BBC Motherland cast now from Hollywood to childfree vow and husband's sad death
It was the hit parenthood drama that even those without children find relatable.
Motherland burst onto screens in 2016. Written by Sharon Horgan and Graham Linehan, the BBC2 sitcom pokes fun at middle-class mums, from playground drama to the balancing act of work and family.
From stuck-up alpha mum Amanda to wimpy stay-at-home dad Kevin, the comedic cast is what makes the comedy, with each endearing character bringing something unique to the group. After three series, the stars reunited for a Christmas special, which followed the mums celebrating a blended Christmas before things took a heartbreaking turn.
Whether or not there will be a fourth season is still up for debate, however. Diane Morgan, who plays single mum Liz, revealed: "I don't know. There have been conversations."
But what have all the actors been up to since starring in the award-winning comedy? Here we take a look at the lives of Anna Maxwell Martin (Julia), Diane Morgan (Liz), Paul Ready (Kevin), Lucy Punch (Amanda), Philipa Dunne (Anne) and Tanya Moodie (Meg).
Mum's touching gesture to young son who died leaves Morrisons shopper in tears
Anna Maxwell Martin
Anna Maxwell Martin has portrayed the hilariously frazzled Julia in Motherland since 2016, which bagged her a BAFTA nominee for Best Female Comedy Performance. Since her role in the BBC sitcom, the 46-year-old, from East Riding of Yorkshire, has played several police job roles.
In 2019, she joined the cast of hit BBC drama Line of Duty, where she played straight-faced DCS Patricia Carmichael in series five and six. And last year, she starred as Lily Thomas in cold war spy drama, A Spy Among Friends.
Anna has been selective of her acting jobs since joining he cast of Motherland (BBC/Delightful Industries/Merman/Colin Hutton)
She took on a role in hit BBC drama Line of Duty (Tim P. Whitby/Getty Images for BFI)In 2021, Anna took on the co-lead role in ITV's Hollington Drive, where she played sister Theresa in a drama about two sisters and their families as they grappled with the potential crime of their kids. The actress has been selective about the jobs she takes as she has prioritised her family.
The mum-of-two has two girls with her ex-husband, Notting Hill director Roger Michell, who died suddenly in 2021. Speaking to the Guardian about her projects, she said: "I've just had a massive amount of time off with the girls, since Roger. I haven't taken anything because it's not... it doesn’t mean enough to me to leave the girls."
The pair separated amicably a year before his death and Anna is now with a new partner, who was in her ex's last film, The Duke. "It's very sad if you separate, it's devastating, and you hope you'll come back around, after a period of time, where you'll be … When Roger died, I lost one of my best friends. I see it as that," she added.
She has spoken about attempting to write her own TV shows but struggled with confidence. Looking ahead, Anna is set to star as Delia Balmer in the ITV true crime series, which tells the tale of Delia who survived a near-fatal relationship with murderer John Sweeney. A release date is yet to be confirmed.
Diane Morgan
Diane Morgan's rise to fame was a slow-burner. The 48-year-old worked as a telemarketer, dental nurse, and potato peeler after leaving drama school, having struggled to establish herself as an actor.
She and best mate Maxine Peake, both from Bolton, put it down to their northern accents at a time when only southern stars were making it on TV, and the pair even put themselves through elocution lessons. Diane eventually explored the world of comedy after being commended for her dry one-liners and made her telly debut as Dawn on Peter Kay's Phoenix Nights.
Diane is 'vindicated' after joining Motherland (BBC/Merman/Natalie Seery)
She has starred in a number of comedy show (WireImage)After portraying blunt single mum Liz in Motherland, Diane has gone on to star in the hit Netflix show After Life, created by fellow comedian Ricky Gervais, as the astrology-obsessed Kath. Since the BBC parenthood sitcom, she has also produced shows of her own and starred as lead characters.
Since 2019, she has written and performed in her own BBC Two comedy series Mandy, while she has taken on the lead in the mockumentary series Cunk on Britain, written by Charlie Brooker. She also appeared in the second instalment in 2022, Cunk on Earth as the titular character, Philomena Cunk.
'I don't want children staying up late at weekends - I really need adult time'
When it comes to her personal life since the show, Diane remains child-free and is loved up with TV producer partner Ben Caudell. Sharing her love of comedy, his portfolio includes Peep Show and Charlie Brooker's Wipe.
