Hannah Waddingham • Rewind Classic (Ted Lasso / Ride Or Die / The Fall Guy)

Films To Be Buried With with Brett Goldstein

In this nostalgic 'Rewind' episode, host Brett Goldstein reunites with Hannah W</strong>addingham to revisit a classic conversation from 202

Key takeaways

• Hannah Waddingham describes the high-pressure experience of her four-hour screen test for Ted Lasso with Jason Sudeikis.
• Waddingham reveals how becoming a mother has fundamentally changed her perspective on death and career ambition.

Main topics

• Ted Lasso casting stories
• Childhood cinematic memories

Notable quotes

I can't bear watching myself.

Conclusion

A heartwarming and hilarious deep dive into the personal lives and cin

Transcript preview

Speaker 2 (0:00) Look out! It's only a very special films to be buried with rewind! Speaker 2 (0:15) Hello and welcome back to Films To Be Buried With, Rewind Special Classic. First of all, I hope you're all well. Thank you very much for your patience, for bearing with me while I'm filming. I'm not able to be doing new episodes at the moment, but I hope to get some to you very soon. I hope you understand and I appreciate you and I hope you're all well. This week, we're going back to September 2020 for a very special episode with the truly wonderful Miss Hannah Waddingham. Hannah is, as you all know... An absolute legend. And by this, I mean, even by the time we recorded this, she was already a national treasure. She's got her new show, Ride or Die. That is on Prime Video. I would highly, highly recommend it. But this was in 2020. I believe we were making Ted Lasso season two at the time. We recorded this really late at night on a Zoom. And it was so lovely. Ted Lasso season four is now streaming on Apple TV. You can catch up on all the three seasons before that. You can also see Shrinking on Apple TV. You can see my film Office Romance with Jennifer Lopez written by me and Joe Kelly. That's on Netflix. And I'm going back on tour this fall over the US. You can find tickets in your city at brettgoldsteintour.com. Also, if you go to the Patreon at patreon.com forward slash brettgoldstein, you're getting classic episodes Speaker 1 (1:34) every week. Speaker 2 (1:36) you're getting videos, Speaker 1 (1:37) you're getting Ask Me Anythings, Speaker 2 (1:39) all kinds of stuff. Check that out. So that is it for now. I appreciate you sticking with me while things are very, very busy. I hope you are all well. In the meantime, please enjoy this absolutely classic all-time rewind with the wonderful, it's Hannah Waddingham. Thank you all for listening. Speaker 2 (2:06) Hello and welcome to Films to be Buried With. It is me, Brett Goldstein, and I am joined today by an actor, a singer, a musical theatre phenomenon, a TV phenomenon, an actor who has been nominated more times than I've had, pasta, an award-nominated... and award winner in all our hearts, and the performer of the funniest performance I ever saw on a West End stage, please welcome to the show, the wonderful, the incredible, the amazing, it's Speaker 1 (2:45) Hannah Speaker 2 (2:45) Waddingham! Speaker 2 (2:49) She's here, she's here. Oh Speaker 1 (2:50) my God, you're ridiculous. How are you? Very, very, very much better for seeing you, my compagnon. I Speaker 2 (3:00) am so delighted to see you. For those who don't know, Hannah Waddingham plays Rebecca in the show on Apple TV Plus, Ted Speaker 1 (3:08) Lasso. Speaker 2 (3:09) What you are in. Which I also are in, and we are recording this over Zoom because of that. bloody virus. There isn't a Speaker 1 (3:19) virus, is there? Speaker 2 (3:20) No, don't worry about it. Don't read the news. It's fine. Speaker 1 (3:22) Tell Speaker 2 (3:22) me about it Speaker 1 (3:23) later. Speaker 2 (3:23) Okay. And we haven't seen each other in Speaker 1 (3:26) a Speaker 2 (3:26) while, but we've been in contact. You're on week nine of Ted Lasso being out. How has that been for you as a person? Speaker 1 (3:34) I don't know about you, but I can't bear watching myself. Oh, yeah. Am I allowed to swear on here? Speaker 2 (3:39) It's positively