I'm Learning to Be Braver

Nicola Walker talks to Nathalie Whittle about enjoying success in her 40s, on- and off-screen romance, and being TV’s hottest detective

- Nathalie Whittle

NICOLA WALKER, 46, Is one of those actresses who on first meeting, might fool you into thinking she’s not actually “famous” at all. She arrives at our shoot dressed in jeans and a parka coat, having determinedly travelled across London on the Underground. Does she not get recognised, I ask? “When I did Spooks, people did start quietly sidling up to me on the Tube – but it’s only in the past couple of years that it’s started happening more.” Does she mind? “Not at all, but the worst is when you’re in the supermarket screaming at your husband and someone comes over and says, “I think Unforgottenn is wonderful”; you have to reset your face into “Thank you very much!” – then they walk away and you continue shouting at your husband.”

Fast becoming the queen of prime-time TV, it’s no wonder all eyes are on Nicola. From her role as Senior Intelligence Analyst Ruth Evershed in long-running spy drama Spooks to that as Gillian, the northern sheep farmer in Sally Wainwright’s Last Tango in Halifax, she’s no stranger to versatility. And now? She’s stealing the show once again as DCI Cassie Stuart in a second series of hit ITV crime drama, Unforgotten. Nicola lives with her husband, actor Barnaby Kay, and their ten-year-old son Harry in London.

On “overnight” success...

I’ll never forget the moment last year when my dad phoned and said, “Nic, you’re an overnight success at the age of 46!”