Actress Lara Pulver has admitted she felt like a Bond Girl in her role in new Sky Atlantic drama Fleming.
The Sherlock star plays Lady Ann O'Neill, the wife of James Bond author Ian Fleming, played by Mamma Mia's Dominic Cooper.
Lady Ann is a high-class socialite with a voracious sexual appetite, so not too unlike many of the famous Bond Girls...
"I really felt like a Bond Girl when they let Dominic Cooper loose in a beautiful vintage boat, driving me around the Mediterranean as we filmed the drama's opening scene," explained Lara. "I remember Dom saying: 'This has made the entire shoot for me!' because we literally spent four or five hours just tearing around the Med with me in the sun trying not to get sunburnt and Dom just loving it!"
Lara, of course, is very well known to Sherlock fans from the 2012 episode A Scandal In Belgravia.
She played high-class hooker Irene Adler who had some violent tendencies, so this was something she could draw upon to play Lady Ann in Fleming - some scenes with Dominic see their characters attacking each other in violent arguments.
"For me, these scenes were hugely upsetting, admitted Lara. "I'm not confrontational at all. I'll shy away from an argument and yet that's not who these people were. I remember there's a scene in episode three where Ian has purposely slept with Ann's best friend to make her furious and he comes home and she's raging. I was holding a whisky glass and out of nowhere I just turned and threw it at Dominic. Luckily, he was quick enough to get out of the way!'
Dominic has often been touted as a future James Bond when Daniel Craig leaves the role, but he didn't discuss anything with Lara as they filmed, mostly in Eastern Europe.
"I'm not even sure that's what Dom wants to do!" said Lara. "Some are saying a black actor should be the next Bond, someone like Idris Elba? I'd second that. I think Idris is wonderful."
Lara has just finished a big Hollywood film herself, which meant acting alongside with some big name stars.
"I've just done the new Tom Cruise film Edge Of Tomorrow. It's a small supporting role but it was four days on set doing a two-handed scene with Tom Cruise! I was like 'Wow!' how cool is that? It was one of those moments where I thought 'if this ends tomorrow I've still got this piece of history'."
Fleming is on Wednesdays at 9pm on Sky Atlantic.
