feel like the person that I am at home is
Speaker 1: quite introverted, and that's quite complicated to complicating to sometimes
Speaker 1: navigate with people because it's kind of like a bit
Speaker 1: of a duality. And then if you're living with five
Speaker 1: other adults who are navigating their own dualities and then
Speaker 1: putting it all together, I mean, it's a recipe for drama,
Speaker 1: great idea for a TV show.
Speaker 2: Yeah, absolutely, you're so right, because our private and versus
Speaker 2: our public designers are so different. Yeah, no, you're so right.
Speaker 2: So it is complicated, and I think when they went
Speaker 2: into this they didn't really factor that in.
Speaker 1: Is there a storyline that's a particular favorite to you
Speaker 1: now looking back, you know, maybe holistically over the four seasons,
Speaker 1: Like is this something that you've really particularly enjoyed getting
Speaker 1: into the menu.
Speaker 2: I think what we were just discussing in terms of
Speaker 2: when does something stop being healthy is interesting. But also
Speaker 2: we had some glorious We had everyone back this season.
Speaker 2: Last season in series three, we were filming during the
Speaker 2: fifth lockdown. It's probably when we crossed paths on one
Speaker 2: of our walks and so we couldn't get any interstate
Speaker 2: cast in. So we had core cast, but we had
Speaker 2: to recast and the writers had to do radical rewrites
Speaker 2: to make the show happen. So that is a real thrill.
Speaker 2: That was a thrill for all of us just to
Speaker 2: have everyone back after you know, basically two years not
Speaker 2: seeing some of our amazing supporting cast. So that was
Speaker 2: we had people like Tracy Mann and Alan Dukes just
Speaker 2: just glorious. You just wanted them to write. I was
Speaker 2: happy to just be in a scene, not saying anything,
Speaker 2: just watching Tracy Man. That was a real thrill for
Speaker 2: me just generally, but also seeing Kate Jenkinson tear it up.
Speaker 2: She's so funny. I loved. I loved having the guest
Speaker 2: cast back. That meant a lot.
Speaker 1: Who was your favorite Five Bedrooms character that is not
Speaker 1: your own, like is there someone that you particularly really
Speaker 1: enjoy unpacking and watching.
Speaker 2: Oh that's hard because I love them all and it's
Speaker 2: hard to separate the actors from the characters when I
Speaker 2: know so.
Speaker 1: Well, Oh, Sophie is joice, sop is Joe.
Speaker 2: That's what it is, just like that band. What have
Speaker 2: you done? I probably when you know, when I first
Speaker 2: read the very you know, I got sent three scripts
Speaker 2: that were so organized they'd already written three complete scripts
Speaker 2: which barely changed. They were brilliant the very beginning. I thought,
Speaker 2: Heather is an absolute cracker of a character, and Doris
Speaker 2: has done something with her that is so nuanced and
Speaker 2: real and grounded and beautiful. So yeah, I think she's
Speaker 2: extraordinary and in that character is an absolute, absolute cracker.
Speaker 2: It's a beautiful marriage that actor in that way.
Speaker 1: Absolutely, you know, it's one of my favorite Australian. I mean,
Speaker 1: I'm in my forties, so I've grown up with her
Speaker 1: and you know, what was And I've spoken to on
Speaker 1: this podcast about this. You know, we've often seen her
Speaker 1: in secondary characters and she's always bright and steals the scene.
Speaker 1: Like some movies she's in for five minutes and you go,
Speaker 1: oh my god. And so I was really happy to
Speaker 1: see her in this show where she is a main
Speaker 1: character and she is a prominent feature of the story,
Speaker 1: which you know, I feel like has been a long
Speaker 1: time coming for her.
Speaker 2: In some ways, She's always been a queen and just
Speaker 2: to see her getting her rightful, her rightful notices just
Speaker 2: so right. The first time I remember seeing her was
Speaker 2: on See Change. She played the character that the wife
Speaker 2: of Willie McGinnis, so thin she dies after an episode,
Speaker 2: but she was so luminous that you can't you couldn't
Speaker 2: believe that she was in it for such a short
Speaker 2: period of time. She's just magnificent and a great stage
Speaker 2: actor too. She's fantastic.
