Fiona Shaw: That scene will stay with me until my deathbed

Fiona Shaw has revealed the Bad Sisters scene that will stay with her for years to come

Fiona Shaw has found herself in plenty of dicey situations in her range of roles over the years but has now revealed a scene in Bad Sisters will ‘stay with me until my deathbed’.

The Irish actress began her career working with the Royal Shakespeare Company and National Theatre, before going on to appear in films and TV shows including Three Men and a Little Lady, Persuasion and the Harry Potter franchise, in which she played Petunia Dursley.

In recent years she also starred in Killing Eve, Fleabag and Andor but is now also joining the cast of the hugely popular Irish black comedy Bad Sisters.

Created by Sharon Horgan (Catastrophe, Motherland, Shining Vale), the first season hit screens in 2022 and followed the five Garvey sisters – Eva, Grace, Ursula, Bibi, and Becka – who find themselves at the centre of a life insurance investigation after Grace’s abusive and controlling husband John Paul dies.

Bad Sisters returned for a second season last week, with Fiona joining the cast as Angelica, the nosy and meddling older sister of Grace’s neighbour and friend Roger (Michael Smiley).

It’s now been two years since the ‘accidental death’ of JP and while the sisters have managed to move on with their lives, they’re thrown yet another curveball when the dismembered body of his father resurfaces, and a loved one mysteriously vanishes.

She joins the Irish black comedy in season 2 as the meddling Angelica (Picture: Natalie Seery)

She plays the sister of Roger (Michael Smiley) (Picture: Natalie Seery)

As the police make it clear they don’t trust what the sisters are telling them, Angelica also leaves them unsettled in her quest to uncover the truth.

Speaking to Metro ahead of the premiere, Fiona, 66, shared how the filming of one particularly shocking scene will haunt her for years to come.

‘There’s a scene on a boat that will absolutely stay with me until I’m on my deathbed,’ she admitted.

‘It took a long time to do and there were a lot of days at sea, and everyone was very seasick. Yet we were doing this amazing comic routine. It’s a fantastic bit of high comedy.

‘We were in the middle of the sea, and I went in, and it was the middle of winter. It was March and freezing. It was one of the most memorable things I’ve ever filmed. It was me. That was me in the water.’

Although it appears Angelica may be filling the place of ‘the prick’ JP and find herself the focus of both the sisters’ and viewers’ disdain, Fiona said she didn’t believe her character was a clear villain.

The series stars Anne-Marie Duff, Sarah Greene, Eve Hewson, Sharon Horgan and Eva Birthistle (Picture: Apple TV Plus)

‘I really like Angelia! …[But] I’m not sure if I would want to invite her around for tea. She is over interested. I know quite a few people like her – they are overly informed about what you are doing. It’s that slightly overbearingness but it comes from an enthusiasm and loneliness, and I think that’s who she is,’ she said.

‘But I had a great time with her, and I feel like everyone was interested in her. She keeps rabbits and lives with her brother – these are very sad facts.’

A huge fan of the first season, Fiona was desperate to join the cast when offered the role, but initially believed she’d be forced to turn it down.

For nearly four months last year, the Screen Actors Guild and American Federation of Television and Radio Artists went on strike, seeing both writers and actors on the picket line.

‘I was asked to do this last year when I was in Greece making a film but unfortunately, the [Sag-Aftra] strike had come and I wrote to Sharon saying I would love to be in it but didn’t think I could because I was a Sag member,’ she said.  

After a few days lamenting having to pass on the job, Fiona discovered she would actually be able to accept and now calls Bad Sisters ‘one of the happiest jobs I’ve ever done’.

Fiona played Petunia Dursley in the Harry Potter film franchise (Picture: Warner Bros Pictures)

During her time starring in Killing Eve (which ran from 2018 until 2022), Fiona spoke about the appetite for shows with female revenge premises, saying that ‘women often play virtue and it’s very nice to not necessarily be good, and not necessarily be bad’.

‘There is certainly an appetite for women on screen,’ she said reflecting on her previous comments.

‘I think there was a myth that men could only lead series and that is simply not true. I started my TV career at 50 and I assumed we were all washed up and it’s so not the case – if anything, the dial is turning.

‘The world of female deceit, madness, pleasure, excitement and joy is really penetrating the camera and people just love it. The more the merrier.’

Although she’s come to jump at opportunities to star in TV shows, there’s one she has no plans to pursue.

She played Carolyn Martens in Killing Eve from 2018 until 2022 (Picture: BBC/ Sid Gentle)

It’s now been 23 years since Fiona first played the maddening Aunt Petunia in the Harry Potter film series, but with a TV adaptation currently in the works, is there any chance we could see her reprise the role or perhaps even make a cameo?

‘No, I think that would be confusing,’ she said without hesitation.

However, Fiona is keen to keep working on small screen projects after previously saying she’d struggled to only find ‘meatier’ roles for women working in theatre.

‘I mean I am very lucky, and I am having a ball. Being in Killing Eve for four years was great fun and I had a ball, I had enough to keep me interested. I had other things, but I was really involved in that and the same with this – this took six months. That’s what I had in the theatre and I’m grateful to now have it in movies and TV,’ she said.

Bad Sisters is streaming on Apple TV, with episodes now released weekly.

Got a story?

If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.