International Emmy Award nominee Charlotte Hope joined us for a quick chat about her latest murder mystery, The Puzzle Lady.
Charlotte Hope plays Sherry Carter, Cora Felton’s intelligent, determined niece. She is a puzzle genius who only came to Bakerbury to escape her rock-star turned abuser ex-husband.
The Puzzle Lady is a 6-episode crime drama series based on Parnell Hall’s beloved mystery novels.
Series synopsis: Bakerbury Police enlist the talents of its most famous resident, Cora Felton, AKA “The Puzzle Lady,” played by Phyllis Logan, to help solve a girl’s murder. But the eccentric Cora isn’t who she claims to be: she’s the fraudulent front-woman for her long-suffering niece Sherry, a puzzle genius who came to town to escape her abusive ex-husband.
The Puzzle Lady, which also stars Adam Best, Alastair Brammer, Nick Danan, Jack Weise, Richard Croxton, Simon Haines, Amber Mendez-Martin, Conor Sánchez, and Yasmin Seky.
Check out our Q&A with Charlotte:
What drew you to The Puzzle Lady?
Charlotte: I had worked with Brett, the producer, before and I think he’s so fab so, to be honest, I probably would have done anything he sent me. The fact that this was such a fun project, great scripts from Dominique, an excellent director in Tom, a chance to try something light after a lot of heavy crying jobs, and especially to get to work with Phyllis – those were bonuses.
Were you familiar with Parnell Hall’s work prior to being cast?
Charlotte: Not at all! Dominique did an excellent job adapting them, I remember reading them aloud when I was prepping and just thought all the characters were so fun.
What sets this murder mystery apart from others?
Charlotte: Cozy crime seems to be all the rage at the moment and there is some delicious escapism watching this one but it’s not as twee as you might expect – our wannabe detective smokes and drinks and swears, and is generally quite badly behaved but in the most wonderful way because Phyllis has such a twinkle in her eye throughout.
When working on a murder mystery, do you like to know who did it ahead of time or do you like to be surprised?
Charlotte: I guess it would be fun to be surprised but I like to read the scripts before we shoot so the opportunity for mystery is pretty limited…
How would you describe your character and how did you approach playing them?
Charlotte: Sherry is shy and a bit nerdy, she’s arrived in Bakerbury a little worse for wear, just out of a grim marriage. But over the course of the series Cora’s influences gets the better of her and she manages to find some of her own sass
What was it like working with the cast and creatives?
Charlotte: Absolutely brilliant, I loved all of the cast and crew on this job and I’m desperate to get to a second season so we can all be reunited. And even more so because my son was conceived on this job. I didn’t have an easy time getting pregnant and everyone was so supportive along the way so I’d love for them to get to meet and hang out with him.
