May 25, 2023 • 37 mins
In this episode we're thrilled to welcome actors Sam Clemmett and Freddie Dennis. Join us for a delightful day off with the stars as they reflect on filming the hit show.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Queen Charlotte the Official Podcast is a production of Shondaland
Audio in partnership with iHeartRadio. Welcome back to Queen Charlotte
the Official Podcast, Your companion behind the scenes of Shondaland's
(00:22):
Bridgerton prequel on Netflix. I'm your host, Gabby Collins, and
today we're going to have some more fun with me.
Here I have Sam Clement, who captured the messy Boots,
confidant to our Queen as young Brimsley, and Freddie Dennis,
who introduced us to the lost love we didn't know
Brimsley had.
Speaker 2 (00:46):
I'm always jealous that the King's Man is father to
quarters from the Queen's Man.
Speaker 3 (00:51):
To be expected, I am more important than you.
Speaker 1 (00:56):
In today's episode, we're unlocking key moments from episode too,
and we'll be jumping around because it's hard not to
when talking about Reynolds and Brimsley's points of view and yay.
We're also getting to know Sam and Freddie a little bit.
So Freddy is a geographer.
Speaker 3 (01:13):
Guys went to Grama school and then four months later
I'm Reynolds. But it was a pretty terrifying leap, and
who knows, maybe I will end up as a geography teacher.
One day we'll see.
Speaker 2 (01:22):
Maybe your next role is a geography teacher in a
blockbuster movie.
Speaker 3 (01:26):
I think that's what everyone wants to see.
Speaker 2 (01:28):
Yeah, that's what I want to.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
See everybody live and direct. We have the Brimsley, the Reynolds,
we have Sam Clement and Freddie Dennis here. Hello, welcome
to the podcast.
Speaker 2 (01:44):
Thank you very much for having us.
Speaker 1 (01:46):
We're so happy to have you. Hi, Freddie, Hello.
Speaker 3 (01:49):
Thank you, but also for having us. It's very exciting.
Speaker 1 (01:52):
So wondering if you've seen any of the show yet.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
Yeah, we've been lucky enough to see all of it.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
You've seen all of it.
Speaker 3 (02:00):
Which was initially terrifying but actually brilliant and I think
we're all very proud.
Speaker 2 (02:05):
Yeah, it's quite overwhelming watching it all for the first time,
I think.
Speaker 1 (02:09):
So tell me a little about why it's slightly terrifying
for you.
Speaker 3 (02:14):
Ready, So this is my first of a job, so
I have never seen myself on screen. I'm not sure
I ever one seen myself on screen again, but it
was for that reason. There's a lot of responsibility that
comes with Johnny a world that is as beloved as
as Bridgington. Everyone has been so welcoming and lovely, and
(02:35):
it's been nothing but a joy.
Speaker 1 (02:37):
Damn, you've been on stage, you've been on screen. Is
it still a little terrifying for you? How it was
your experience watching it? Oh?
Speaker 2 (02:45):
Yeah, I think any project I ever do, it's terrifying.
If it's like first air rehearsals, or if it's the
first preview of the show, or if it's if it's
the screening of the show. I don't think them nerves
ever go away. It's always it's just like apprehension going
into something you put so much, so much work into
and wanting it to be good and wanting people to
(03:07):
love it.
Speaker 1 (03:08):
Okay, you've seen the show, Sam, what's your favorite scene
so far? Like you have three seconds go boom?
Speaker 2 (03:14):
Oh, my favorite scene so far is in episode four
with me and Freddie and we're bickering around the table.
Speaker 3 (03:22):
I completely agree. That's also my favorite scene.
Speaker 2 (03:24):
It was the first scene we ever shot together. It
was a lot of fun.
Speaker 1 (03:28):
Had you already shot scenes from the first three episodes
before you got together for this scene and episode for it?
Speaker 2 (03:37):
No, we hadn't. That was your first ever scene, wasn't it,
fred Yeah?
Speaker 3 (03:40):
It was, Which was brilliant, but we got it as
a standalone scene, and I think we both read it
and went, oh, my god, this is completely brilliant and
so funny and I can't wait to play with this.
But then there was also an element of going, I'm
not quite sure I understand the context of this. But
then the context came in pretty swiftly before we did
shoot it, so that made the whole experience again pretty overwhelming.
(04:02):
Overwhelming is my buzzword for today.
Speaker 1 (04:03):
By the way, unpack has been my buzzwords. So we're
in this together. Tell me about the table reads, you guys.
I hear that those are always really fun and ripe
with laughter and amusement. And were there any special moments
that that register when you think back on those early days.
Speaker 3 (04:27):
I think my favorite moment was when I stopped shaking
from fear. That was probably the best one.
Speaker 2 (04:34):
I was going to say. The other thing is, with
all of them things, it's also absolutely terrifying because I
don't know if you agree with this ready, but you're like,
this is the first time I'm really saying these words
out allows to the entire creative team and the rest
of the actors, And if I don't do a good job.
I'm going to get fired.
Speaker 3 (04:49):
Yeah, that is exactly what it feels like. And then
you find yourself trying to say your lines.
Speaker 1 (04:56):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (04:57):
I really realized actually during the first table read how
funny it is. I didn't. I didn't realize how so
funny funny it was. You start hearing everyone's voices and
everyone everyone's bringing to it. You're like, oh my god,
this is hilarious. This is so much funnier than I
originally thought it was.
Speaker 1 (05:13):
Yes, yes, I agree, it is so funny.
Speaker 3 (05:16):
But it's also a brilliant opportunity to relax into your
relationships with the other actors, because I think if we
had all met first day on set in Blend and Palace,
we would just have been sort of screaming and going,
oh my god, how do we cope with this? But
we had a real opportunity to meet each other. And
I think it was three or four weeks before, wasn't
(05:38):
it sound before we started shooting, Yeah, something like that,
And that meant we started having a rapport and then
a subsequent friendship. I think Sam and I went for
some drinks drinks with Corey in India just to kind
of go yeah, oh my god, pinch me if we're
starting this thing. And then we started the whole filming
process as mates, which made it a more fun be
(06:00):
less intimidating.
Speaker 2 (06:02):
I think so much easier because you just when you're
friends with each other and you have a bit of
a chemistry with each other, as you know Samon Freddy
and India and Corey, it just makes lifting the scenes
off the page a lot easier than meeting someone on
the day and going, I don't know who you are. Okay,
let's give it a go. Do you know what I mean?
Speaker 3 (06:21):
We could work together. I could be useful.
Speaker 2 (06:25):
I am a patriot. I serve the ground. You cannot
take all of this on a learn You.
Speaker 3 (06:29):
Are climbing, brims I am not. He is mine. Stay down.
Speaker 1 (06:35):
So okay, what's so interesting about that is that's the
scene for me where I'm like, oh, there is back
backstory between Reynolds and Brimsley. This is a level of
passive aggressiveness that people who know each other reach.
Speaker 3 (06:50):
Okay, love each other.
Speaker 1 (06:51):
Can you and who love each other, yes, tell me
the back backstory in your mind of Brimsley and Reynolds.
There's so much that's left for viewers to fill in,
what did you think.
Speaker 2 (07:04):
They've known each other for a very long time. We
think they would have grown up in the court together
learning what it is to be the right hand man
of serving the king or the queen. And in terms
of the power play between the two, Reynolds definitely got,
you know, the number one job in serving the king,
(07:24):
and he's always been very arrogant about that he did,
and Rimsey fell in just behind with being the queen's man,
and they have to look after the one that they
are beside, and we're constantly trying to gain information from
the other to protect the king or to protect the queen,
and so that element of their relationship is a lot
of fun to play. But then the more romantic side
(07:46):
of things is, you know, the two people that are
very isolated and the only downtime that they have is
with each other, and so they seek a lot of
solace in each other and they become each other's emotional
support systems.
Speaker 1 (07:57):
Yeah, I definitely had the thought that, oh, they have
chosen each other because they didn't have many other choices.
But that's pretty much what we're seeing across this series too.
There's a lot of arrangement and like choosing to love
and choosing to commit, And I think that's across all
(08:19):
of the relationships in the series.
Speaker 3 (08:21):
I think they have to make a choice to love
each other. They have a choice whether or not to
be together, and there's also a very dangerous choice. But
I think that is a testament to how much they
clearly do love each other despite all the passive aggression
and the bickering, which is my favorite thing to play.
It was much fun.
Speaker 2 (08:41):
Yeah, I mean the power play scenes between the two
of them are my favorite parts in the whole series,
particularly in episode two, the first scene when we realize
they are romantically involved. You know, there is so much
information I'm trying to get from him, and he won't
give me anything, and that just raises the stakes high
and higher and higher.