Speaker 1: I've seen her in pretty much everything. I've seen you
Speaker 1: in pretty much everything as well. My MTC membership is
Speaker 1: mainly because of you, to be fair. Ah, what about
Speaker 1: the chemistry though, you know, do you have particular chemistry
Speaker 1: that you've found maybe even over the years that you
Speaker 1: know it really resonates because you know, you're in this
Speaker 1: with Roger Corsa, not that you know when you're in
Speaker 1: Underbelly you had that many scenes with him, But is
Speaker 1: there an actor that you've every time you're on screen
Speaker 1: you go, oh, this is palpable again.
Speaker 2: You're doing the sofa's choice Bene Roger's another one, and
Speaker 2: he's just delightful. And when he was cast as Stuart,
Speaker 2: I was thrilled and horrified simultaneously because I built up
Speaker 2: the character of Stuart, who we hadn't meant in series
Speaker 2: one as this dastedly, kind of horrible, manipulative older man.
Speaker 2: And then this, you know, dashing Roger Corso's you know,
Speaker 2: charming comes along and you think all of them, it
Speaker 2: was kind of it tipped the scales a bit. I thought, all, wow,
Speaker 2: it makes makes it a lot more believable that Liz
Speaker 2: could find herself in this situation because he's so charming.
Speaker 2: But sorry, going back to your question, I think, do
Speaker 2: you know who really surprised me is Stephen Peacock. That
Speaker 2: man can do That man can do anything. He is
Speaker 2: a I love watching him work. He's so spontaneous and
Speaker 2: he loves throwing in you know, different, a different little
Speaker 2: something in each take. But he's so grounded and he's
Speaker 2: so physical and he's so funny. I just I think
Speaker 2: he's really special.
Speaker 1: Crush on him. And you can't see this because it's
Speaker 1: a podcast and people listening at home, they also can't
Speaker 1: see this, but I'm actually mimicking his hair from this
Speaker 1: series and right now. This is how odd the podcast
Speaker 1: is going to get. People will like if it was
Speaker 1: weird at the start, it's weirder. I just I don't know.
Speaker 1: Maybe I'm trying to mask myself up a little bit,
Speaker 1: but yes, I'm definitely wearing his hair right now, and
Speaker 1: hopefully that will help me with the charm in my life.
Speaker 2: It will. It's like, I think hair's half of it. Honestly,
Speaker 2: hair is everything, as they saying, pleabay.
Speaker 1: And this is another question which is hopefully it's not
Speaker 1: a Sophie's Choice question, but it's These are all the
Speaker 1: questions I've always wanted to ask you. Which character that
Speaker 1: you've played is the most like you? And I'm assuming
Speaker 1: as an actress, you know you are using you know,
Speaker 1: fibers of who you really are. I mean, is Liz
Speaker 1: or Nat Manning from Tangle Billy Proudman? I mean obviously
Speaker 1: not ROBERTA Williams, because you're a gangster's wife. You know,
Speaker 1: it's a particular character that you go, oh, that's probably
Speaker 1: the closest to who I am.
Speaker 2: I think it's sort of hard. I think the longer
Speaker 2: you spend with a character, probably the more you kind
Speaker 2: of melt into each other. I think that was certainly
Speaker 2: the case because I did Billy Crowdman for so many years.
Speaker 2: She started off being quite abrasive, and she sort of softened,
Speaker 2: and I think we kind of met each other sort
Speaker 2: of halfway by the end of it. I think you're right, Ben,
Speaker 2: I think there are elements of me and each character,
Speaker 2: but they're amplified for a particular role, and you try
Speaker 2: and find what's truthful about you when you bring it out.
Speaker 2: But I don't. I need a bit of distance, otherwise
Speaker 2: I'd get self conscious. So I think I'm lucky that
Speaker 2: lucky that I'm not quite any of those people.
Speaker 1: I loved that you said that you didn't go back
Speaker 1: and do Underbelly, because when they asked you to go
Speaker 1: back and do Fat Tony, I can't remember what that
Speaker 1: show is called now, And then you didn't want to
Speaker 1: go back because you didn't want to kind of impersonate
Speaker 1: your performance because you know by that point she'd be Roberta.
Speaker 1: It becomes sort of more prominent in the media, so
Speaker 1: there was different influences.
Speaker 2: So yeah, that's right, that's right. Look, I didn't have
Speaker 2: that access to the real person, and she wasn't nearly
Speaker 2: as famous or she wasn't. You know, there was some
Speaker 2: there was a little bit of footage, but not much.