encouraged. Speaker 1 (3:41) I always think, what a twat when I see myself in anything. I always think, Jesus Christ, woman, could your mouth be any bigger? Could your lines be any deeper? And so I just, I literally skim over my own things and just watch the rest of you. Speaker 2 (3:55) Yeah, I feel very similar. I'm like, it's such a good show. Shame when I pop up. But it's really, I'm really enjoying Speaker 1 (4:02) everyone Speaker 2 (4:03) else. Speaker 1 (4:04) Wait a minute. No, when you pop up, it's like the foxiest weirdo that ever lived. Speaker 2 (4:10) Same. Same. You're welcome. Speaker 1 (4:12) Same. Speaker 2 (4:14) Now, I've got so many things I want to talk to you about before we get into it all. One thing I wanted to ask you, I don't know how you feel about talking about this. So I was a massive fan of you before we did this because I'd seen you in musicals a lot. Weirdly, I'd seen a lot of your stuff and was always like, this woman's fucking amazing. And then when you did Lady in the Lake in Spamalot, I was like, that is the funniest. performance I've seen on a West End stage. I mean, look, I ain't seen lots. Wait, now hold on. It's a funny... Speaker 1 (4:45) I've Speaker 2 (4:46) seen two shows of you in both of Speaker 1 (4:48) them. Speaker 2 (4:48) I'm not just Speaker 1 (4:48) saying this to be self-deprecating. Speaker 2 (4:50) I'm Speaker 1 (4:51) not just saying this to be self-deprecating. It was by far the funniest material. Speaker 2 (4:55) Honestly, I Speaker 1 (4:57) think anyone that you saw do that, you would have thought, who's that? Yeah, anyone else I saw doing Speaker 2 (5:03) it, I did think, who's that? Because they weren't as funny. Speaker 2 (5:08) I didn't just think who's that I was like who the fuck is that that's what I thought when I went back who the fuck Speaker 1 (5:13) is that giant woman you Speaker 2 (5:16) were incredible in that but here's the thing so you may or may not know this so we I was in the writer's room for Ted Lasso and we saw you know tapes would come in and we'd see we'd be shown some of the tapes for the castings and you were mentioned and I was like oh fuck she's fucking brilliant I'd never talked to you about this, I don't think, but you flew out to LA Speaker 1 (5:37) for Speaker 2 (5:38) like four hours to do a screen test with Jason. Speaker 1 (5:42) Yeah. And Speaker 2 (5:43) my question to you is, how was that? And was that incredibly insane and tense and nerve wracking and mad? Speaker 1 (5:48) Well, of course, you know that when you go out to do something like that, the deal has already been done. So you're basically walking in with a price on your head. And my agent in London had kept saying, look, we need to have a conversation about this. And I was like, stop talking, stop talking. I come from theatre. Speaker 2 (6:05) We Speaker 1 (6:05) don't get into it for the money. Let me go and do my job. You do your job. I mean, this is literally verbatim what I said. He was like, no, no, right. Yes, in theory. But this could be a lot of years in a contract. And I was like, seriously, I trust you. Otherwise, you wouldn't be my agent. If you start telling me what the price tag is on my head. I'm going to be shit. So let me just go have a chat with Jason. See if we get on with each other. You do your bit. I'll do mine. All good. And he was like, oh, right then. Speaker 2 (6:38) Sorry, I called. Speaker 1 (6:39) Just wanted to say good luck. Speaker 2 (6:42) What was it like though? What was that experience like? Because were you jet lagged? I mean, did you sleep on the plane? I'm just fascinated by the sort of detail of it. Speaker 1 (6:48) I was jet lagged out of my mind. They'd sent me what basically felt like a travel brochure of scenes to learn. Speaker 2 (6:56) To Speaker 1 (6:56) be off book like you're a machine. And I walked in and I think because I hadn't slept, for some reason my body clock was quite perky because I think it was like in my body, it was like... three o'clock in the afternoon, still on UK time. So when I walked in at like 9.30 in the morning for that meeting, I was