Dawn Steele hasn't had an easy time of things in the recent run of Shetland season 8. Playing Stella Quinn, the mother of murdered Ellen Quinn (Maisie Norma Seaton), she has spent this series running the gamut of grief while her extended family, the Bains, have been moving in increasingly mysterious ways.
In the final episode of the series, detectives Alison 'Tosh' McIntosh (Alison O'Donnell) and Ruth Calder (Ashley Jensen) have worked out that Stella's family, the Bains, know more about Ellen's last movements than they are letting on, but will they finally confess — and what will that mean for Stella?
We caught up with Dawn to discuss the family secrets about to be unleashed, and why the role of Stella was such a special job for her...
Exclusive: Dawn Steele interview for Shetland
What can you tell us about the finale of Shetland season 8?
"Well, I suppose all will be revealed! I can't really give too much away — let's just say it goes to a very dark place, and you find out why they all are the way they are: why Ellen was difficult, why Stella has that relationship with her mum. There's a lot of secrets in this family!"
What was it about this part that appealed to you when it first came on your radar?
"When I read the script, I was like, 'this is my part, this is me!' — it's not me, I've never lost a daughter, but I'm a mum and I could just really empathize with her. It's so well-written, the way it twists and turns, and I just loved the depth and the darkness of it. I've auditioned for Shetland a few times now, being a Scottish actress — everybody has! I just look back on those parts now and I'm like, 'Thank God I didn't get any of those because this is the part!'.
Stella is grieving for most of the series. How did you prepare for that element of the part?
"I just imagined what it would be like for me to lose my own child — it's the worst thing that could ever happen. I really went with what was on the page. In the scene in the second episode where we find out Ellen's dead, Jakub [Bednarcyzk], who plays my son in it, is such a brilliant wee actor, he was bawling his eyes out and that just made me cry more."
Was it hard to shake all of that emotion off at the end of the day?
"No, it wasn't — the actual work was quite heavy, but we were surrounded by really supportive actors, so we just had fun as well. I think sometimes the darker things are, the more you kind of let loose afterwards! We all got on really well, we had a WhatsApp and we all just hung out. It's such an extraordinary place up there, so if we had any time off we'd all just get in a bus and go into town or go swimming — we did a lot of swimming!"
This was your first time visiting the Shetland islands. What did you make of the place?
"Shetland itself was just extraordinary. It's now one of my favourite places I've ever been, and I'm desperate to go back! You arrive at this airport which is like the end of the Earth — they have to stop the cars while the plane comes in because the road goes over the runway! And we were so lucky with the weather — it felt like every time I went up, it was sunny! I was literally like, 'I'm moving here!' — but I know it's not like that all the time! The Bain family farm looks over onto St Ninian's Bay, which is just one of the most stunning beaches I've ever seen. I've got many videos of me, Lorraine [McIntosh, who plays Heather Bain] and Russ [Bain, who plays Bobby Bain], and we're all running down there and in the videos I'm going 'oh my God! Oh my God!' because it's just this crystal-white sand and clear sea!"
Is it true you were reunited with some of the crew from Monarch Of The Glen when you were filming this?
"Yeah, there were loads! And I'm reunited with crew from Monarch Of The Glen at the moment because I'm doing Granite Harbour — if you're working in Scotland, one of the nicest things about it is that I kind of know lots of the crew. Paul Logue who wrote Shetland was script editor on Monarch Of The Glen, Charlie who was our caterer, Lesley [Abernethy] and Angela [Robertson] who did our amazing costumes on Shetland, they were all on Monarch, so were some of our drivers. It was a big, happy reunion!
Can you tell us anything about season two of Granite Harbour?
"It's really good, I'm really enjoying it this year! We've got a lovely cast and a lovely crew, so it's just great to be back with everyone. It's very different from Shetland — it's probably the opposite, because it's very gentle, there's no blood, there's no swearing! I think this year it's really cemented itself in what it is as a genre, the scripts are really good — there's a lot more emotional stuff, and you learn more about the characters' lives."
You mentioned on Instagram that you were a big fan of Ashley Jensen's — what was it like working with her?
We got on like a house on fire! I just really admire her work, and I was blown away by her performance in Mayflies — if she doesn't win that Scottish BAFTA there is something wrong in the world! Of course she's done loads, but I just think now is her time, she's at the top of her game at the minute. She's funny, she can do emotional, she was great on set, she led the show with a really kind and funny heart. She's a good laugh — I'm seeing her in January, actually, I'm going to her house to drink cocktails. I can't wait!"
Shetland concludes on Wednesday, December 6 at 9pm on BBC1. Catch up on the series so far on BBC iPlayer