Speaker 2: So I kind of took some creative license I had
Speaker 2: to in doing that betrayal. And but then going back,
Speaker 2: I would have been working off a different kind of
Speaker 2: completely different kind of set of influences, So yeah, it
Speaker 2: would have been strange. So I think my mate Holly
Speaker 2: Andrew did a great job.
Speaker 1: Yeah, No, she was, she was fantastic. I mean, it's
Speaker 1: very hard to take on a role which has been
Speaker 1: made sort of significant like that. You know, Matt Lucas
Speaker 1: very good friend of his it's m Rossiano, and he
Speaker 1: came out publicly and said that, you know, Billy from
Speaker 1: Offspring was kind of based on his friendship with her.
Speaker 1: Did you ever meet m Rossiano and have a conversation
Speaker 1: about this or did you use her in any way
Speaker 1: to help you with that role?
Speaker 2: See, I have found this out, I think a couple
Speaker 2: of series in Okay, so I didn't find out, and
Speaker 2: I've since got to know him quite well and I
Speaker 2: love her, But I didn't know particularly at the time,
Speaker 2: and I've sort of got to know her more since
Speaker 2: Offspring finished, really, but yeah, he did, he did mention,
Speaker 2: and now that makes so much sense to me looking back.
Speaker 1: I just mate you being with em and you're like,
Speaker 1: just like being with Billy, Like I mean, she's saying,
Speaker 1: Billy brings back to me what's going on here?
Speaker 2: Yeah, she's Oh, I love her so much. Yeah, Yeah,
Speaker 2: she's a and I'm honored to have some of her
Speaker 2: DNA and Billy. Yeah.
Speaker 1: I mean Matt also, you know, is so prominent in
Speaker 1: Five Bedrooms. Do you think or has he spoken to
Speaker 1: you about any influences that he has with Liz, Like,
Speaker 1: is there a real person in real life similar to
Speaker 1: that Em Rosiano comparison?
Speaker 2: No, and I Michael's. He was very clear that he
Speaker 2: was really keen for me and Christine. They were keen
Speaker 2: for me to play someone who is very different to
Speaker 2: Billy since we'd work together so much on Offspring. But
Speaker 2: in terms of where she comes from, I don't think
Speaker 2: that there's a particular person in mind, and there's certainly
Speaker 2: that's the thing about Liz. I mean, the challenge for
Speaker 2: her is kind of she was a little bit unner
Speaker 2: at the very beginning of series one, and then we
Speaker 2: I think it was only episode five we actually found
Speaker 2: out it was actually going on with her and why
Speaker 2: she was so careful to keep up the facade and
Speaker 2: not let anyone get too close because she had this
Speaker 2: terrible disaster she was trying to avert behind the scenes.
Speaker 2: And then subsequent series have been about kind of dismantling
Speaker 2: her armor and kind of challenging her in different ways
Speaker 2: and you know, humiliating her from time to time in
Speaker 2: the most delightful ways, whether it's you know, dooing herself
Speaker 2: in a bath with Harry's mother or whether it's I
Speaker 2: get a a urinary tract infection. This series, like they've
Speaker 2: they've find new and interesting ways to kind of challenge
Speaker 2: her dignity and her persona of having her shit together.
Speaker 1: That's why she's so choosy and so tasty, you know
Speaker 1: what I mean.
Speaker 2: Well, I just she really she really does try to
Speaker 2: play things by the book, but she's got a lot
Speaker 2: of status anxiety, and she is a little bit everyone. Yes, yeah,
Speaker 2: but she has she's quite stoic, and but she makes
Speaker 2: a lot of mistakes and I'm really fond of her
Speaker 2: and She's challenged this series in a new way too,
Speaker 2: because she, without giving away too much plot, she kind
Speaker 2: of decides she makes some decisions that are a bit
Speaker 2: a little bit dubious, and she tries to make amends
Speaker 2: by making some really significant personal sacrifice, and that's really
Speaker 2: interesting for her. She sort of lets go of all
Speaker 2: the shine and the glamor and actually gets her hands
Speaker 2: dirty and tries to do the right thing. And that
Speaker 2: was really interesting to play.
Speaker 1: I've only seen the first three episodes, and you know,
Speaker 1: it's really funny. Was I got out my exercise bike.
Speaker 1: I've got one a home, which you know, basically I
Speaker 1: just yelled at in the corner of the room that
Speaker 1: never does anything. And I got on the exercise bike
Speaker 1: and put on the episodes and they rolled. So I
Speaker 1: watched the three together. And I've never done so much
Speaker 1: exercise or you know, being consistent on the bike, because
Speaker 1: I've kind of got a bit of ADHD so I
Speaker 1: get bored with things. But I watched three episodes and
Speaker 1: I'm now thinner than I've ever been because I was
Speaker 1: so engrossed.
