Whether departing
soap characters disappear into the night gazing longingly from the rear window of
a cab, or are despatched in more dramatic circumstances, the extent of their
legendary status is only really felt through the passing of time, and I think it’s safe
to say that Cilla Battersby-Brown has firmly etched her legacy into the annals. In some ways it’s hard to believe she
has been away from the street almost twice as long as she spent causing havoc
on it. I caught up with Wendi Peters at ITV in Manchester
Wendi
herself is surprised at Cilla’s iconic status considering she was only there
for four years, putting it down to a combination of her storylines and her
bold, brash nature. But what has Cilla back after seven years, and where has
she been?
Despite her
departure for Las Vegas , and later move to South Africa , Wendi reveals that Cilla has been living of late in slightly less exotic Wolverhampton .
“That did make me giggle” says Wendi on learning the news.
She reveals that Chesney and Fiz are skeptical of Cilla's reason for returning and are right to assume that there’s an ulterior motive, as Cilla is harbouring a secret. “She’s Cilla. She’s not back just to say hello,” observes
Wendi, “there always has to be a reason.”
Wendi reveals that the only person who really takes to her that doesn’t know her of old is Sinead who tries to persuade Chesney to give her a chance. Describing him as Cilla’s “blue eyed boy”, Wendi notes that, by extension, his son becomes the apple of her eye. “On her first
sighting of Joseph, she’s absolutely thrilled” she reveals, “she thinks he’s
very bonny and takes after his Nana.”
However, while Fiz
isn’t exactly happy to see her, “Chesney is the one that really knocks her for
six as he’s so hostile towards her” reveals Wendi who confirms that Cilla gets
a “huge shock” when it becomes apparent that “they can’t wait to get rid of her.”
It’s clear
therefore that Cilla’s return is going to be far from prodigal.
Much has naturally
been made of potential clashes and comparisons with Beth Tinker. “All I’ve been
getting Twitter-wise is ‘we can’t wait to see the arguments and the fights with
Beth’” observes Wendi. “It’s an odd one this. You have to say we’re the typical
strong Corrie women and I suppose there’s a slight resemblance.” However, Wendi
anticipates that interactions between the two might offer “a bit of a twist on
what people are expecting.”
So how did Wendi
feel when she learned they wanted to bring Cilla back? “It was a
complete shock” she reveals, “I’d put it to bed really, I’d moved on. It was
something I’d never really considered. It’s lovely just to come back for a
short break to find out where she’s been and what she’s up to, and to have the
purpose of getting Jennie out for her maternity leave. The fact that my
daughter’s properly having a baby, it’s so lovely to come back and see her go
out”.
With regard
to her preparations for playing the part after 7 years away Wendi reveals “I’d
obviously learned my lines at home but I didn’t read them out with anybody, so
the first time she actually spoke was when I walked on set and said ‘Well
aren’t you pleased to see me?’ It’s really weird, because I feel like I’m in
full swing again, it’s like riding a bike.”
While Cilla's loud personality has traditionally been matched by her wardrobe, viewers
can anticipate a change in this regard. “She’s gone a bit more upmarket this
time” Wendi reveals, explaining how she was anxious to tone Cilla down.
“Although she still has the essence of Cilla, she’s never going to change,” she
notes, “we did want to bring her a little bit back down to earth. She’s still got the
gold jewellery which I’ve picked out of my loft; I have a Cilla box in which I
put a few scripts, my last continuity photos, her jewellery and a little hat
from the last scene.”
Wendi’s
preparations also included watching Cilla’s last week of episodes, but she regretted
doing this, disliking bits of both the character and the way she played her. I
asked Wendi if that contributed to her decision to tone Cilla down. “Before I
even watched that I wanted to tone her down slightly” she confirmed. “She’s 7
years older, she’s nearly 50. I loved playing her, but I just felt we needed to
find a little bit more reality in her. I felt over the 4 years she’d maybe
gotten a bit too much at certain times.”
Wendi
describes her nerves on returning as being like the first day at school, revealing, “It
wasn’t until I’d got about 2 or 3 scenes under my belt that I relaxed and
thought this is going to be okay now".
With regard
to whether or not she resembles Cilla in any way, Wendi observes “I think there
always has to be a bit of you in a character you play. I’m very impatient, I’m
a bit of a control freak, and I’d like to think a much nicer version of Cilla.”
Wendi has
no idea if Cilla will return again after this 6 weeks, but isn’t closed to
the idea. “Never say never” she observes, "for me it’s very much dependent on what
they come up with, the way it’s going to go, and how she’s going to be” as well
as what’s going on in her own life at the time. For now though, it's clear that an intriguing few weeks lie ahead as far as her return is concerned.
Wendi is a
true breath of fresh air, and the enthusiasm with which she talks about her
character, her love of theatre and the life she has carved for herself, filled
with all the things about which she is passionate, is an inspiration.
By Emma Hynes
Twitter: @ELHynes
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