Speaker 1 (08:56):
Right, and then Brimsley sees the young King George in
the cellar right and later spills the beans and Reynolds
is so upset. You just see Renolds jump out of
bed and he's like, I cannot believe you spill the beans.
Speaker 2 (09:12):
You made me almost corpse quite a few times in
that scene. You agreed to see nothing, not agreed, your
eyes agreed.
Speaker 3 (09:19):
Reynolds is pretty furious at Brimsley at this point, and
he's putting on his clothes on in a bit of
a rush. But on Sam's coverage, I couldn't get my
clothes on because there's a lot of buttons, you know,
it's seventeen sixty three or whatever, and I didn't manage
to do it, but I wanted to carry on with
the momentum of the scene, so I sort of ended
up doing the scene naked because I couldn't get my
(09:43):
clothes on, and Sam had to respond to me, Yeah,
the camera is right at me, and there's a whole
bunch of group behind Freddy, and Freddy has to go
right round the back of the of the room to
then get out of the room, and I have to
track him with my eyeline. But all I'm seeing is
this man holding all of his clothes trying to get
around the instead of like being here with me, and
(10:03):
I struggled to hold it together. I'm sure they didn't
use that taking it would have been very den I'd
have looked ridiculous as ridiculous as me if the cameras
the other way around.
Speaker 2 (10:16):
That's true.
Speaker 1 (10:18):
I was telling Tom Berica that that set. There's so
much detail.
Speaker 2 (10:22):
I remember Brimsey's room and how I mean, he's a
very meticulous young man. He knows his job inside out.
Everything's very precise. Everything was very perfect when I stepped
into his room for the first time. But just walking
onto the more elaborate sets, you know, the corridors that
go around the palace and one of the Queen's bedroom,
the King's bedroom, these elaborate sets that they've you know,
(10:43):
they've created. I mean it is like stepping into the
grounds of Buckingham Palace. I imagine. The attention to detail
was extraordinary. I find it quite overwhelming. And stepping into
the likes of Blending Palace is extraordinary as it is,
but into something that has been created by you know,
the set directors and everyone else, it has a very
different meaning to I suppose.
Speaker 3 (11:04):
Yeah, that was amazing actually because that had just come
from drama school and lots of the plays that you're
doing are actually they're quite limited in terms of props,
and walking into Reynolds's bedroom, I just thought, this is
so intricate and detailed. There's a man's life in this room.
Speaker 1 (11:21):
Yeah, hurry up and get your tea, come right back.
There's more from behind the scenes of Queen Charlotte, a
Bridgeton story with Sam Clement and Freddie Dennis right after this.
(11:41):
Thanks for staying with us. Now back to our talk
with actors Sam Clement and Freddie Dennis. I was wondering
if you all could speak to the attentiveness of like
Coral Brimsley and Reynolds to the King, to Lady Danbury
Young Charlotte. There are particular scenes that I'm thinking of, Like,
(12:02):
for example, Sam, there's the scene where you are just
five steps behind, five paces behind. Yeah, you're five paces behind,
and you've got your hand out at Young Charlotte's back,
but you're not touching her. And I was wondering if
you could unpack that moment a little bit.
Speaker 2 (12:19):
This moment, for all of us, it basically solidifies who
Brimsley is to the.
Speaker 4 (12:24):
Queen and I will you shall not tell me what
I'm allowed.
Speaker 2 (12:27):
To do, Your majesty, I am the one person who
will never tell you what you are allowed to do.
I will, however, always tell you how better to do
the things you are not allowed to do. The two
of them have sort of been trying to find the
rhythm with one another and he's been trying to guide
her through this new role and what it means to
be to be queen, and she's obviously had a lot
to deal with, and that becomes more and more intense
(12:49):
for her as the series progresses. Within Bridgeton, you know,
he doesn't have to say very much, but he is
always present. His duty is to serve her first and
four most throughout his life, and in that moment he
wants to be very very human towards her and support
her and hold her and give her a shoulder to
cry on. But he's not. He's not allowed to do that.
(13:10):
So Shonder Rhymes and Tom Verica, you know, they created
this sort of very beautiful tableau of a simple gesture
which would basically be him putting his hand on her shoulder,
and it's like everything's going to be okay. I am
here for you, come what may. And I think that
moment is the foundation of who they are and what
they then become. In the Bridgeton verse.
Speaker 1 (13:33):
And Freddie, similarly, Reynolds has a moment where he busts
through and is like, get off of the king.
Speaker 3 (13:41):
I am the kingsman, I will see the king.
Speaker 1 (13:43):
Well, no, you are not allowed to.
Speaker 4 (13:45):
I am the King's man.
Speaker 3 (13:46):
I will see the King go back.
Speaker 1 (13:49):
To your horse, and I'm like, oh, wait, have they
grown up together? You know? How long have they known
each other? And talk about Reynolds's care for the king
and how you pro says that, how you prepared for that.
Speaker 3 (14:02):
I think they absolutely have known each other since childhood.
And actually Cory and I just discussed that quite a lot,
because there there's a sort of unspoken love that exists
between King George and Reynolds throughout the series that manifests
in increasingly dramatic ways. One of the main things about
Reynolds's role is he does a great duty to the
(14:22):
king to look after the king, but first and foremost
their friends. So the way that I connected to that
was just back considering some of my best friends in
the world and considering what it would feel like to
see them struggling in that way. Because George is a deeply,
deeply vulnerable man as we can all see, and Reynolds,
I'm going to say, his best friend just wants him
(14:43):
to be okay, and he wants to take away that
pain for him.
Speaker 1 (14:47):
Freddie, your encounter with the lines you give to the
young King George where you tell him that Princess Augusta
has left and he collapses and he sends you to
call for the doctor, and you also tell the young
King George, don't worry, norm will no that you're going
to decompensate. So do you remember that scene?
Speaker 3 (15:08):
Yeah, yeah, I do. I mean, that's always an interesting
scene to me because I remember after we shot that
scene Tom Verica that won't get in, which was sad
because Corey and I when we got it, we went, oh, wow,
this is a this is our sort of first interaction
as George and Reynolds. There's almost that unspoken bond between
(15:28):
the two of them, and that's a powerful scene because
it's the first time I think you see a hint
of Reynolds's care for George, but also the cracks very
much start appearing for George and you go, Okay, this
is quite a serious problem we have on our hands here.
And that was amazing to shoot, and we shot there
quite early on, and I think it sort of laid
the foundation for a lot of mine and Corey's work.
Speaker 1 (15:52):
Any moments from the two of you working together, especially
if you can remember anything from episode two, any.
Speaker 3 (16:00):
Stories We definitely have some stories.
Speaker 2 (16:05):
Yeah, we have many stories. So we were staying in
an airbnb, the four of us, and and me and
Freddie took a bit of a bit of a walk
in the countryside and ended up in a field we
clearly weren't meant to be in, and we walked down
to this little lake and it wasn't really going anywhere,
so we walked back and then turned behind us and
realized there was a few cows. So instead of instead
(16:26):
of dealing with the situation calmly, we decided to run
and then realized there was a lot more cows behind us,
and then got trapped in this sort of little center
section and sent pictures to our castmates and to the crew,
and everyone found it hilarious, and we were stuck. We
were stuck there for about forty five minutes waiting for
them to get bored so we could leave this area
and not get trampled by cows.
Speaker 1 (16:49):
I grew up in the Midwest. That's hilarious.
Speaker 3 (16:52):
There were about fifty of them, it was. It was terrifying,
and we were considering what to do. We were going
do we call the police, what do we say? But
the cows never got bored, right so we eventually had
to hide in the in the shrubbery waiting for them
to go and think, this is so embarrassing. But they
(17:14):
were pretty fast.
Speaker 2 (17:15):
Actually they were fast, a lot faster than us. But
everyone on set thought it was hilarious. They had they
had they had no sympathy for us whatsoever. And it
became the talk of the set that day and we
came on and it was like, we could have we
could have died. But no.
Speaker 3 (17:29):
No scenes for episode two. The ones in Blenham that
were pretty fun to shoot, the ones in the hats.
I love that because I love those Hans, but also
that again they were they were interesting establishing scenes where
you you become aware of the inherent competitiveness that exists
in rens In Reynolds and are everyone from the hashtag rounds.
Speaker 2 (18:05):
I love it.
Speaker 3 (18:06):
It's better than brim Noles, or.
Speaker 2 (18:10):
It could be Brens and it's like like Brenoles brothers.
Speaker 3 (18:15):
Yeah, Brenolds is better than I said, brim Noles. What
am I doing?
Speaker 2 (18:20):
Where did that cut?
Speaker 3 (18:21):
Brim Noless, brim Sli, I'm just going to stop.
