Hannah Waddingham Christmas Special Interview Pt. 1

Celebrity Wire

In her interview for the “Hannah Waddingham Christmas Special,” star actress Hannah Waddingham talks about her show’s partnership with Apple TV+ and why the London Colliseum is special.

Transcript

00:00 I have a beautiful mixture of friends and global stars.

00:17 So I have Leslie Odom Jr. from Hamilton, that my daughter is absolutely obsessed with.

00:25 I couldn't have done this without him.

00:27 I have the glorious Luke Evans, who I don't think needs any introduction really,

00:32 but he and I have known each other for a good 20 years from musical theatre.

00:37 I have my beloved friends, who I've known for like 25 years.

00:43 They are my daughter's godfathers, Scott Baker and Pat Davy, the fabulous lounge swingers.

00:51 And then I have Sam Ryder, who I really want everyone in the world to see.

00:58 He's far more known in Europe because he was in the Eurovision Song Contest last year.

01:05 The most extraordinary rock voice.

01:08 And then I'm so honoured to be joined by the English National Opera Chorus,

01:13 where my mum was a chorister with them for 30 years.

01:16 And it's like having my aunties and uncles on stage, so that's a great thing for me.

01:21 I can't quite believe it, it's a proper pinch-me moment.

01:23 And finishing up we have the London Gay Men's Chorus, of whom I'm a patron.

01:28 So an epic gaggle of beauties.

01:32 Apple is an obvious home because they've been so glorious and encouraging to me.

01:39 And it was really lovely when we talked about it with them.

01:43 The London Coliseum, the home of the English National Opera, has been my home.

01:48 Absolutely my home since I was eight years old.

01:51 My mum started in the chorus here.

01:54 But it has always held such a place in my heart that I thought it has to be here or nowhere.

01:59 And to have the full backing of the managers and creative directors here,

02:06 many of whom say, "I remember you when you were little, I remember your mum so dearly."

02:11 I remember earlier somebody saying, "Your mum always used to say, 'Isn't it great that we're here?

02:14 I'd do it even if I wasn't paid.'" And that's where I get it from.

02:17 So it's a love letter to this building.

02:20 The biggest thing actually is the fact that I used to sit in the little box,

02:27 which as you look out from the stage is downstage left, and that was like my little nook.

02:32 And it was always left for me.

02:35 And I would just sit there and watch all these extraordinary rehearsals with Willard White and Josephine Barstow

02:43 and all these just incredible opera singers of that time.

02:47 My biggest thing was I used to travel in on the Tube with my mum,

02:51 and she would just let me out of the paddock and run wild.

02:56 And she would be doing rehearsals on stage, and she'd kind of tip me the wink,

03:00 and I'd go through the pass door and go down to the canteen.

03:03 And I used to stand at stage door waiting for her to finish.

03:07 I mean, literally outside the stage door waiting for her, I would run round,

03:10 and I was just left to my own devices.

03:12 And all these like 90 chorus members coming out, the lead artist, the orchestra, all like,

03:18 "Night, Hannah." And I'm sure all the people in the auditorium that would wait at stage door for autographs

03:23 would just go, "Who is this child?"

03:26 And I just didn't know that that wasn't a normal thing for kiddies.

03:32 And when I told her that I was doing this and I wanted to do it here,

03:35 she went, "Oh, what are we doing? What do I need to do?"

03:40 And I love that performer reaction of thinking she was doing it with me,

03:45 and I just said, "No, I'm doing this for you."

03:48 So it's incredible that I was here from the age of eight,

03:51 and now I'm fronting my own show here for a mighty beast like Apple.

03:56 [BLANK_AUDIO]

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