like, hello, and feeling quite sparkly. Speaker 2 (7:20) And Speaker 1 (7:20) Jason and I had a really nice immediate shorthand. And I mean, I was in there for nearly two hours. Speaker 2 (7:27) And Speaker 1 (7:28) it just went. And lovely Bill Ruber was in there and put me at my ease massively. He actually said at the end of the meeting, he went, I must just say that I loved you in... Spamalot on Broadway, which immediately made me feel calm. And then Kimberly, the casting director, just said, as we were walking down the corridor, I said to Jason, look, whatever happens, I've had a great time. It's been good to meet you. And Kimberly said, yeah, God, it's such a pity that Rebecca doesn't sing. And under his breath, and I haven't mentioned this to Jason, Jason went, she does now. And I was like, Speaker 2 (7:59) oh, Speaker 1 (7:59) yeah. Speaker 2 (8:01) And then I Speaker 1 (8:02) had a painful week of not hearing anything. And I was just kept holding on. for that little gem that fell out of his mouth. Speaker 2 (8:10) Yeah, yeah. Speaker 1 (8:11) Yeah, because I think there was lots of to-ing and fro-ing and all the rest of it about, you know, whether I was established enough or not. And so I was just like, do you know what? I went and had a wicked time. I went and had a gorgeous Mexican meal with some mates that I did 12 Monkeys with after that. Speaker 2 (8:26) And Speaker 1 (8:27) then after that, I went and got hammered in a bar with my agent in a drag queen karaoke bar. Speaker 2 (8:32) Beautiful. Speaker 1 (8:33) I mean... Speaker 2 (8:34) You're still talking about the price on your head. Shut Speaker 1 (8:36) up! I'm trying to enjoy this fucking music. I'm trying to enjoy the four hours that I'm here. Speaker 2 (8:44) That's... Well, that's brilliant. I love that Bill Rubel was there with you. Bill Rubel is one of the writers and probably even the top three nicest people I've ever met in my life. Speaker 1 (8:54) Undoubtedly. Top three. Absolute dream of a gentleman. Speaker 2 (8:57) Oh, yeah. So one thing I will say is if you've seen Ted Lasso in episode seven... true to his word, Rebecca does sing. And I was, I was fucking there. And it was, Speaker 1 (9:07) you know, Speaker 2 (9:09) people talk about being close to greatness. Oh Speaker 1 (9:12) my God. Stop talking greatness. It was so Speaker 2 (9:15) great. All day, you singing in my face. Yes, please. Dream come true. Speaker 1 (9:20) And I love that they kept that in, you mouthing the words. absolute genius you know I tried to wriggle out of singing that song with Jason did I ever tell you that no but I knew you Speaker 2 (9:32) were you were worried about it and I kept I was I Speaker 1 (9:35) was just like when he told me it was let it go I went oh yeah brilliant funny I've been avoiding singing that in concerts for years and he went no that's what I wanted to sing and I went are you fucking kidding me and he went well unless you can come up with a better song you know a better Venn diagram for that moment in the whole series and I was like well I We'll be back. I went off to my train and I was like... Speaker 1 (10:00) something Speaker 2 (10:01) else. I Speaker 1 (10:01) even gave him a couple of options and he was like, yeah, yeah, yeah. No, no, no. Speaker 2 (10:07) Have you seen Moana? Have you seen Moana? Oh Speaker 1 (10:09) my gosh. Actually, I was literally like, can we not, what's that? Who is that girl I see staring straight back at me? I was like, can we do that one? Speaker 2 (10:20) No, Speaker 1 (10:20) I'm not going to keep going. He went, he went, no, no, we're not doing that. And then, and then it became, what's the other one I did? I Speaker 2 (10:27) will survive. You did I Will Survive and you were like very good at I Will Survive. You were like, this is my jam. But I was like, yeah, but. Speaker 1 (10:35) Yeah, you weren't feeling it. You were at the musical theatre all the way. Oh, no. Do Speaker 2 (10:39) people Speaker 1 (10:39) realise what a musical theatre whoopsie you are? I don't think they do. Speaker 2 (10:46) Well, I guess they do now. I mean, we all are on Ted