Speaker 1 (18:27):
Well, we'll ask the listeners.
Speaker 2 (18:29):
Yeah, the listeners will make their decision that's a silly idea.
Speaker 1 (18:33):
They probably they will, They will decide very quickly. I'm
sure of it. Yeah, because the scenes with the two
of you are really really remarkable, and you just really
do deliver that layer of life that the entire series
really does give us. You allow us to really go
into the story further.
Speaker 3 (18:54):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (18:55):
Yeah, it was really fun to watch.
Speaker 2 (18:57):
Thank you very much.
Speaker 3 (18:58):
Well, I'm glad you enjoyed watching it, because I think
I found it very very terrifying. But I do now
like watching it. I assure you.
Speaker 1 (19:06):
I'm sure you're not alone. Tom Verica told me that
actor Hugh Sachs, who plays present day Brimsley, Yeah, spent
the day with you two to watch episode six. I
guess the dancing moment on top of the Hill.
Speaker 2 (19:25):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1 (19:26):
Can you tell me a little more about working with
Jack Murphy on that moment.
Speaker 3 (19:31):
Well, firstly, Hugh is amazing. We love Hugh. It was
brilliant having him there as a friend first and foremost
and as a colleague. The whole dancing preparation was one
of my favorite things about the entire show because it
was unlike anything I at least had ever done before.
I think it taps into Brimsley's and Reynolds's vulnerabilities in
(19:52):
a way that actually a scene where they were speaking
probably couldn't have done. And it almost feels like a
moment of unadulterated joy that neither them have had up
until this point in the series. Working with Jack was amazing,
and I will be forever grateful to Jack for his
patients because I am not a mover, but I do
(20:14):
think I can now just about do it. But actually,
one of my favorite things about watching that scene is
there is a moment where there is a definite mistake
on behalf of me think or maybe both of us,
and we both slightly think it was both. We both
giggle and it made it in because I think, and
that's lovely because it just shows how much fun we
(20:34):
were having as actors. But also I think that's very
true to what the moment would have been for Bremsley
and Reynolds, where they go, hey, we've done it, you
and me, you and me.
Speaker 2 (20:45):
And the idea that they get to like steal five
minutes ten minutes together because it's never more than that,
and you know, they get this opportunity to have a
very intimate moment away from everybody else, and it's it's
exactly what Freddie has said. It's that it's them feeling
complete and utter joy and entirely themselves and not having
(21:08):
the weight of the rest of the world on their shoulders.
They can just be present with each other. Because we
shot that very late on in a night shoot. It
was the last day at Blendon Palace and we were
shooting it like quarter past through in the morning, so
we were shooting cortpas thro in the morning. We were
wrapping at four and we had to do our scene
and then we had to do Hughes bit of the
dance as well, and then they were like, Freddie, we
(21:30):
want you to do a little bit of dancing with
Hugh leading up to the take as well. So we're
all just sort of being thrown around dancing with each other.
So having time with Hugh and Jack and the two
of us in rehearsals was invaluable because it meant that
not only could Hugh and Freddie start to learn each
other's bodies, but I could also start to learn Hugh's
body as well, because part of my way into the
(21:52):
character was the physicality that he has and how he
holds himself at the end of that shot, after he
has danced. I know it was just speaks a thousand
words as to who Reynolds is to Brimsley.
Speaker 3 (22:04):
It is heartbreaking, It is completely heartbreaking.
Speaker 1 (22:07):
It is everyone's going to wonder what happened? What happened?
Speaker 3 (22:13):
He's on holiday.
Speaker 2 (22:15):
He's on a very very long holiday. Where's he gone.
Speaker 3 (22:20):
He's on a beach somewhere. He's on a beach. Okay, great,
I think the Maldives probably, yeah, okay, what's.
Speaker 2 (22:25):
The capital of the Maldives?
Speaker 3 (22:27):
Marley or Marhe.
Speaker 1 (22:29):
Freddie, what was your leap from geography to this world?
Speaker 3 (22:34):
I have always wanted to be an actor, but I
I will put it down to a lack of self confidence.
I didn't allow myself to start before me until I
was twenty three years old, because the thought of it
excited me, but it also completely terrified me. So I
you know, I told myself, next year older, next year older,
(22:54):
when I go to UNI, I'll do And then I
left UNI with a degree in geography and went, am
I going to I've never acted? How have I not
done this? And I just went, Fred, you have to
take the plunges now or never, And I just knew
I would love it, So I went to Gramma School
and then four months later I'm Reynolds. But it was
(23:14):
a pretty terrifying leap. And who knows, maybe I will
end up as a geography teacher one day. We'll see.
Speaker 1 (23:19):
I mean, it can happen.
Speaker 2 (23:21):
Maybe your next role is a geography teacher in a
blockbuster movie.
Speaker 3 (23:25):
I think that's what everyone wants to see.
Speaker 2 (23:27):
Yeah, that's what I want to see.
Speaker 1 (23:33):
Stick around. There's more with Sam Clement and Freddie Dennis.
They're going to be sharing tales from their auditions right
after this. Before we jump back into our discussion, take
(23:54):
a listen to what Kelly Valentine Hendry had to say
about casting with these two actors.
Speaker 5 (24:01):
What was really great at the read through, because we
didn't get a chance to chemistry them, was when we
had lovely Freddie Dennis and Sam Clement. So when he
and Sam at the read through, we realized, oh my goodness,
there's super proper sparking chemistry there. That was really glorious
(24:22):
to walk away and say, we've absolutely got that right.
Speaker 1 (24:26):
That was Kelly Valentine Henry, casting director of Queen Charlotte
at Bridgerton Story wasn't that interesting. I mean, you would
have never guessed. Right. Well, we've got more from Sam
and Freddy on their auditions and memories from the early
days of the project, early early days of joining the project.
Let's get back into our conversation, Sam, were there any
(24:47):
full circle moments for you? You know, Queen Charlotte. A
Bridgerton story has a ton of flash forwards in the
way Shondaland knows how to do a good flash forward.
I was wondering if you had any moments in your
life or your career that kind of feel full circle.
Speaker 2 (25:07):
It related to this show totally. I have auditioned for
the Bridgington World. I think it's four or five times
before getting this part, more than any like long running series.
I auditioned in twenty nineteen for one of the leading
parts in Bridgeston, and then off the back of that
had read for like various guest parts here and there,
(25:30):
and then read four. The initial tape for this was
a scene from Bridgeston. No one quite knew what they
were reading for, and then eventually the audition for the
Brimsley came around. I was like, oh my god, maybe
this is the fifth time. Now I just went like,
you know what what will be will be? I know
the world. I'm not going to put all of my
(25:52):
energy into this basket and trying to make this work,
and did it very relaxed tape and lo and behold
got the job. So that became a very full circle
moment for me in my career and with this particular
job as well. It was four years in the making.
Speaker 3 (26:08):
Wow, Relaxation is the key.
Speaker 2 (26:12):
Relaxation is the key. But also I don't know if
I've told anyone this. I was offered a smaller part
in series two of Bridgington and it would come off
the back of the pandemic and work was pretty sparse
for everyone. And cue as to my agent as well,
for very good agent thing here he went, So they've
offered you this. It's like three lines, and that would
(26:32):
be great obviously, but they love you a lot for
this world, and I think it's worth just holding off
to see if something else comes down the line. And
if I'd have taken that role, I would never have
been able to read and do Brimsley.
Speaker 1 (26:46):
Oh okay, well, thank goodness, because I don't think I'm
alone when I'm like, of course, that's young Brimsley, Like,
we spoke with Kelly Valentine Henry and just so you know,
she was like, oh yeah, within the first three minutes
we knew who was was going to be, which whatever
role they played, So I'm so happy. Tell me about
your first encounter with the actual first scenes that we
(27:11):
see you in. I think that's the five steps behind
on the steps.
Speaker 2 (27:14):
Right, Sam, Yeah, on the staircase.
Speaker 1 (27:16):
Just really funny was that exchange between you and ye Charlotte?
Speaker 2 (27:21):
It is really funny. I first encountered that scene in
the audition. That was the audition scene.
Speaker 3 (27:25):
Same for me.
Speaker 2 (27:26):
Because that's what you used as well. Of course. Yeah,
we were well into the end of block one, so
we've been shooting for like six or seven weeks, and
I sat with this dialogue for so long and I
felt like I knew the ins and out of it
so much that when it got round to it and
India was felt the same. We then suddenly got so
incredibly nervous, even though we knew that scene like the
(27:47):
back of our hand. And then I just put all
of this pressure on myself, like I think this might
be a bit stale and it needs to be snappy,
It needs to be funny. It's the first time we
meet him, so when it came to doing it, it
took me a while of me to on that one.