Speaker 2: Oh wow, I am so glad to be a part
Speaker 2: out of your exercise routine.
Speaker 1: Yes, of course, what an odd thing to say. You know.
Speaker 1: I had image In Banks on the podcast last week.
Speaker 1: We're talking about her new show Safe Home, which is amazing.
Speaker 2: Watched it all? Have you watched it all? I watched
Speaker 2: I finished it two nights ago.
Speaker 1: But Imagen, though, brought up that she was talking to
Speaker 1: the collaborators for Tangle, and just before she spoke to me,
Speaker 1: she was like, I've just got a text message. Funny
Speaker 1: that you're mentioning Tangle. I'm saying, you know, Tangle season four?
Speaker 1: Would you be interested? And so we were talking that
Speaker 1: particular show and you know, wanting to go back and
Speaker 1: see where those people are. Is that a character that
Speaker 1: you would want to go back?
Speaker 2: And actually I have been pestering Imaging for years saying,
Speaker 2: I reckon, they're out of jail. Now I reckon they're out.
Speaker 2: I reckon, It's time to see where they're at. Yeah, yeah, yes, yeah,
Speaker 2: I would do Nat Manning again in a heartbeat. I
Speaker 2: just I love doing that show. That was a dream
Speaker 2: a dream cast. I'm saying that about everything, but it
Speaker 2: really was it. Really I do that again in a heartbeat.
Speaker 2: I love Net Everyone so naughty.
Speaker 1: Actually, all of the actresses another series where the actresses
Speaker 1: sort of overshadowed the men somehow because they were just
Speaker 1: so deliciously played by all of you.
Speaker 2: You know, just think Clark and Keta Mcclearan's May of Friends.
Speaker 1: I want them to be my friends.
Speaker 2: No, I mean, strictly speaking, I don't. I don't hang
Speaker 2: out with any of them, but when you're working together,
Speaker 2: you know, we don't, you know, just I mean, I
Speaker 2: just if I see them, I'm so pleased to see them,
Speaker 2: but it's a moment in time where you just you're
Speaker 2: kind of connected by the shared passion. And yeah, I'm
Speaker 2: such massive fans of them both. I'd love to do
Speaker 2: that again. And also the kids have grown up and
Speaker 2: done amazing people.
Speaker 1: Oh of course, of course, so many of them have
Speaker 1: become so so massive, like you know, getting a lot
Speaker 1: of more heaven overseas. It's the one thing I always
Speaker 1: think of when I see you in an MTC production.
Speaker 1: I'm watching you on television, however I've found you. I'm
Speaker 1: always thinking about Australians wanting to work overseas and what
Speaker 1: it is about you that has wanted to tell more
Speaker 1: Australian stories. I mean, I'm sure that there's been opportunities
Speaker 1: to sort of audition for things in different markets. But
Speaker 1: is it a conscious decision on your behalf to not
Speaker 1: be one of those Australians to play an overseas career.
Speaker 2: Well, I kind of. I'd been working kind of in
Speaker 2: obscurity here for a long time before I got a
Speaker 2: break here, and it was in the age. I'm sort
Speaker 2: of the age group where you didn't automatically go overseas.
Speaker 2: You tended to go overseas with some kind of calling card,
Speaker 2: and I didn't get that calling card until my thirties,
Speaker 2: and at that point it was I mean, I auditioned
Speaker 2: for things. In fact, I did a couple of deals
Speaker 2: where I was, you know, I'd signed away seven years
Speaker 2: in my life a couple of times, and then they
Speaker 2: cast the more famous person in I. But I kind
Speaker 2: of wrapped my head around doing that and got close
Speaker 2: to some big couple of big network things. But ultimately
Speaker 2: I didn't want to go over and do the whole
Speaker 2: coup surfing thing because I just thought, my life's here
Speaker 2: and my family's here, and if something happened, I'd always
Speaker 2: be open to it. But really, I've been fortunate enough
Speaker 2: to be busy enough here so that I didn't kind
Speaker 2: of need to. Yeah, yeah, And there have been quiet times,
Speaker 2: of course, and it's during the quiet times that you think,
Speaker 2: you know, maybe I should, But I've got kids now, Like,
Speaker 2: there's no way, there's no way unless I went over
Speaker 2: with the job that I do it, I can't go
Speaker 2: cauchsurfing with you know, an eleven and a seven year
Speaker 2: old is just.