During a candid interview with the Mirror back in 2021, Diane revealed: "Me and Anna [Maxwell Martin] are always trying to work out ways we can avoid scenes with children." She added: "I've never wanted children for a split second. The pain, the expense, the hassle… I can't see any advantages. 'Then I work on Motherland and feel vindicated. People say, 'Yeah but who'll look after you in your old age?' What? Are you only having kids to be your carers?"
Paul Ready
Paul became a familiar face after starring brilliantly as Kevin in Motherland - the precarious stay-at-home dad who is hard not to love, despite his wimpy tendencies. The 46-year-old Brummy previously played Lee in Channel 4's Utopia and has gone on to star in BBC's Bodyguard as Rob MacDonald.
Paul also starred in Bodyguard (Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
Lucy, who plays alpha Amanda, has been in a string of American movies (WireImage,)In the same year, he appeared in AMC's The Terror as Harry Goodsir and in 2019, starred in BBC's MotherFatherSon as journalist Nick Caplan. Paul is married to award-winning actress Michelle Terry, who is known for her work for Shakespeare's Globe, the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal National Theatre.
In an interview with Radio Times, when asked about whether he was worried about being typecast, he responded: "Actually, my fear when I started doing Motherland [in 2016] was about being boxed into a particular kind of character. I think I’d stop acting if I was always playing a similar part". He added: "I can play murderers, or Kevin."
Lucy Punch
Unlike her Motherland co-stars, Lucy Punch has made it to Hollywood. Her credits include Ella Enchanted, Hot Fuzz, and Dinner for Schmucks, alongside Paul Rudd and Steve Carell.
Since starring as stuck-up mum Amanda, who is the alpha of the group, the 45-year-old has been in Netflix's A Series of Unfortunate Events. She played Esmé Squalor in the second, third and final seasons.
Philipa Dunne
Philipa Dunne's portrayal of pushover mum Anne in Motherland made her instantly recognisable to TV fans. But before her much-loved role, the Irish actor had written her own shows including The Taste of Home and The Walshes.
Philipa's own baby stars in Motherland (Tristan Fewings/Getty Images)
Tanya is the latest addition to the Motherland cast (WireImage)After seeing immense success with the BBC parenthood sitcom, Philipa went on to star in the major Channel 4 hit Derry Girls, as mum Clare Devlin. She also appeared in BBC's This Is Going To Hurt and most recently, the chilling drama The Woman In the Wall, exposing the Magdalene Laundries.
Philippa was pregnant during lockdown which became a much-needed distraction for her. She told the Irish Independent: "So I had that to focus on. My husband had to go to work the whole time, so I didn't have a lot of worries that most people had. I just stayed at home and kept myself healthy."
She also revealed that in Motherland series three, the baby she is filmed with was in fact her own. She added: "Any time you see a real baby that I'm carrying around, that's my real baby in real life".
Tanya Moodie
Tanya, as high-flying Meg, was the latest recruit to Motherland. The 51-year-old Canadian-born British actress, who started in theatre, drew on her teenage experiences for the character. As a wild teen, she revealed she experimented with LSD and mushrooms.
Meg was the first Black character to be introduced to the series, but Tanya worried about joining an already solid cast. "When I watched the first series I was like this is the perfect combination of characters why on earth would they fix something that wasn’t broken?" she told the Mirror in 2021.
"I was so scared that they were going to bring me in and I was going to ruin it. All I could do was trust them because they are all really high-calibre writers. However there was a Q&A and somebody asked that question [about diversity]. And one of the writers said we looked back on the series and felt it was unrepresentative of the demographic of London and we felt shame on us. So when I heard her say that. I was like, ‘oh yeah that’s nice’. So I was happy about that."
Away from Motherland, Tanya, who previously appeared in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, is a highly acclaimed stage actress. She studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, where she is now an associate teacher and council member.
Since rising to fame on the sitcom, she starred in the third series of Tin Star in 2020 and in 2022, featured as Regina in Ten Percent. She also stars alongside Olivia Colman and Colin Firth in Sam Mendes' film Empire of Light, which was released at the start of the year. In March 2023, she played Serena in HBO comedy Rain Dogs, alongside Daisy May Cooper.
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
