Simone Lahbib (Wire In The Blood) Interview

Simone Lahbib is back as Alex Fielding, guiding the viewers through the dark and dangerous storylines of Wire In The Blood.

“Alex complements Tony Hill’s character well, they have very different skills and shortcomings. She is pragmatic, practical, and works by the book, although privately she struggles with things. He is highly intelligent and socially clumsy, although he is comfortable with himself and is able to think outside the box.

‘’Alex is a great listener, and her focus on Tony when he is thinking aloud piecing things together, helps the audience understand what is happening. She asks some of the questions that I imagine the audience would ask. There’s a lot of information in the dialogue which Alex helps take us through. That, together with the visual props which are vital for the clarity of the story.”

Simone says she can relate to the character of Alex, a successful cop and mother.

“I can slip into Alex now. You see two sides of her – the tougher side she’s acquired to help her keep command in the position she’s in, and the more vulnerable person at home. There’s definitely a work hat that she puts on, but at home she struggles to cope with the balance of work and family life and not having a partner to turn to when problems arise.

“Like Alex, I do have a bossy streak, maybe it comes from being the first born. Though I try to keep it firmly at bay. It’s not something that would win anyone a popularity contest. Though it has come in handy for teaching in the past, and for playing authoritative characters like Alex.

“It’s interesting for me that her Achilles heel is children. In one scene a prostitute is killed and leaves a child. Alex is very interested to know how old the child was and berates Kevin for not asking. It’s a bit unreasonable of her but that’s the area where she finds her job tough. As a mother, it’s something I can completely sympathise with.”

Adds Simone: “There are aspects of your personality in every character you play. You draw on different sides of yourself where they are appropriate and use your experience and imagination to find the things that are unlike you. One big difference is that Alex is on her own at home, whereas I have a good supportive family.”

Once again, Simone brought her daughter Skye to Newcastle while she was filming the series.

“These days its like being part of a travelling circus when I go to work and I’m ever grateful that Coastal are always so generous in terms of helping me manage the job and my family. They book the house a week early so I can get Skye settled in and pass over to my mum. This time my dad came along as well which was great. He’s a master chef so I felt like one of those Hollywood film stars who have their own cook.

“Dad was very careful to make sure I was getting the right balance of food and my mum was doing all the domestic side and taking care of the baby – generally speaking it couldn’t be more perfect.”

Simone is pleased with the new format of four two-part stories. “It’s great to stay with the storyline for a little bit longer and work the journey out,” she says.

“The first film is very strong about a cannibal killer amputating and eating parts of his victims. It’s gruesome but how I react depends on how emotionally involved my character is from moment to moment. I imagine real police officers would have to pull back at times so they can do their job properly. Having said that Alex is quite an emotional character so she is often affected by her work and therefore so am I, least as long as the cameras are running.

“Off camera it’s a whole different thing. I’m looking at the prosthetics and make-up and thinking what a great job they’ve done or checking that the artist playing dead on the block is all right and not too cold.

“As always there’s a lot of laughter on the set, too. Robson always cracks me up and now we have Michael Smiley too - he’s hilarious. And Mark and Emma are such lovely people, we’ve become good friends over the three years we’ve all worked together”

Alex is Simone’s third role as a cop, after Thief Takers and Fallen, and it’s given her an interest in the criminal justice system.

“Even though it’s only been through a drama on TV, you do gain a certain amount of information and pick up on stories in the news with a different mindset. Knife crime is very worrying. So many innocent young people getting caught up in it, not just those looking for trouble. You just want to keep your children inside.

“I’m glad there’s a lot of focus on it at the moment as it makes you more vigilant and alert, as you are anyway when you become a parent. I’m always looking at things and assessing what’s dangerous.”

After the last series of Wire in the Blood, Stirling-born Simone returned to Scotland to make a short film with John Hannah, entitled Zip ‘n’ Zoo.

“It’s a gorgeous little film and we made it right up in the north of Scotland in a place called Drumbeg, beyond Inverness. We did some filming at the director’s house in front of a beautiful loch and when John had fiddle lessons there the seals came up for a listen. It was lovely and I could have done it for a lot longer.”

Adds Simone: “Other work has been offered but I’m still reluctant to take it because I’ve decided to spend that time with Skye. I’ve waited a long time for a child and the first five years are very formative, so I try to keep work to a minimum, hard though it is to turn good work down. I know she’s well looked after when I’m working but it’s not the same as being with mum and dad.”