Zoë discusses playing 'phenomenal' Joan Littlewood and is praised by her co-stars in the BBC's Babs

7 May 2017 18:57

Ahead of the TV broadcast of Babs tonight, the Sunday Telegraph has published a fascinating interview with Zoë in which she discusses pioneering director Joan Littlewood, the 'phenomenal creature' she portrays in the BBC's Barbara Windsor biopic. 'She had energy, a strength of passion and a social commitment which, I don't think, exists much in theatre anymore,' Zoë emphasises.

Littlewood's commitment to showcasing the talents of performers from working-class backgrounds 'gave people like Barbara Windsor a voice,' she adds, 'and of course that changed film and television forever', as Babs will demonstrate.

Zoë points out that her father, Sam Wanamaker, was a great admirer of Littlewood's work. She calls Shakespeare's Globe 'a people's palace' in the spirit of the arts venue Littlewood and her Theatre Workshop revitalised, Theatre Royal Stratford East.

Zoë's enthusiasm for Littlewood is clear, and she's received plenty of praise herself from her co-stars in Babs. Jaime Winstone, who plays Windsor as a young woman on the cusp of stardom, told the BBC how much she enjoyed working with her. 'Zoë is just the real deal. You know when you're working with a great, and she was so lovely and just stepped into the shoes of Joan Littlewood, who she was playing. As a lot of it was shot in a theatre on stage, we sort of slipped into this method acting. It was brilliant. She is really powerful, Zoë. She has a real presence and you just end up staring at her and, really interestingly, I do believe that she just became Joan.'

In addition, Daniel Ben Zenou, who appears in Babs as composer Lionel Bart, posted these kind words on Twitter with a great photo taken during filming.

Babs will be shown on BBC One tonight at 8pm. And excitingly, Zoë has more new projects for us to look forward to, as the Telegraph interview reveals. One is a drama for ITV and the other is, in Zoë's words, a 'dangerous and challenging' play.

Many thanks to Janet for her help

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