Speaker 1 (28:01):
Your delivery is so good so as India's. It's almost flippant,
like is Brimsley being a little smart.
Speaker 4 (28:09):
You know what?
Speaker 2 (28:09):
You know?
Speaker 1 (28:10):
It was really really funny.
Speaker 2 (28:12):
He's just like, he's just like, just do your job,
just do your job. Just don't mess up, Just don't
mess up. And she's making this very very hard. Just
don't mess up. And then when she starts talking about
the king, he's like, well, that's a kind of worms
I don't want to open. He's the king, he's this,
he's that. Please stop talking to me.
Speaker 3 (28:26):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (28:26):
I think it's the moment you say those are facts,
you're mad. I'm like, okay, this is this is going
to be an interesting relationship.
Speaker 3 (28:34):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (28:35):
So, Freddie, a lot of first experiences for you on
this project. Do you have any favorite firsts or do
you have any favorite scenes?
Speaker 3 (28:45):
Well? I love the scene where I'm riding the horse.
Speaker 1 (28:48):
That's tell me about tell me about shooting that scene.
Speaker 3 (28:53):
Oh my goodness, it was I was completely terrified.
Speaker 2 (28:56):
I was there. I had to come down and watch it.
I couldn't not present for it.
Speaker 3 (29:00):
I think everyone came and watched it. They prepped me
for it for months, which is funny because it was
only a sort of ten second scene. But obviously I'm
not wearing a helmet. But I was absolutely terrified. I
was on this lovely horse. They kept saying he was
lovely called Mufassa, and they went, Vassa is definitely not
scared of drones, and I went, well, I'm a bit
(29:21):
scared of drums, you know. But every time this drone
went up in the air, Mufassa would freak out and
kind of start moving loads like that, listeners and moving
quite a lot. And I have to kick him twice
to tell him to go, and he would just take off.
And I was also aware because people found it slightly
ridiculous that I was on a horse. I Freddie was
(29:42):
on a horse. Everyone was watching, so I had to
try and play it as cool as I could. A boy,
was I sweating?
Speaker 2 (29:51):
You smashed it though? It went very well?
Speaker 3 (29:53):
Yeah it did. I'm glad I wasn't wearing a heart
rate thing.
Speaker 1 (29:59):
Oh Sam, I don't remember if you had any scenes
like that, or you were on horseback. Or dealing with
other animals. Oh, you had the Pomeranian all the time?
Speaker 2 (30:11):
I have the Pomeranian pomp.
Speaker 1 (30:13):
Yes, how was that? And also with your costumes? How
did you manage that?
Speaker 2 (30:17):
I mean it was she was sort of extraordinary. I
think she was, like I think she was about fifteen
weeks old when we started, because they needed a puppy,
and I was like, oh God, this is going to
be hard work. But she was the best behaved puppy
I think I've ever met in my life. She would
occasionally fall asleep while I was acting, which I think is,
you know, quite an aggressive reaction towards my performance, and
(30:42):
therefore and I will stole my scenes.
Speaker 1 (30:47):
So is there anything else that she'd like to to
say about your challenges onset or challenges with the material
or anything that you overcame throughout the process.
Speaker 2 (31:03):
For me, sometimes scenes can get changed, you know, and
adapted last minute to suit the story as best as
they can. So I like to sit with dialogue for
at least three or four days before doing a scene,
and occasionally things might get changed last minute because there's
a better version of this of a particular scene. And
learning dialogue quite quickly, I find quite hard sometimes because
(31:27):
I like to feel very relaxed with the scenes and
with the dialogue, and I think for something for me
that I'm trying to get better at is being able
to turn over the dialogue very very quickly. What about you, Fred,
I think for me, I learned an awful lot about
the importance of remaining confident and believing in yourself. And
(31:47):
there's a particular moment on set that happened very very
early on actually, in one of those scenes at Blenham
in episode two when Sam You'll remember it, because I
was very in my head and I felt like I
was doing a terrible job, and we eventually got the shot.
I'd struggled a bit and Tom came up to me
and he went it really gently, in a lovely way.
(32:09):
He went, Freddie, just remember that this is really really fun,
and I went.
Speaker 3 (32:15):
Yeah, You're You're so right. What I'm trying to do
is I'm trying to do the perfect job, and that's
that's putting me in my head and inhibiting me from
doing my best work. So from that day I went
and wrote about it in my little diary, and from
that day forth, every day I would try and remind myself. Yes,
this is intimidating. Yes, I feel like I could be
(32:36):
doing better. But it's a journey, and b it's an
incredibly fun journey.
Speaker 1 (32:42):
That's so good. That's so good.
Speaker 3 (32:44):
I haven't properly learned it yet and it's I'm still
on that journey.
Speaker 1 (32:48):
Easier said than done. Right, that's so great.
Speaker 3 (32:51):
Anyone's got any tips.
Speaker 1 (32:52):
To please let me know and use the hashtag.
Speaker 2 (32:56):
Bremsley Breynolds, Bremsley, Bremsley, Brimsley.
Speaker 3 (33:02):
No Reynolds in Bremsley.
Speaker 2 (33:05):
No, it's not, it's not.
Speaker 3 (33:07):
In the initial audition that we both both did, Brimsley
wasn't called Brimsley, he was called Bosley.
Speaker 2 (33:12):
Yeah, oh I thought it was Bosely.
Speaker 3 (33:14):
Oh, you said, well, I clearly got Reynolds because I said, Bosley, you.
Speaker 2 (33:21):
Were basically talking down to me already, and you didn't realize.
I think you were saying that because the other audition
scene was the one in the in the chapel when
I've lost the queen on the day of of their
of their wedding and I come in and go, we've
got a problem. The bride's missing, and you go, what
have you done?
Speaker 1 (33:41):
Now?
Speaker 2 (33:41):
Brimsley and it's so condescending, and you were like, I
think that's what's got me the part.
Speaker 1 (33:47):
Well, yes, did you have any other last thoughts before
we wrap up?
Speaker 2 (33:52):
I genuinely think everyone is utterly brilliant in this show,
and I can't wait for everyone to see the casts
extraordinary work.
Speaker 1 (34:01):
Absolutely, Yes, you both were brilliant on screen.
Speaker 3 (34:04):
I hope people enjoy watching it as much as we
enjoyed making it because it Yeah. I don't know about
for you, Sam, but for me, it was possibly the
best thing I have ever done.
Speaker 2 (34:16):
Yeah, totally, I loved.
Speaker 1 (34:17):
It, Sam, Clement, Freddie Dennis, thank you so much for
your time today.
Speaker 3 (34:23):
Thank you, thank you very much.
Speaker 1 (34:26):
I'm imagining applause effects here right now, because these two
actors recognized the space Shonda Rhymes carved out for their characters,
and they dug in. They came off the page in
a way Brimsley and Reynolds come off the wall. Okay,
stay with me, the way they come off the wall
as servants and step outside of their roles to care
(34:48):
for Charlotte and George as friends. And you heard them.
That's how they thought of their characters too. I mean,
could you imagine Charlotte's story without Brimsley. Think about it,
If these walls could talk, That's what I think of
when I think of Brimsley and Reynolds, if these walls
could talk. And that's also what I loved about Chorl.
(35:10):
Peyvan said, Deeguian was brilliant as Chorl, that familiar homegirl
bestie vibe. You know. Shonda Rhimes wrote a voice that
lit up a part of young Agathus's life that could
have been really lonely, and she tapped into Charlotte and
the King in the same way through Brimsley and Reynolds.
(35:31):
Shawna's way of crafting the dance of relationships is amazing.
Speaking of dance, on our next episode, choreographer Jack Murphy
joins us.
Speaker 4 (35:44):
Many years ago, when the Queen Mother died, my mother
and I we went to see her lying in state
and seeing the four gods standing protecting That's where I
drew the parallel from those four couples either side of
Charlotte George, so they're not just dancing, but they're protecting
(36:04):
the jewel of the.
Speaker 1 (36:05):
Crown and another special treat. Executive producer Betsy Bears will
also visit us on the next episode. You definitely don't
want to miss. Queen Charlotte. The Official Podcast is executive
produced by Sandy Bailey, Lauren Homan, alex Alja Tyler Klang,
and me Gabrielle Collins. Our producer and editor is Tarry Harrison.
(36:28):
Subscribe to the podcast anywhere you get your favorite shows.
Get the book I'm a Crispy Turn the page, Smell
the Binding kind of Queen. But you can download it
and you can find Queen Charlotte, a Bridgeton story on Netflix.
We'll see you next week. Queen Charlotte. The Official Podcast
(36:51):
is a production of Shondaland Audio in partnership with iHeartRadio.