Speaker 1: Going to bring my children and my husband and we're.
Speaker 2: Going to go, yes, oh yeah, I'm sure she'd have
Speaker 2: a lovely big couch. Unfortunately I'm not on couch surfing terms.
Speaker 2: Through the cold kidneth.
Speaker 1: But also I think as well, we've been extremely lucky
Speaker 1: to have you because I think your exploration of Australia
Speaker 1: and Australians and the human condition without making it sound
Speaker 1: very oprah has been fascinating to watch because all of
Speaker 1: these collected characters are in some ways a representation of
Speaker 1: who we are and the culture that we have here
Speaker 1: in Australia. And I think, you know, what an amazing
Speaker 1: career to continue to explore that.
Speaker 2: Ah Ben, that's so lovely. Thank you for saying that.
Speaker 2: I really I love that I've been able to tell
Speaker 2: Australia stories and For me, acting is more than a job.
Speaker 2: It's a real genuine passion. It's what I love to do,
Speaker 2: and I think it's a really great way to explore
Speaker 2: different points of view and different lived experiences. And I've
Speaker 2: learned so much about myself and about humans by playing
Speaker 2: these different characters.
Speaker 1: Where as we as an audience get to do through
Speaker 1: you vicariously. You know, we explore these things that you
Speaker 1: go through because they feel just as real as the
Speaker 1: people that we know in our real lives.
Speaker 2: You couldn't have said anything nicer to me, Ben, Thank you.
Speaker 2: I think that makes me very happy.
Speaker 1: Well, another stupid question for you before you go finishing up.
Speaker 2: Let's down.
Speaker 1: We're bringing it right down, now, bring it. I love
Speaker 1: Paramount Plus. I'm literally obsessed with It's one of my
Speaker 1: favorite streaming services. Hopefully not none of the other publicists
Speaker 1: from any other streaming services are listening to this episode.
Speaker 1: They probably are, and I apologize, but I'm obsessed with
Speaker 1: Yellowjackets and so many other shows. But do you get
Speaker 1: a lifetime subscription At this point, you've done four you know,
Speaker 1: like you've done four seasons of this show. You'll probably
Speaker 1: do five. I feel like they owe you a free
Speaker 1: subscription for what.
Speaker 2: Well, you know, I did get like a subscription and
Speaker 2: I lost the thing, and I actually I went to
Speaker 2: give myself a little refresh of the Five Bedrooms episodes
Speaker 2: before in doing some chats today, and I couldn't log
Speaker 2: on and I can't find the we got to get
Speaker 2: that sort of So at the moment, I'm locked out
Speaker 2: at Paramount Plus. But I'm not meant to be. It's
Speaker 2: just my own incompetence.
Speaker 1: That's so fascinating because you know, when you return to
Speaker 1: characters like this, of course, I feel like you'd need
Speaker 1: to go back, and in no other industry can you
Speaker 1: pop back in and just catch up on that character.
Speaker 1: It's fascinating to know that that's something that you would do.
Speaker 1: Or is that more to talk to the media or
Speaker 1: is that yeah, you know.
Speaker 2: Just just just so I could think, you know, what
Speaker 2: happens in this episode, what happens in that Episodecuse it
Speaker 2: becomes a bit of a blur after a while, yeah,
Speaker 2: because you're filming a couple of episodes at once, and
Speaker 2: it was, you know, we finished just before Christmas, so
Speaker 2: it's a little while ago now, but I remember the basics.
Speaker 2: But yeah, I'm locked out at the moment. I'm locked own.
Speaker 1: It'd be awkward that people were saying, you know what
Speaker 1: about this scene with Roger Corser and you're like, what
Speaker 1: do you mean? I don't know what you're talking about.
Speaker 1: What are you working on next? Have you got another
Speaker 1: project lined up? Is there something else coming up that
Speaker 1: we can look forward to?
Speaker 2: Well? While I was breaking Paramount Plus, yes, I filmed
Speaker 2: something finished in April. It's called One Night, which is
Speaker 2: going to be on Paramount Plus. I'm not sure when
Speaker 2: I think it'll be later this year or next year.