Lesser. That's the sort of... I Speaker 1 (10:51) know, you all are. You and Jason and Brendan. Jason, Speaker 2 (10:54) Brendan, Bill. Bill can sing Les Miserables in French. We're all, you know, a bunch of musical figures. It's so Speaker 1 (11:04) brilliant, though, because usually when I do TV shows, I feel like it's a bit of a dirty secret I've got to keep to myself. Speaker 2 (11:11) Yeah, yeah. I mean, I'm horrified you've announced it on a podcast, but yeah. Speaker 2 (11:17) Yeah, it's true. Yeah. Yeah. All right. Fine. I guess it's... I mean, you Speaker 1 (11:21) are. You were so lovely that first day when I was thinking, oh, this is quite a big deal. First read-through of a big old series. It was scary. And you literally came bounding over to me like Tigger. Speaker 2 (11:33) Hey, can I get your autograph? I mean, nice to meet you. Shit, sorry. Trying to be... No, no, listen, no. Cool, cool to meet you. But seriously, can I have an autograph? Can I get a selfie with you from my mum or whatever? Speaker 1 (11:45) you signed me on it's not for me yeah Speaker 2 (11:47) oh Speaker 1 (11:47) it was it was absolutely brilliant because that moment was like properly scary well it's scary because there is also Speaker 2 (11:55) the massive reality you've been through it enough that you can get fired at that first read through everyone oh my god i Speaker 1 (12:02) mean literally they can go yeah no Speaker 2 (12:04) yeah and Speaker 1 (12:05) you're out the door i Speaker 2 (12:06) don't think you've got the part until you've seen an episode on the tv because you can still get cut you can get cut it's so Speaker 1 (12:11) true i mean That was really scary times. Speaker 2 (12:15) That was scary. I Speaker 1 (12:16) mean, Speaker 2 (12:16) that was a lot of people. I remember being like, fucking hell, do we need this many people in there? Like, this is a lot. It's like doing a play. It was like, with a full load. Speaker 1 (12:26) And everyone's trying to give it, I'm breezy, I'm breezy, oh! Speaker 2 (12:30) Oh, God. Oh, we're just doing this group audition in front of 400 people. Okay, cool, cool, Speaker 1 (12:36) cool. And then 25,000 people on the Skype thing from LA. No pressure at all. Right, go on. Be funny now. Speaker 2 (12:43) Hello, it's Brett's neighbour Maureen here. I'm a big believer that the best clothes are the ones you don't have to think about. You put them on, they look good, job done. That's it, which is basically quince. Quince make really high quality wardrobe staples using premium materials without the prices that usually come with them. Their cashmere sweaters start at just $60 and everything is priced 50 to 80 % less than similar brands because they work directly with ethical factories and cut out the middlemen. Right now, I'm loving the 100 % European linen sleeveless swing dress. It's incredibly comfortable. You can throw it on to run around during the day, dress it up for dinner and somehow look like you've made an effort in both situations, which is really all I ask of clothing. And Quince isn't just about clothes. They do bedding, bath, kitchen essentials, furniture, all with the same focus on quality and price. Find your next four favourites at Quince. Download the Quince app for app-exclusive offers or go to quince.com slash brett. Get free shipping on your order and 365-day returns. Now available in Canada and the UK as well. That's q-u-i-n-c-e dot com slash b-r-e-t-t. Thanks! Oh, Hannah. Speaker 1 (13:45) What, darling? Speaker 2 (13:46) I've forgotten to tell you something. Speaker 1 (13:48) What? Oh, fuck. What? Speaker 2 (13:51) Oh, man, I should have told you this at the beginning, actually. Fuck, do you know when we were going through all the Wi-Fi and all that? business we were just like catching up i should have i genuinely should have said it and it's mad that i didn't uh i feel i feel like a donut i'll just have to say it i guess i'm gonna have to say i'm so sorry i should have genuinely i maybe should have emailed it to you uh you've you've died you've died i'm sorry what Speaker 1 (14:15) yeah Speaker 2 (14:16)