For more podcasts, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or
wherever you listen to your favorite shows.
Queen Charlotte the Official Podcast is a production of Shondaland
Audio in partnership with iHeartRadio. Welcome back to Queen Charlotte
the Official Podcast, Your companion behind the scenes of Shondaland's
(00:22):
Bridgerton prequel on Netflix. I'm your host, Gabby Collins, and
today we're going to have some more fun with me.
Here I have Sam Clement, who captured the messy Boots,
confidant to our Queen as young Brimsley, and Freddie Dennis,
who introduced us to the lost love we didn't know
Brimsley had.
Speaker 2 (00:46):
I'm always jealous that the King's Man is father to
quarters from the Queen's Man.
Speaker 3 (00:51):
To be expected, I am more important than you.
Speaker 1 (00:56):
In today's episode, we're unlocking key moments from episode too,
and we'll be jumping around because it's hard not to
when talking about Reynolds and Brimsley's points of view and yay.
We're also getting to know Sam and Freddie a little bit.
So Freddy is a geographer.
Speaker 3 (01:13):
Guys went to Grama school and then four months later
I'm Reynolds. But it was a pretty terrifying leap, and
who knows, maybe I will end up as a geography teacher.
One day we'll see.
Speaker 2 (01:22):
Maybe your next role is a geography teacher in a
blockbuster movie.
Speaker 3 (01:26):
I think that's what everyone wants to see.
Speaker 2 (01:28):
Yeah, that's what I want to.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
See everybody live and direct. We have the Brimsley, the Reynolds,
we have Sam Clement and Freddie Dennis here. Hello, welcome
to the podcast.
Speaker 2 (01:44):
Thank you very much for having us.
Speaker 1 (01:46):
We're so happy to have you. Hi, Freddie, Hello.
Speaker 3 (01:49):
Thank you, but also for having us. It's very exciting.
Speaker 1 (01:52):
So wondering if you've seen any of the show yet.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
Yeah, we've been lucky enough to see all of it.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
You've seen all of it.
Speaker 3 (02:00):
Which was initially terrifying but actually brilliant and I think
we're all very proud.
Speaker 2 (02:05):
Yeah, it's quite overwhelming watching it all for the first time,
I think.
Speaker 1 (02:09):
So tell me a little about why it's slightly terrifying
for you.
Speaker 3 (02:14):
Ready, So this is my first of a job, so
I have never seen myself on screen. I'm not sure
I ever one seen myself on screen again, but it
was for that reason. There's a lot of responsibility that
comes with Johnny a world that is as beloved as
as Bridgington. Everyone has been so welcoming and lovely, and
(02:35):
it's been nothing but a joy.
Speaker 1 (02:37):
Damn, you've been on stage, you've been on screen. Is
it still a little terrifying for you? How it was
your experience watching it? Oh?
Speaker 2 (02:45):
Yeah, I think any project I ever do, it's terrifying.
If it's like first air rehearsals, or if it's the
first preview of the show, or if it's if it's
the screening of the show. I don't think them nerves
ever go away. It's always it's just like apprehension going
into something you put so much, so much work into
and wanting it to be good and wanting people to
(03:07):
love it.
Speaker 1 (03:08):
Okay, you've seen the show, Sam, what's your favorite scene
so far? Like you have three seconds go boom?
Speaker 2 (03:14):
Oh, my favorite scene so far is in episode four
with me and Freddie and we're bickering around the table.
Speaker 3 (03:22):
I completely agree. That's also my favorite scene.
Speaker 2 (03:24):
It was the first scene we ever shot together. It
was a lot of fun.
Speaker 1 (03:28):
Had you already shot scenes from the first three episodes
before you got together for this scene and episode for it?
Speaker 2 (03:37):
No, we hadn't. That was your first ever scene, wasn't it,
fred Yeah?
Speaker 3 (03:40):
It was, Which was brilliant, but we got it as
a standalone scene, and I think we both read it
and went, oh, my god, this is completely brilliant and
so funny and I can't wait to play with this.
But then there was also an element of going, I'm
not quite sure I understand the context of this. But
then the context came in pretty swiftly before we did
shoot it, so that made the whole experience again pretty overwhelming.
(04:02):
Overwhelming is my buzzword for today.
Speaker 1 (04:03):
By the way, unpack has been my buzzwords. So we're
in this together. Tell me about the table reads, you guys.
I hear that those are always really fun and ripe
with laughter and amusement. And were there any special moments
that that register when you think back on those early days.
Speaker 3 (04:27):
I think my favorite moment was when I stopped shaking
from fear. That was probably the best one.
Speaker 2 (04:34):
I was going to say. The other thing is, with
all of them things, it's also absolutely terrifying because I
don't know if you agree with this ready, but you're like,
this is the first time I'm really saying these words
out allows to the entire creative team and the rest
of the actors, And if I don't do a good job.
I'm going to get fired.
Speaker 3 (04:49):
Yeah, that is exactly what it feels like. And then
you find yourself trying to say your lines.
Speaker 1 (04:56):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (04:57):
I really realized actually during the first table read how
funny it is. I didn't. I didn't realize how so
funny funny it was. You start hearing everyone's voices and
everyone everyone's bringing to it. You're like, oh my god,
this is hilarious. This is so much funnier than I
originally thought it was.
Speaker 1 (05:13):
Yes, yes, I agree, it is so funny.
Speaker 3 (05:16):
But it's also a brilliant opportunity to relax into your
relationships with the other actors, because I think if we
had all met first day on set in Blend and Palace,
we would just have been sort of screaming and going,
oh my god, how do we cope with this? But
we had a real opportunity to meet each other. And
I think it was three or four weeks before, wasn't
(05:38):
it sound before we started shooting, Yeah, something like that,
And that meant we started having a rapport and then
a subsequent friendship. I think Sam and I went for
some drinks drinks with Corey in India just to kind
of go yeah, oh my god, pinch me if we're
starting this thing. And then we started the whole filming
process as mates, which made it a more fun be
(06:00):
less intimidating.
Speaker 2 (06:02):
I think so much easier because you just when you're
friends with each other and you have a bit of
a chemistry with each other, as you know Samon Freddy
and India and Corey, it just makes lifting the scenes
off the page a lot easier than meeting someone on
the day and going, I don't know who you are. Okay,
let's give it a go. Do you know what I mean?
Speaker 3 (06:21):
We could work together. I could be useful.
Speaker 2 (06:25):
I am a patriot. I serve the ground. You cannot
take all of this on a learn You.
Speaker 3 (06:29):
Are climbing, brims I am not. He is mine. Stay down.
Speaker 1 (06:35):
So okay, what's so interesting about that is that's the
scene for me where I'm like, oh, there is back
backstory between Reynolds and Brimsley. This is a level of
passive aggressiveness that people who know each other reach.
Speaker 3 (06:50):
Okay, love each other.
Speaker 1 (06:51):
Can you and who love each other, yes, tell me
the back backstory in your mind of Brimsley and Reynolds.
There's so much that's left for viewers to fill in,
what did you think.
Speaker 2 (07:04):
They've known each other for a very long time. We
think they would have grown up in the court together
learning what it is to be the right hand man
of serving the king or the queen. And in terms
of the power play between the two, Reynolds definitely got,
you know, the number one job in serving the king,
(07:24):
and he's always been very arrogant about that he did,
and Rimsey fell in just behind with being the queen's man,
and they have to look after the one that they
are beside, and we're constantly trying to gain information from
the other to protect the king or to protect the queen,
and so that element of their relationship is a lot
of fun to play. But then the more romantic side
(07:46):
of things is, you know, the two people that are
very isolated and the only downtime that they have is
with each other, and so they seek a lot of
solace in each other and they become each other's emotional
support systems.
Speaker 1 (07:57):
Yeah, I definitely had the thought that, oh, they have
chosen each other because they didn't have many other choices.
But that's pretty much what we're seeing across this series too.
There's a lot of arrangement and like choosing to love
and choosing to commit, And I think that's across all
(08:19):
of the relationships in the series.
Speaker 3 (08:21):
I think they have to make a choice to love
each other. They have a choice whether or not to
be together, and there's also a very dangerous choice. But
I think that is a testament to how much they
clearly do love each other despite all the passive aggression
and the bickering, which is my favorite thing to play.
It was much fun.
Speaker 2 (08:41):
Yeah, I mean the power play scenes between the two
of them are my favorite parts in the whole series,
particularly in episode two, the first scene when we realize
they are romantically involved. You know, there is so much
information I'm trying to get from him, and he won't
give me anything, and that just raises the stakes high
and higher and higher.
