Nicola Coughlan has spoken about the "really interesting challenge" of playing a character who was "very different to me".
This comes after the actress, who is renowned for her roles as Clare Devlin in Channel 4 comedy, Derry Girls, and Penelope Bridgerton in the Netflix series, Bridgerton, had starred in a stage production of the play, The Playboy of the Western World, earlier this year.
Written by John Millington Synge, the play sees Eanna Hardwicke star as Christy Mahon, who is on the run in rural Ireland for the murder of his father, which sees him gain fame among the locals and wins the heart of Pegeen Mike, played by Coughlan.
Speaking with the Press Association, Nicola Coughlan spoke about the enjoyable experience of playing her character.
"I love that she is very different to me in that she knows how to exist in a world of men", she said.
She continued: "I've always been surrounded by women but Pegeen doesn’t know how to deal with women. It’s a really interesting challenge".
"When she’s surrounded by a group of women, she is in completely foreign territory. She’s terrified", Coughlan added. "But, I do like how she commands respect, how the men are scared of her, and they know it’s her pub and she has this. And I love how violent she is".
"It’s really nice to play someone like that. She’s so bossy, I love how bossy she is. And female violence is usually never depicted as that kind of violence – it’s usually a "mean girls" sort of thing".
One performance of The Playboy of the Western World was recorded during this three month run, and will be released to Irish cinemas later this year.
Coughlan claimed it was "nerve-wracking, but in a nice way" to film the show, adding: "It did give that little level of realisation".
"Theatre is live. It’s happening. It’s a shared, ephemeral experience", she added. "Even though this is filmed, it was a one-time thing. There’s no edits – you’re going to see it as the audience saw at that time. And it’s really beautiful.
"It’s incredible to film the show and to be broadcast around the world. I grew up in Ireland and you don’t get to see things from the National Theatre.
"You hear about these things, but the fact that now people can see it everywhere is a really brilliant thing".
Nicola Coughlan also enjoyed working on a traditionally Irish play, with Irish cast members and crew.
Calling the experience "lovely", the Galway native added: "We could be very honest.
"I think we just tried to play it quite authentically".
"(The reaction) is interesting because you have the reviewers – very British reviewers – going, 'it’s very Irish’, and you go, ‘well, yeah, it is’".
The Playboy of the Western World originally debuted in Dublin in 1907, causing huge riots upon its initial release as it was seen as an offensive portrayal of Irish people.
