SO, Deirdre, what’s happening? The last time we spoke, in 2016, you were calling time on your stint as The Tall Ship’s deliciously acerbic boss Eileen in BBC soap River City – and perhaps a career in acting, arguing “the job doesn’t define me”.
It’s fair to say you’d had enough of pulling pints and men but after a hiatus you’ve worked in a series of very good theatre roles including stints at Pitlochry (where she lives). And now you’re lined up to appear in an Ayckbourn at Dundee Rep. But what’s the story, Ms Davis. Is you is, or is you ain’t an actor?
Davis laughs. “Well, it doesn’t (define me),” she says of acting life. “And if you speak to lots of actors you realise that they think outside of the world as well, some retraining to become celebrants, or teachers or whatever.
“What you appreciate is that actors have transferable skills, the ability to think on your feet, to suggest confidence, and make it up as you go along.” She grins. “But when you talk to those who go on to work in a café or whatever and then get offered a permanent position they don’t take it on.”
Deirdre Davis has been true to her 2016 word - to an extent. In recent years she has retrained and is a school’s support worker in Pitlochry, a move prompted by the arrival of Covid when public performance ground to a halt. But the reality is she never gave up on her career.
“The school work allows me to come in and out of acting,” she says. “Yet, having said that, I really love working with the kids. And when you work in a classroom with youngsters who need extra help, well, that helps keep you grounded.”
Davis however comes across as someone who doesn’t actually need too much reminding of their background. Growing up in a working class family in Cardonald in Glasgow’s south side, she proved to be exceptionally bright at school but walked away from her French degree course at uni, swapping Sartre in the original form for the sparkly dress she donned to sing in a soul band (Dickie Bow And The Collars).
Davis was 24 before she even thought of attending drama college (where she picked up the prestigious James Bridie Silver Medal). The young actor then struggled as a single mum. But persistence, and a huge amount of talent won out.
It's that talent that has seen the actor appear in a range of productions in recent years, such as Noises Off, Little Women and Private Lives. Now, Davis is set to appear in a new production of Alan Ayckbourn’s “spine-tingling murder mystery” Snake in the Grass, directed by Dundee Rep’s Andrew Panton.
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The play follows the story of two sisters who return to their childhood home after the death of their father and begin to confront “a dark past and unsettling present”.
“I’ve never been in an Ayckbourn play,” she offers, “and I know they’re seen by some as a bit old-fashioned, Home Counties-middle-class. But that’s part of the reason I wanted to do it. I’d also seen the play in Pitlochry 14 years ago and I thought it was great.”
Davis loves the fact the characters are heightened, that the play has a dark underbelly and it’s spooky, but it also features different writing styles. “Is it also a ghost story? But it’s certainly also about the conflict in families, how someone you love can hurt you.”
Right now, she is loving rehearsing her character, Annabel Chester, who is “imperious, bossy and talks down to people”. Is her Annabel based on an actual person? “Oh, yes!” she declares. “She’s a woman who spoke to me in that ‘I’m terribly busy’ tone, but I can’t say who. But she is definitely in my head all the time.”
So, Deirdre, can we safely assume you’re very much still an actor, but one who believes that work shouldn’t be limited to a singular form? “I think we evolve as we grow older,” she agrees. “And at 60, I’ve come to realise that there are other things in life. I love living in my cottage in the sticks. I love growing tomatoes.” She laughs and adds, “But our core remains the same.”
And her core, it seems, commands that she wallow in the delight of becoming a very different character with each new theatre job. And at times become a middle-class woman with a horrendously haughty manner? “Yes,” she laughs. “I love acting. And I hope I do it ‘till the day I die.”
She adds, “When I think about work overall these days, I feel I’ve won a watch.”
Snake in the Grass is at Dundee Rep from September 13 – October 5
Don’t Miss
Ramesh Meyyappan’s Love Beyond is a love story. But not a typical one. Harry has dementia. He also uses sign language. As he moves into a new home, he is accompanied by memories that dance like ghosts around him. Events from the past seem newly present; a visit from his wife rekindles their love; he imagines they are young and together again.
Perth Theatre, September 20-21. A Raw Material & Vanishing Point Co-Production.
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