Speaker 1 (08:56):
Right, and then Brimsley sees the young King George in
the cellar right and later spills the beans and Reynolds
is so upset. You just see Renolds jump out of
bed and he's like, I cannot believe you spill the beans.
Speaker 2 (09:12):
You made me almost corpse quite a few times in
that scene. You agreed to see nothing, not agreed, your
eyes agreed.
Speaker 3 (09:19):
Reynolds is pretty furious at Brimsley at this point, and
he's putting on his clothes on in a bit of
a rush. But on Sam's coverage, I couldn't get my
clothes on because there's a lot of buttons, you know,
it's seventeen sixty three or whatever, and I didn't manage
to do it, but I wanted to carry on with
the momentum of the scene, so I sort of ended
up doing the scene naked because I couldn't get my
(09:43):
clothes on, and Sam had to respond to me, Yeah,
the camera is right at me, and there's a whole
bunch of group behind Freddy, and Freddy has to go
right round the back of the of the room to
then get out of the room, and I have to
track him with my eyeline. But all I'm seeing is
this man holding all of his clothes trying to get
around the instead of like being here with me, and
(10:03):
I struggled to hold it together. I'm sure they didn't
use that taking it would have been very den I'd
have looked ridiculous as ridiculous as me if the cameras
the other way around.
Speaker 2 (10:16):
That's true.
Speaker 1 (10:18):
I was telling Tom Berica that that set. There's so
much detail.
Speaker 2 (10:22):
I remember Brimsey's room and how I mean, he's a
very meticulous young man. He knows his job inside out.
Everything's very precise. Everything was very perfect when I stepped
into his room for the first time. But just walking
onto the more elaborate sets, you know, the corridors that
go around the palace and one of the Queen's bedroom,
the King's bedroom, these elaborate sets that they've you know,
(10:43):
they've created. I mean it is like stepping into the
grounds of Buckingham Palace. I imagine. The attention to detail
was extraordinary. I find it quite overwhelming. And stepping into
the likes of Blending Palace is extraordinary as it is,
but into something that has been created by you know,
the set directors and everyone else, it has a very
different meaning to I suppose.
Speaker 3 (11:04):
Yeah, that was amazing actually because that had just come
from drama school and lots of the plays that you're
doing are actually they're quite limited in terms of props,
and walking into Reynolds's bedroom, I just thought, this is
so intricate and detailed. There's a man's life in this room.
Speaker 1 (11:21):
Yeah, hurry up and get your tea, come right back.
There's more from behind the scenes of Queen Charlotte, a
Bridgeton story with Sam Clement and Freddie Dennis right after this.
(11:41):
Thanks for staying with us. Now back to our talk
with actors Sam Clement and Freddie Dennis. I was wondering
if you all could speak to the attentiveness of like
Coral Brimsley and Reynolds to the King, to Lady Danbury
Young Charlotte. There are particular scenes that I'm thinking of, Like,
(12:02):
for example, Sam, there's the scene where you are just
five steps behind, five paces behind. Yeah, you're five paces behind,
and you've got your hand out at Young Charlotte's back,
but you're not touching her. And I was wondering if
you could unpack that moment a little bit.
Speaker 2 (12:19):
This moment, for all of us, it basically solidifies who
Brimsley is to the.
Speaker 4 (12:24):
Queen and I will you shall not tell me what
I'm allowed.
Speaker 2 (12:27):
To do, Your majesty, I am the one person who
will never tell you what you are allowed to do.
I will, however, always tell you how better to do
the things you are not allowed to do. The two
of them have sort of been trying to find the
rhythm with one another and he's been trying to guide
her through this new role and what it means to
be to be queen, and she's obviously had a lot
to deal with, and that becomes more and more intense
(12:49):
for her as the series progresses. Within Bridgeton, you know,
he doesn't have to say very much, but he is
always present. His duty is to serve her first and
four most throughout his life, and in that moment he
wants to be very very human towards her and support
her and hold her and give her a shoulder to
cry on. But he's not. He's not allowed to do that.
(13:10):
So Shonder Rhymes and Tom Verica, you know, they created
this sort of very beautiful tableau of a simple gesture
which would basically be him putting his hand on her shoulder,
and it's like everything's going to be okay. I am
here for you, come what may. And I think that
moment is the foundation of who they are and what
they then become. In the Bridgeton verse.
Speaker 1 (13:33):
And Freddie, similarly, Reynolds has a moment where he busts
through and is like, get off of the king.
Speaker 3 (13:41):
I am the kingsman, I will see the king.
Speaker 1 (13:43):
Well, no, you are not allowed to.
Speaker 4 (13:45):
I am the King's man.
Speaker 3 (13:46):
I will see the King go back.
Speaker 1 (13:49):
To your horse, and I'm like, oh, wait, have they
grown up together? You know? How long have they known
each other? And talk about Reynolds's care for the king
and how you pro says that, how you prepared for that.
Speaker 3 (14:02):
I think they absolutely have known each other since childhood.
And actually Cory and I just discussed that quite a lot,
because there there's a sort of unspoken love that exists
between King George and Reynolds throughout the series that manifests
in increasingly dramatic ways. One of the main things about
Reynolds's role is he does a great duty to the
(14:22):
king to look after the king, but first and foremost
their friends. So the way that I connected to that
was just back considering some of my best friends in
the world and considering what it would feel like to
see them struggling in that way. Because George is a deeply,
deeply vulnerable man as we can all see, and Reynolds,
I'm going to say, his best friend just wants him
(14:43):
to be okay, and he wants to take away that
pain for him.
Speaker 1 (14:47):
Freddie, your encounter with the lines you give to the
young King George where you tell him that Princess Augusta
has left and he collapses and he sends you to
call for the doctor, and you also tell the young
King George, don't worry, norm will no that you're going
to decompensate. So do you remember that scene?
Speaker 3 (15:08):
Yeah, yeah, I do. I mean, that's always an interesting
scene to me because I remember after we shot that
scene Tom Verica that won't get in, which was sad
because Corey and I when we got it, we went, oh, wow,
this is a this is our sort of first interaction
as George and Reynolds. There's almost that unspoken bond between
(15:28):
the two of them, and that's a powerful scene because
it's the first time I think you see a hint
of Reynolds's care for George, but also the cracks very
much start appearing for George and you go, Okay, this
is quite a serious problem we have on our hands here.
And that was amazing to shoot, and we shot there
quite early on, and I think it sort of laid
the foundation for a lot of mine and Corey's work.
Speaker 1 (15:52):
Any moments from the two of you working together, especially
if you can remember anything from episode two, any.
Speaker 3 (16:00):
Stories We definitely have some stories.
Speaker 2 (16:05):
Yeah, we have many stories. So we were staying in
an airbnb, the four of us, and and me and
Freddie took a bit of a bit of a walk
in the countryside and ended up in a field we
clearly weren't meant to be in, and we walked down
to this little lake and it wasn't really going anywhere,
so we walked back and then turned behind us and
realized there was a few cows. So instead of instead
(16:26):
of dealing with the situation calmly, we decided to run
and then realized there was a lot more cows behind us,
and then got trapped in this sort of little center
section and sent pictures to our castmates and to the crew,
and everyone found it hilarious, and we were stuck. We
were stuck there for about forty five minutes waiting for
them to get bored so we could leave this area
and not get trampled by cows.
Speaker 1 (16:49):
I grew up in the Midwest. That's hilarious.
Speaker 3 (16:52):
There were about fifty of them, it was. It was terrifying,
and we were considering what to do. We were going
do we call the police, what do we say? But
the cows never got bored, right so we eventually had
to hide in the in the shrubbery waiting for them
to go and think, this is so embarrassing. But they
(17:14):
were pretty fast.
Speaker 2 (17:15):
Actually they were fast, a lot faster than us. But
everyone on set thought it was hilarious. They had they
had they had no sympathy for us whatsoever. And it
became the talk of the set that day and we
came on and it was like, we could have we
could have died. But no.
Speaker 3 (17:29):
No scenes for episode two. The ones in Blenham that
were pretty fun to shoot, the ones in the hats.
I love that because I love those Hans, but also
that again they were they were interesting establishing scenes where
you you become aware of the inherent competitiveness that exists
in rens In Reynolds and are everyone from the hashtag rounds.
Speaker 2 (18:05):
I love it.
Speaker 3 (18:06):
It's better than brim Noles, or.
Speaker 2 (18:10):
It could be Brens and it's like like Brenoles brothers.
Speaker 3 (18:15):
Yeah, Brenolds is better than I said, brim Noles. What
am I doing?
Speaker 2 (18:20):
Where did that cut?
Speaker 3 (18:21):
Brim Noless, brim Sli, I'm just going to stop.
