FREE AS A BIRD

Claire Foy is pushing herself out of her comfort zone in H is for Hawk – and learning to connect with some new feathery friends

- INTERVIEW: GILL PRINGLE

After playing such noble figures as Queen Elizabeth II, Henry VIII's doomed second queen Anne Boleyn and Margaret Campbell, Duchess of Argyll, the actress Claire Foy was keen to explore more relatable characters.

It was this instinct that led her to a role in the new film H is for Hawk, which tells the true story of the British writer and naturalist Helen Macdonald, who spiralled into depression following the death of her father but found salvation by raising a fierce goshawk called Mabel.

The story is based on Helen's 2014 memoir of the same name, and Claire, who has spoken openly about her own mental health, was immediately drawn to a tale that explores depression and grief in an unusual way.

"It's a vivid, visceral memoir, and I found I had a very intimate connection to it," says the actress, 41. Anxiety has been a part of her life since youth, with the pressures of fame and expectation intensifying those feelings.

"What Helen's book describes so acutely is the experience of grieving in a way that is entirely connected to the human experience," she says during an interview in West Hollywood. "It's about the feeling in your body, the feeling in your brain, how reality is distorted."

Claire, who immediately signed up to play Helen, with Brendan Gleeson and Lindsay Duncan portraying her parents, adds: "Even now, she says that getting a raptor is not the most sensible way to grieve. But it's a pathological escape that leads Helen towards grieving."

In preparation for the role, the actress embarked on intensive training with goshawks – and the film's co-writer and director, Philippa Lowthorpe, who previously directed Claire in The Crown, says she turned out to be a natural falconer.