Speaker 2: It's completely different. It's about three women and their friendship
Speaker 2: going back and sort of flashes between the nineties and
Speaker 2: current day and a traumatic event that happened to them,
Speaker 2: you know, to late teenagers, and how they've dealt with
Speaker 2: it subsequently. And it's got a brilliant international and this
Speaker 2: local cast. I'm playing opposite Jodie Whittaker, who's doctor who
Speaker 2: and has done broad Church and all sorts of great things.
Speaker 2: I play her wife, and I'm playing a British character
Speaker 2: and it's a support role that I was up and
Speaker 2: down for Sydney for that, and I'm just I think
Speaker 2: it's it's going to be an absolute ripper.
Speaker 1: Well, it might be a little bit AMBITI but I
Speaker 1: think we're going to have to get your logged back
Speaker 1: into Paramount Past by the time that comes out.
Speaker 2: Yes, yeah, I need to make some someone calls do we.
Speaker 1: Know anything about series five? I know that we're talking
Speaker 1: about series four and it might be ambitious on my behalf,
Speaker 1: But do you know whether or not? Because I know
Speaker 1: with some shows and I was talking about that with
Speaker 1: Image and that sometimes you can sign up for three
Speaker 1: to make sure that you lock in a cast. Are
Speaker 1: you allowed to even talk about it? Can we expect more.
Speaker 2: To be honest with you? Then often it's the actors
Speaker 2: that are the last to know, like they put it
Speaker 2: all together before they talk to us. But we're not
Speaker 2: optioned for anymore. That we love doing it, like anything's possible.
Speaker 2: But I kind of think where they leave us at
Speaker 2: the end of a poor you could leave it there.
Speaker 2: But also Michael and Christine as such magicians, they could
Speaker 2: make anything happen. I don't know. We'll see my hope,
Speaker 2: see what the audiences think.
Speaker 1: Yeah, the last question I ask everyone who joins the podcast,
Speaker 1: thank you also for being so generous and being here
Speaker 1: is what if something from behind the scenes of Five Bedrooms,
Speaker 1: something that we as an audience wouldn't see, maybe like
Speaker 1: a bit of a funny story that's happened behind the scenes,
Speaker 1: well kind of.
Speaker 2: Probably the biggest shenanigans behind the scenes was not being
Speaker 2: able to get any any supporting cast in. I don't
Speaker 2: think he'd mind me saying this, or he'd be open. Roger, course,
Speaker 2: was only meant to come for one episode in series two.
Speaker 2: That was it. It was meant to be the end
Speaker 2: of him, and I was meant to go on to
Speaker 2: have a big romance with Ben's brother, played by beautiful
Speaker 2: Daniel Joseph. He played Joseph. He's fantastic and so that
Speaker 2: was cooking. And then the pandemic hit and we had
Speaker 2: to fly him out. So he leaves quite abruptly, and
Speaker 2: they were able to bring Roger, bless his cotton socks,
Speaker 2: agreed to come back, even though it was quite stressful
Speaker 2: and you know, COVID was really heating up. He came
Speaker 2: back and we were able to pick up on that relationship,
Speaker 2: which was gold because I think they were really happy
Speaker 2: with our chemistry and so they were really excited to
Speaker 2: explore it more. But that wasn't the original plan, so
Speaker 2: that was just the way things worked out. So that
Speaker 2: was a bit of excitement behind the scenes. He's the
Speaker 2: real deal Roger and such funny, good company and it's
Speaker 2: completely down to earth, no funt about him at all.
Speaker 2: And then but when the camera rolls, he just clicks in. Yeah, yeah,
Speaker 2: I love working with him.
Speaker 1: But for people out there that are listening to this,
Speaker 1: definitely tune in. If you haven't seen any of Five Bedrooms,
Speaker 1: then you are so wrong and you need to go
Speaker 1: and fix that immediately and catch up on it. The
Speaker 1: new season comes out this week, which is so good,
Speaker 1: and Kat, can I just say that, what an honor
Speaker 1: to have this time and to talk to you And
Speaker 1: it's yeah, a bucket listening for me for sure.
Speaker 2: Oh Ben, I am so chucked. And now that we
Speaker 2: know where we're neighbors, there's no stopping here, so next
Speaker 2: time we'll talk.
Speaker 1: So you're pointing at your kids, that's the widow, that's
Speaker 1: the one over there. You watch him. I'll do the
Speaker 1: supermarket shopping and we'll get out of here, all right,
Speaker 1: don't make eye contact.
Speaker 2: Quick walk