Speaker 1 (18:27):
Well, we'll ask the listeners.
Speaker 2 (18:29):
Yeah, the listeners will make their decision that's a silly idea.
Speaker 1 (18:33):
They probably they will, They will decide very quickly. I'm
sure of it. Yeah, because the scenes with the two
of you are really really remarkable, and you just really
do deliver that layer of life that the entire series
really does give us. You allow us to really go
into the story further.
Speaker 3 (18:54):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (18:55):
Yeah, it was really fun to watch.
Speaker 2 (18:57):
Thank you very much.
Speaker 3 (18:58):
Well, I'm glad you enjoyed watching it, because I think
I found it very very terrifying. But I do now
like watching it. I assure you.
Speaker 1 (19:06):
I'm sure you're not alone. Tom Verica told me that
actor Hugh Sachs, who plays present day Brimsley, Yeah, spent
the day with you two to watch episode six. I
guess the dancing moment on top of the Hill.
Speaker 2 (19:25):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1 (19:26):
Can you tell me a little more about working with
Jack Murphy on that moment.
Speaker 3 (19:31):
Well, firstly, Hugh is amazing. We love Hugh. It was
brilliant having him there as a friend first and foremost
and as a colleague. The whole dancing preparation was one
of my favorite things about the entire show because it
was unlike anything I at least had ever done before.
I think it taps into Brimsley's and Reynolds's vulnerabilities in
(19:52):
a way that actually a scene where they were speaking
probably couldn't have done. And it almost feels like a
moment of unadulterated joy that neither them have had up
until this point in the series. Working with Jack was amazing,
and I will be forever grateful to Jack for his
patients because I am not a mover, but I do
(20:14):
think I can now just about do it. But actually,
one of my favorite things about watching that scene is
there is a moment where there is a definite mistake
on behalf of me think or maybe both of us,
and we both slightly think it was both. We both
giggle and it made it in because I think, and
that's lovely because it just shows how much fun we
(20:34):
were having as actors. But also I think that's very
true to what the moment would have been for Bremsley
and Reynolds, where they go, hey, we've done it, you
and me, you and me.
Speaker 2 (20:45):
And the idea that they get to like steal five
minutes ten minutes together because it's never more than that,
and you know, they get this opportunity to have a
very intimate moment away from everybody else, and it's it's
exactly what Freddie has said. It's that it's them feeling
complete and utter joy and entirely themselves and not having
(21:08):
the weight of the rest of the world on their shoulders.
They can just be present with each other. Because we
shot that very late on in a night shoot. It
was the last day at Blendon Palace and we were
shooting it like quarter past through in the morning, so
we were shooting cortpas thro in the morning. We were
wrapping at four and we had to do our scene
and then we had to do Hughes bit of the
dance as well, and then they were like, Freddie, we
(21:30):
want you to do a little bit of dancing with
Hugh leading up to the take as well. So we're
all just sort of being thrown around dancing with each other.
So having time with Hugh and Jack and the two
of us in rehearsals was invaluable because it meant that
not only could Hugh and Freddie start to learn each
other's bodies, but I could also start to learn Hugh's
body as well, because part of my way into the
(21:52):
character was the physicality that he has and how he
holds himself at the end of that shot, after he
has danced. I know it was just speaks a thousand
words as to who Reynolds is to Brimsley.
Speaker 3 (22:04):
It is heartbreaking, It is completely heartbreaking.
Speaker 1 (22:07):
It is everyone's going to wonder what happened? What happened?
Speaker 3 (22:13):
He's on holiday.
Speaker 2 (22:15):
He's on a very very long holiday. Where's he gone.
Speaker 3 (22:20):
He's on a beach somewhere. He's on a beach. Okay, great,
I think the Maldives probably, yeah, okay, what's.
Speaker 2 (22:25):
The capital of the Maldives?
Speaker 3 (22:27):
Marley or Marhe.
Speaker 1 (22:29):
Freddie, what was your leap from geography to this world?
Speaker 3 (22:34):
I have always wanted to be an actor, but I
I will put it down to a lack of self confidence.
I didn't allow myself to start before me until I
was twenty three years old, because the thought of it
excited me, but it also completely terrified me. So I
you know, I told myself, next year older, next year older,
(22:54):
when I go to UNI, I'll do And then I
left UNI with a degree in geography and went, am
I going to I've never acted? How have I not
done this? And I just went, Fred, you have to
take the plunges now or never, And I just knew
I would love it, So I went to Gramma School
and then four months later I'm Reynolds. But it was
(23:14):
a pretty terrifying leap. And who knows, maybe I will
end up as a geography teacher one day. We'll see.
Speaker 1 (23:19):
I mean, it can happen.
Speaker 2 (23:21):
Maybe your next role is a geography teacher in a
blockbuster movie.
Speaker 3 (23:25):
I think that's what everyone wants to see.
Speaker 2 (23:27):
Yeah, that's what I want to see.
Speaker 1 (23:33):
Stick around. There's more with Sam Clement and Freddie Dennis.
They're going to be sharing tales from their auditions right
after this. Before we jump back into our discussion, take
(23:54):
a listen to what Kelly Valentine Hendry had to say
about casting with these two actors.
Speaker 5 (24:01):
What was really great at the read through, because we
didn't get a chance to chemistry them, was when we
had lovely Freddie Dennis and Sam Clement. So when he
and Sam at the read through, we realized, oh my goodness,
there's super proper sparking chemistry there. That was really glorious
(24:22):
to walk away and say, we've absolutely got that right.
Speaker 1 (24:26):
That was Kelly Valentine Henry, casting director of Queen Charlotte
at Bridgerton Story wasn't that interesting. I mean, you would
have never guessed. Right. Well, we've got more from Sam
and Freddy on their auditions and memories from the early
days of the project, early early days of joining the project.
Let's get back into our conversation, Sam, were there any
(24:47):
full circle moments for you? You know, Queen Charlotte. A
Bridgerton story has a ton of flash forwards in the
way Shondaland knows how to do a good flash forward.
I was wondering if you had any moments in your
life or your career that kind of feel full circle.
Speaker 2 (25:07):
It related to this show totally. I have auditioned for
the Bridgington World. I think it's four or five times
before getting this part, more than any like long running series.
I auditioned in twenty nineteen for one of the leading
parts in Bridgeston, and then off the back of that
had read for like various guest parts here and there,
(25:30):
and then read four. The initial tape for this was
a scene from Bridgeston. No one quite knew what they
were reading for, and then eventually the audition for the
Brimsley came around. I was like, oh my god, maybe
this is the fifth time. Now I just went like,
you know what what will be will be? I know
the world. I'm not going to put all of my
(25:52):
energy into this basket and trying to make this work,
and did it very relaxed tape and lo and behold
got the job. So that became a very full circle
moment for me in my career and with this particular
job as well. It was four years in the making.
Speaker 3 (26:08):
Wow, Relaxation is the key.
Speaker 2 (26:12):
Relaxation is the key. But also I don't know if
I've told anyone this. I was offered a smaller part
in series two of Bridgington and it would come off
the back of the pandemic and work was pretty sparse
for everyone. And cue as to my agent as well,
for very good agent thing here he went, So they've
offered you this. It's like three lines, and that would
(26:32):
be great obviously, but they love you a lot for
this world, and I think it's worth just holding off
to see if something else comes down the line. And
if I'd have taken that role, I would never have
been able to read and do Brimsley.
Speaker 1 (26:46):
Oh okay, well, thank goodness, because I don't think I'm
alone when I'm like, of course, that's young Brimsley, Like,
we spoke with Kelly Valentine Henry and just so you know,
she was like, oh yeah, within the first three minutes
we knew who was was going to be, which whatever
role they played, So I'm so happy. Tell me about
your first encounter with the actual first scenes that we
(27:11):
see you in. I think that's the five steps behind
on the steps.
Speaker 2 (27:14):
Right, Sam, Yeah, on the staircase.
Speaker 1 (27:16):
Just really funny was that exchange between you and ye Charlotte?
Speaker 2 (27:21):
It is really funny. I first encountered that scene in
the audition. That was the audition scene.
Speaker 3 (27:25):
Same for me.
Speaker 2 (27:26):
Because that's what you used as well. Of course. Yeah,
we were well into the end of block one, so
we've been shooting for like six or seven weeks, and
I sat with this dialogue for so long and I
felt like I knew the ins and out of it
so much that when it got round to it and
India was felt the same. We then suddenly got so
incredibly nervous, even though we knew that scene like the
(27:47):
back of our hand. And then I just put all
of this pressure on myself, like I think this might
be a bit stale and it needs to be snappy,
It needs to be funny. It's the first time we
meet him, so when it came to doing it, it
took me a while of me to on that one.
