Advertisement

Jane Horrocks: 'Even though I moved away from the North it is still very much a part of me'

Jane Horrocks - Getty Images Contributor
Jane Horrocks - Getty Images Contributor

We asked the actress and musician, 54, what her younger self would make of her today...

I think of the North as being a very rainy place, but I never remember rain from when I was a child. It seemed like it was sunny all the time. I have lovely memories of my childhood, growing up in a working-class family in Rawtenstall.

Because I had two elder brothers I was kind of the odd one out. I did a lot of things on my own and therefore my imagination became incredibly vivid.

At the age of nine I was given the album of The Sound of Music and I immersed myself in Julie Andrews. I also got massively into Barbra Streisand when she did A Star is Born. It made me think: "There's a world beyond the North of England". I decided, age nine, that I wanted to be an actress. I wanted to sing and entertain people.

My mum, more than my dad, really didn't like preciousness and she never encouraged me to entertain publicly. But her friends got to know I could do impersonations and they would always say, "Come on Jane, do a bit of your Shirley Bassey for us," while my mum would be cringing in the background.

Jack Horrocks
Jane as a child

Despite being shy, I'd try to combat this by doing New Faces in the school lunch break. People were entertained, so I knew I was on to something and, by behaving like a clown, I achieved some level of popularity.

I am much more confident now. Moving to London really helped me. There aren't many situations I don't feel comfortable in. My year at Rada comprised a very eclectic bunch; from Ralph Fiennes and Imogen Stubbs to me. I loved my time there and it was definitely everything I wanted it to be.

I was the only person in my year to get into the RSC, which was quite a surprise to everyone. However, I decided to leave after my first season, which my mum and dad thought was bonkers, but I knew I'd be swallowed up in a big company like that. Thereafter I went on to do great plays like Road by Jim Cartwright.

I re-watched the television version of the play recently, which was directed by Alan Clarke in 1987. Now it looks like a piece of art. I was lucky in my early career to work with people like Alan, Mike Leigh and Nick Roeg.

I remember trying to change my accent when I was working with Nick Roeg. He said: "Why are you doing that voice? I employed you because I wanted you to use your own voice!"

Jane Horrocks - Credit: AF archive / Alamy Stock Photo
Jane with Jennifer Saunders in Absolutely Fabulous Credit: AF archive / Alamy Stock Photo

At Rada we all worked hard to perfect our standard English, but as the years progressed I realised my accent was my calling card, and my personality as well. Even though I moved away from the North it is still very much a part of me.

I don't think I would have ever imagined somebody writing a play specifically for me and my vocal abilities. My younger self would have been chuffed about Little Voice.

About five years ago I got to a place where I felt very stuck; like I was on repeat. So I decided to shake things up a bit and create my own work. Two years ago, in collaboration with a choreographer, I did a show at the Young Vic called If You Kiss Me, Kiss Me, which was a recapturing of my youth and my love of northern male bands of the late Seventies and early Eighties. Last year I collaborated with the band Wrangler and made Cotton Panic! at the Manchester International Festival. I love doing shows that have the Marmite factor. I feel I've come to a place where I don't have to be loved and if some people dislike what I'm doing, then that's OK.

I like this photograph of me as a young girl, because there's a kind of attitude to it. I think this girl would be proud of me working with musicians and choreographers and doing stuff that's outside my comfort zone. She'd be proud that I've continued to evolve, rather than stagnating.

Jane Horrocks will appear in Instructions for Correct Assembly at the Royal Court Theatre, London, April 7-May 19