Siobhán McSweeney: ‘I went home early from the Baftas. I wanted to go home and have a cry’
Cork native Siobhan McSweeney gives some interesting insight into how she was cast in Derry Girls and why Brad Pitt is obsessed with her.
Hugely successful podcast is hosted by dynamic due Nick Grimshaw and Michelin star chef and restaurateur Angela Hartnett OBE.
This week, their guest is Siobhán McSweeney who gave some interesting insight into how she was cast in the show by her friend and show creator, Lisa McGee.
“It was this really weird situation where your boss is also your friend,” McSweeney, who grew up in Aherla, County Cork, explains to Nick and Angela.
“And you’re – they’re not trying to mention the elephant in the room and the elephant is you! And so I remember our mutual friend was out having a few drinks and texted me going, ‘come out I’ve having tequila in Old Street with Lisa.’ And then I went, no I can’t because she’ll think I’m only there to go ‘cast me’. But then I was like, but I want to drink tequila in Old Street and I was like, oh jeepers, what do I do? Because also, do I not go and see my friend. So it was that push and pull, which is very understandable. In the end, the lure of tequila brought me there and, I remember just sort of like so concentrating on not mentioning it.”
Of course, the actress who is now starring in a new show, Extraordinary on Disney +, got the role and went on to win a Bafta for her portrayal as the po-faced Sister Michael.
“I went home early from the Baftas. People were still partying. I just felt overwhelmed and deeply, deeply tired. I wanted to go home and have a cry. Not because I was sad but just the sort of build-up of stuff. The emotional aspect of it all.’ When she finally received her Bafta naming plaque, McSweeney said it was a huge moment.
“It finally arrived, but like you’re going, oh my God, like the brass plaque, and it has your name on it and everything. Then it has double-sided sticky tape at the back for you to attach it, so you're like…(squeals) oh, oh!”
As well as gracing our screens as an actress, McSweeney has also enjoyed a run as the presenter of Channel 4's Great Pottery Throw Down. “It’s a very special show to work on,” she told the podcasters.
“I’ve no experience to compare it to, and because I have no other presenting experience, I am very lucky and they’re letting it be led by me from a presentation point of view. So I feel like the luckiest viewer in the world. I will kill for my potters. It’s a really weird bond I almost immediately get when I see them, I just want to protect these people.
"I want to make sure they are ok.”
But there’s one super fan that almost knocked her for six. During the podcast, Nick Grimshaw brings it up. “I love that Brad Pitt loves the Great Pottery Throw Down,” he observes. “How do we know Brad Pitt loves it?” he prompts McSweeney.
“Ugh, he’s my stalker,’ she deadpans.
“Obsessed is Brad," Grimshaw teases, laughing.
“It’s embarrassing,” McSweeney agrees. “’It’s like, Brad, please….’ There was some red carpet event of press junket-y he did and he was like ‘oh yeah, The Great Pottery Throw Down. I really like it. It’s just like he’s in the room isn’t it. I really like it’.
"And we were like, ‘what, what? Why? Imagine Brad Pitt like sitting down watching the Great Pottery Throwdown’.
Discussions on the podcast also included Angela’s dog being a bridesmaid at a dog wedding and Stanley Tucci washing up her dishes. “We did filming in the house, then he came in and goes ‘I’m washing up. And he did wash, he did all the dishes!” she relayed.
Since its inception in 2022, has amassed a legion of loyal fans, including Greg James, Zoe Ball and Chris Evans.
Season 5 promises an electric array of upcoming guests, including writer Marian Keyes and actress Kaya Scodelario.
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