Kristin Scott Thomas has revealed she felt “very, very inadequate” filming Fleabag, despite being at the centre of one of the most iconic scenes of the hit series.
Thomas made a cameo as a successful businesswoman in the comedy, which has earned its creator and lead star Phoebe Waller-Bridge a Golden Globe award, three Emmys and a Bafta.
In a new interview with The Independent, the actor said it was a “much more difficult” role than she thought it would be.
“I really did think it was going to be a walk in the park that thing,” said Thomas, “but actually, Phoebe has a very specific way of speaking, and her vocabulary is incredibly specific and quite rightly she's very, very, very, obsessive with the way you say things…
“And because it's almost the way I speak, but not exactly, I kept getting things wrong. So I felt like a six-year-old. I felt very, very inadequate doing it.”
Thomas’s monologue about womanhood in the second season of Fleabag was extremely popular among fans. You can read the speech in full, below.
“Women are born with pain built in. It’s our physical destiny: period pains, sore boobs, childbirth, you know. We carry it within ourselves throughout our lives, men don’t.
“They have to seek it out, they invent all these gods and demons and things just so they can feel guilty about things, which is something we do very well on our own. And then they create wars so they can feel things and touch each other and when there aren’t any wars they can play rugby.
“We have it all going on in here inside, we have pain on a cycle for years and years and years and then just when you feel you are making peace with it all, what happens? The menopause comes, the f***ing menopause comes, and it is the most wonderful f***ing thing in the world.
“And yes, your entire pelvic floor crumbles and you get f***ing hot and no one cares, but then you’re free, no longer a slave, no longer a machine with parts. You’re just a person.”
Thomas's latest role is in the choir comedy Military Wives, which is out in cinemas now.