Speaker 1 (28:01):
Your delivery is so good so as India's. It's almost flippant,
like is Brimsley being a little smart.
Speaker 4 (28:09):
You know what?
Speaker 2 (28:09):
You know?
Speaker 1 (28:10):
It was really really funny.
Speaker 2 (28:12):
He's just like, he's just like, just do your job,
just do your job. Just don't mess up, Just don't
mess up. And she's making this very very hard. Just
don't mess up. And then when she starts talking about
the king, he's like, well, that's a kind of worms
I don't want to open. He's the king, he's this,
he's that. Please stop talking to me.
Speaker 3 (28:26):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (28:26):
I think it's the moment you say those are facts,
you're mad. I'm like, okay, this is this is going
to be an interesting relationship.
Speaker 3 (28:34):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (28:35):
So, Freddie, a lot of first experiences for you on
this project. Do you have any favorite firsts or do
you have any favorite scenes?
Speaker 3 (28:45):
Well? I love the scene where I'm riding the horse.
Speaker 1 (28:48):
That's tell me about tell me about shooting that scene.
Speaker 3 (28:53):
Oh my goodness, it was I was completely terrified.
Speaker 2 (28:56):
I was there. I had to come down and watch it.
I couldn't not present for it.
Speaker 3 (29:00):
I think everyone came and watched it. They prepped me
for it for months, which is funny because it was
only a sort of ten second scene. But obviously I'm
not wearing a helmet. But I was absolutely terrified. I
was on this lovely horse. They kept saying he was
lovely called Mufassa, and they went, Vassa is definitely not
scared of drones, and I went, well, I'm a bit
(29:21):
scared of drums, you know. But every time this drone
went up in the air, Mufassa would freak out and
kind of start moving loads like that, listeners and moving
quite a lot. And I have to kick him twice
to tell him to go, and he would just take off.
And I was also aware because people found it slightly
ridiculous that I was on a horse. I Freddie was
(29:42):
on a horse. Everyone was watching, so I had to
try and play it as cool as I could. A boy,
was I sweating?
Speaker 2 (29:51):
You smashed it though? It went very well?
Speaker 3 (29:53):
Yeah it did. I'm glad I wasn't wearing a heart
rate thing.
Speaker 1 (29:59):
Oh Sam, I don't remember if you had any scenes
like that, or you were on horseback. Or dealing with
other animals. Oh, you had the Pomeranian all the time?
Speaker 2 (30:11):
I have the Pomeranian pomp.
Speaker 1 (30:13):
Yes, how was that? And also with your costumes? How
did you manage that?
Speaker 2 (30:17):
I mean it was she was sort of extraordinary. I
think she was, like I think she was about fifteen
weeks old when we started, because they needed a puppy,
and I was like, oh God, this is going to
be hard work. But she was the best behaved puppy
I think I've ever met in my life. She would
occasionally fall asleep while I was acting, which I think is,
you know, quite an aggressive reaction towards my performance, and
(30:42):
therefore and I will stole my scenes.
Speaker 1 (30:47):
So is there anything else that she'd like to to
say about your challenges onset or challenges with the material
or anything that you overcame throughout the process.
Speaker 2 (31:03):
For me, sometimes scenes can get changed, you know, and
adapted last minute to suit the story as best as
they can. So I like to sit with dialogue for
at least three or four days before doing a scene,
and occasionally things might get changed last minute because there's
a better version of this of a particular scene. And
learning dialogue quite quickly, I find quite hard sometimes because
(31:27):
I like to feel very relaxed with the scenes and
with the dialogue, and I think for something for me
that I'm trying to get better at is being able
to turn over the dialogue very very quickly. What about you, Fred,
I think for me, I learned an awful lot about
the importance of remaining confident and believing in yourself. And
(31:47):
there's a particular moment on set that happened very very
early on actually, in one of those scenes at Blenham
in episode two when Sam You'll remember it, because I
was very in my head and I felt like I
was doing a terrible job, and we eventually got the shot.
I'd struggled a bit and Tom came up to me
and he went it really gently, in a lovely way.
(32:09):
He went, Freddie, just remember that this is really really fun,
and I went.
Speaker 3 (32:15):
Yeah, You're You're so right. What I'm trying to do
is I'm trying to do the perfect job, and that's
that's putting me in my head and inhibiting me from
doing my best work. So from that day I went
and wrote about it in my little diary, and from
that day forth, every day I would try and remind myself. Yes,
this is intimidating. Yes, I feel like I could be
(32:36):
doing better. But it's a journey, and b it's an
incredibly fun journey.
Speaker 1 (32:42):
That's so good. That's so good.
Speaker 3 (32:44):
I haven't properly learned it yet and it's I'm still
on that journey.
Speaker 1 (32:48):
Easier said than done. Right, that's so great.
Speaker 3 (32:51):
Anyone's got any tips.
Speaker 1 (32:52):
To please let me know and use the hashtag.
Speaker 2 (32:56):
Bremsley Breynolds, Bremsley, Bremsley, Brimsley.
Speaker 3 (33:02):
No Reynolds in Bremsley.
Speaker 2 (33:05):
No, it's not, it's not.
Speaker 3 (33:07):
In the initial audition that we both both did, Brimsley
wasn't called Brimsley, he was called Bosley.
Speaker 2 (33:12):
Yeah, oh I thought it was Bosely.
Speaker 3 (33:14):
Oh, you said, well, I clearly got Reynolds because I said, Bosley, you.
Speaker 2 (33:21):
Were basically talking down to me already, and you didn't realize.
I think you were saying that because the other audition
scene was the one in the in the chapel when
I've lost the queen on the day of of their
of their wedding and I come in and go, we've
got a problem. The bride's missing, and you go, what
have you done?
Speaker 1 (33:41):
Now?
Speaker 2 (33:41):
Brimsley and it's so condescending, and you were like, I
think that's what's got me the part.
Speaker 1 (33:47):
Well, yes, did you have any other last thoughts before
we wrap up?
Speaker 2 (33:52):
I genuinely think everyone is utterly brilliant in this show,
and I can't wait for everyone to see the casts
extraordinary work.
Speaker 1 (34:01):
Absolutely, Yes, you both were brilliant on screen.
Speaker 3 (34:04):
I hope people enjoy watching it as much as we
enjoyed making it because it Yeah. I don't know about
for you, Sam, but for me, it was possibly the
best thing I have ever done.
Speaker 2 (34:16):
Yeah, totally, I loved.
Speaker 1 (34:17):
It, Sam, Clement, Freddie Dennis, thank you so much for
your time today.
Speaker 3 (34:23):
Thank you, thank you very much.
Speaker 1 (34:26):
I'm imagining applause effects here right now, because these two
actors recognized the space Shonda Rhymes carved out for their characters,
and they dug in. They came off the page in
a way Brimsley and Reynolds come off the wall. Okay,
stay with me, the way they come off the wall
as servants and step outside of their roles to care
(34:48):
for Charlotte and George as friends. And you heard them.
That's how they thought of their characters too. I mean,
could you imagine Charlotte's story without Brimsley. Think about it,
If these walls could talk, That's what I think of
when I think of Brimsley and Reynolds, if these walls
could talk. And that's also what I loved about Chorl.
(35:10):
Peyvan said, Deeguian was brilliant as Chorl, that familiar homegirl
bestie vibe. You know. Shonda Rhimes wrote a voice that
lit up a part of young Agathus's life that could
have been really lonely, and she tapped into Charlotte and
the King in the same way through Brimsley and Reynolds.
(35:31):
Shawna's way of crafting the dance of relationships is amazing.
Speaking of dance, on our next episode, choreographer Jack Murphy
joins us.
Speaker 4 (35:44):
Many years ago, when the Queen Mother died, my mother
and I we went to see her lying in state
and seeing the four gods standing protecting That's where I
drew the parallel from those four couples either side of
Charlotte George, so they're not just dancing, but they're protecting
(36:04):
the jewel of the.
Speaker 1 (36:05):
Crown and another special treat. Executive producer Betsy Bears will
also visit us on the next episode. You definitely don't
want to miss. Queen Charlotte. The Official Podcast is executive
produced by Sandy Bailey, Lauren Homan, alex Alja Tyler Klang,
and me Gabrielle Collins. Our producer and editor is Tarry Harrison.
(36:28):
Subscribe to the podcast anywhere you get your favorite shows.
Get the book I'm a Crispy Turn the page, Smell
the Binding kind of Queen. But you can download it
and you can find Queen Charlotte, a Bridgeton story on Netflix.
We'll see you next week. Queen Charlotte. The Official Podcast
(36:51):
is a production of Shondaland Audio in partnership with iHeartRadio.
For more podcasts, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or
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