Rose Leslie has brought some unforgettable women to life across genres—from Gwen, the maid with ambition on Downton Abbey to Ygritte, the fierce wildling on Game of Thrones. In this exclusive MASTERPIECE interview, Leslie opens up about stepping into the emotionally buttoned-up world of Isabella Fowle, the modern wisdom she’d offer her character, and how she creatively reconnected with her Downton Abbey co-star Phyllis Logan on the set of Miss Austen.
One reviewer described the character of Isabella Fowle as a “finely drawn portrait of frustration.” What do you say to that?
The frustration part is very interesting, isn’t it? I think it’s a mark of their time. Isabella clearly felt trapped between loyalty to her father—wishing to be the daughter he could be proud of—but also trapped with a desire to live the life she wished to live and follow her heart. I feel like Isabella was always frustrated until after her father’s death when she realized she could conceivably lead the life she wanted to.
It wasn’t acceptable for British women of this period to be openly emotional. As an actor, how do you play such restrained feelings—is it through subtle expressions, body language, or something else?
Yes, you’re absolutely right. I think expectations were such that women had to always be agreeable and demure and for me, to play restrained, you hit the nail on the head. I made Isabella’s physicality rather restrictive, and that was through body language and facial expressions, and making sure that she didn’t reveal too much of her feelings in case it were to shock anyone in the room. A difficult way to live.
At first, Cassandra is intent on getting Isabella settled with one of her two sisters. How does her attitude toward Isabella’s future evolve?
Perhaps Cassandra’s default position was that [her deep attachment to Jane] is how everybody is with their sister. And so, when she learns that this bond is not reflected in the three Fowle sisters, that does give her pause for thought. Coupled with that is Cassandra’s getting to know Isabella a bit better and learning of her love for Mr. Lidderdale. I think that Cassandra’s good nature gets the better of her, and then that’s when she decides to help Isabella create a life where she can be happy.
Isabella isn’t close to her own sisters, but does she enjoy something of a sisterly bond with the maid Dinah?
That’s a good point. I think there is a lovely bond between those two ladies, and I think they certainly have one another’s best interests at heart. I think that Dinah potentially has a maternal feeling over Isabella, certainly knowing that she’s grieving and has grieved two parents now. But while Isabella and Dinah [watch out for] each other, I wouldn’t say that they are as tight as real sisters.
What advice might Rose Leslie give Isabella Fowle?
It would be at the point when we meet Isabella and she’s torn up about what it is she should do [after her father’s death]. I think my advice would be not to succumb to societal expectations or family expectations—that those are wasted hours of agonizing. What is it that others expect me to do? When really, the question should only ever have been what is it that I wish for my life?
I understand the book you never tire of reading is Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Why is that?
Well, why is it for anybody? It has to be the love story, surely. It’s the initial dislike between [Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy], and then how that transforms into love. And of course, all that’s within Jane Austen’s world. Her ability to reveal a character’s true nature through scathing or witty dialogue is just a joy to read. I feel you can never tire of it. I think that she, as a writer, is so perceptive. It’s an insight into the way that people back then lived, it’s very relatable, and you have your comedy characters. As a book, it’s just the most wonderful escapism. … If I enjoy [a story], I want to return to it in the future.
The MASTERPIECE audience first got to know you as Downton Abbey’s Gwen, the housemaid with a hidden typewriter and big aspirations. Was that a career-changing role for you?
It was. Not only did I have the most wonderful experience on Downton, but it was also the first job I ever got whereby I was employed for six months; it was just the most wonderful thing to be employed for that length of time! Also, the cast members are just such wonderful human beings, and so I loved it. I know that it helped me get the role of Ygritte in Game of Thrones, and that job was a steppingstone to me then meeting my husband [Kit Harington], having my children, and living the life that I live. Yes, I think it changed my life.
While you didn’t share scenes with your Downtown Abbey castmate Phyllis Logan in Miss Austen, were you able to catch up with her on set?
I wish we did, but the way that it worked out, with me in Keeley’s [Keeley Hawe’s later] storyline, we shot everything before Christmas. Phyllis was in the storyline for the younger Cassandra, and they shot in January, and so we never crossed paths. But funny, all our headshots were up in the hair and makeup trailer, and I just remember grinning at it, waving at it, and wishing she was actually in the chair when I was in the chair. So no, but in time, I do hope we see each other again.
