Rain Dogs takes a darkly comic look at the struggles of a single parent living in poverty.
The no-holds-barred eight-part show, airing on HBO and BBC One, is written by Cash Carraway, who took inspiration from her past as a single mum living in poverty. It sees This Country and Am I Being Unreasonable? star Daisy May Cooper play aspiring writer Costello Jones, who lands herself in a range of tricky situations as she struggles to make ends meet for herself and her young daughter Iris (Fleur Tashjian).
What To Watch caught up with Daisy May Cooper to find out more about Rain Dogs…
Rain Dogs feels very different. What appealed to you?
Daisy May Cooper: “It's unlike anything you've seen, but you'll be taken on an emotional journey. It's a gritty, unconventional love story. I was a huge fan of Cash’s. There was a lot in the script that I resonated with due to my background too. You see how hard it is when you don't have any money — money doesn't bring you happiness, but it brings you options.”
Do you think it will open people’s eyes about what it’s really like for those who are living in poverty?
“Yes, this isn’t poking fun at the working class and poverty. But it shows that sometimes, things are so bad that you have to laugh. That's what we did with our family. When you've got nothing, at least you can make each other laugh.”
Tell us about Costello…
“Costello is desperately trying to be successful, be a good mum, and pursue a career. It's hard, she's dealing with demons and alcohol addiction but she’s a trier. She doesn’t always make the right decisions though. At the start, she gets evicted and is trying to put a roof over their heads but she runs out of options. It's stressful and so moving...”
Costello is best friends with gay, upper crust Selby, who is just out of prison. How do you see their relationship?
“They're from opposite ends of the class system but they’re quite similar. They’re both equally messed up — Selby [played by Poldark and Chloe's Jack Farthing] because he’s affluent, but has no emotional stability and Costello because she comes from poverty and feels like she has to fight for everything. She adores him but their relationship can get intense. It's codependent and toxic.”
What was it like working with Fleur Tashjian, who plays Iris?
“Fleur’s going to be massive, she's so talented. She was more like an adult than us, she was telling us off all the time! But we had this weird toy that she became obsessed with, it was like one of those toys you win at a fair with the eyes pointing in different directions. She was constantly trying to sneak it into every shot, so look out for that!”
Did you enjoy wearing Costello’s costumes?
“Costello is way cooler than I am! I tried to dress like her after filming and failed. I started going through a punky, goth phase and my mother said, ‘You're 36 and you look like you are 13, it’s pathetic!’”
Rain Dogs airs weekly in the UK on BBC One and BBC iPlayer from Tuesday 4 April at 10.40pm. It has been airing weekly in the US from Monday 6 March on HBO and HBO Max.
