Table Manners with Jessie and Lennie Ware - Saoirse Ronan

Episode Date: November 20, 2024

We have Irish acting royalty joining us this week - and my new best friend - the fabulous Saoirse Ronan! We managed to grab lunch with Saoirse in the midst of promo for 2 incredible film projects, Steve McQueen’s Blitz & her very own The Outrun. Fresh from her viral appearance on Graham Norton, Saoirse told us all about growing up between NYC and Ireland, her iconic mum Monica, her love of Vegemite & Barry’s Tea, how she met her husband, being on film sets from a very young age and all about the joint love her family have for John Travolta. Plus, mum surprises us all this week with an epic version of the story of Skimbleshanks, who knew she was hiding that talent?! And who needs her on a new audiobook reading?? We absolutely adored having Saoirse join us, you really won’t want to miss either of the films she is currently starring in - The Outrun is available to buy & rent now, and Blitz will be released on Apple TV+ on 22nd November. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Twas the season of chaos and all through the house, not one person was stressing. Holla differently this year with DoorDash. Don't want to holla do the most? Holla don't. More festive, less frantic. Get deals for every occasion with DoorDash. Hello and welcome to Table Manners. I'm Jessie Ware and we're here in Clapham with my mum Lenny.

Hello Lenny. Hi Dolie. Oh it's a good one today. We have the fantastic Saoirse Ronan on. Now we're not sure whether that's actually how we pronounce her name. It is Saoirse. I have been calling her Saoirse Ronan for a long time. Okay right.

Saoirse Ronan. Okay we have Saoirse Ronan on a long time. Okay, right. Saucy Ronan. Okay, we have Saoirse Ronan on, who, we're recording this a few days after she basically went viral with a clip from Greyhound Autumn, which was incredibly profound and quite brilliant. And I'm not sure whether she's going to want to talk about it. I'm sure she's sick of it and it's only like day three. But Saoirse is coming on to talk about Stephen Queen's new film that she stars in called Blitz. And we've seen it.

And it's really beautiful. Fabulous. It also has some old friends from the podcast. Did you see old Haley Squires in there? Haley Squires was there. Being fabulous, making bombs. Yeah. But I mean, the cast is unbelievable.

Searsha plays a single mother from Stepney Green who has a beautiful young, what are you going to name? Who's dad's Paul Weller, that was a surprise. Oh yeah, Saoirse's dad's Paul Weller in it and he's really good at acting. He's really good, did you know he acted? No. But her accent.

Oh, she's so good. She's not Irish in that, is she? She's like Stepney and she was amazing. Stepney Green talks like that? Where's my bleeding son? She's like Stepney and she was amazing. Stepney Green talks like that. Where's my bleeding son? She was wonderful, but everything she's in is wonderful. Ladybird, little women, atonement. Mary's Queen of Scots.

Where she met her beautiful husband. Oh my god, Mum, you need to, when she comes on, you need to just get it out the way that you love Jack Loudon. I wonder what accent they speak to each other in because he's Scottish. Well probably Scottish and Irish. Scottish and Irish. We're so excited about this podcast. We're clutching our coffees because we did get back quite late last night from a half turn Escapade which of course we were together on because we're never not together. And can I just say that the hotel that we're in is together. And can I just say that the hotel

that we're in is absolutely our demographic. So I'd like to say hello to everyone that was in Tenerife who's listening because I tell you, when we walked down the stairs, which mum was complaining about because she said it was too big, the hotel was gone. She went, now I know that voice. Jessi, someone stopped me in Tenerife airport and I wasn't even talking. She said, you're the lady from the podcast. I live in France.

I listen to it all the time. Maybe we should talk about the fact that you probably were recognized on the easy jet flight back when you were complaining that the curry was going to take an hour. So you need to hold it down. Because she wouldn't move her bloody sandwiches.

Mum, you are becoming... You are out Diva-ing the biggest Diva. No, I'm actually becoming, I think, like the nan. Catherine Taye? Yeah. No, you're there. I'm there, I think I've got there already. You're surpassing her.

Yeah. What have you made? Gosh, well, I've been on the New York time. While we were away on holiday, I was a bit panicked because we only got back. I actually closed my eyes about two o'clock this morning and the Ocado man was here at eight so ordered it. So I've made chicken with apple and fennel because it was a bit autumnal. Yeah. I've done greens with white beans which taste and smell lovely.

I've done parmesan crusted potatoes. They smell really good. Which also smell garlic. I hope she doesn't mind garlic. I'm going to have to give a pepper mince after this. There's a lot of garlic. And then I've just got some plain green beans to go with it. But there's also, we're following a tip of one of your, of Mirasoda. Well, no, okay, so this is, right, so we have a wonderful episode coming up with the brilliant chef, Mirasoda, and she recommended a certain dessert to do, which is relaxed and wonderful and delicious.

And so we've kind of done a cheat for the dessert because we got back so late. Yeah, it'sney gelato which is some of the best ice cream pistachio and lemon and I don't know. Pistachio and lemon. Yeah some of that I've got some little biscuits to put in if she wants. So Mira's episode is is is wonderful by the way and she recommends. She puts pistachios on the top of the pistachio ice cream and she just says it's like justios on the top of the pistachio ice cream. And she just says it's like, just makes it... And I guess you could put edible flowers.

Did she get the edible flowers? Piss off. Okay. Sears-Scheronan coming up on Table Manners. First of all, we've got a lot in common because besides being Irish, obviously, obviously, and having that lovely maroon passport with the harp on. Are you jealous? Yeah, very. So jealous. We were in the airport last night and she went through and she went, feels good.

You just, I want to feel bad for you but I feel so smug when I'm leaving Jack and I'm like, I'll see you in 40 minutes while they have both the bags. Yeah I know it's so exciting. So I listened to you on Graham Norton and I heard that your mum has seen Saturday Night Fever 27 times I think I've done maybe 27 or 28 in the cinema I've never met someone else because I loved it so much and I love John Somock I just love John Travolta so much she loves him so much and genuinely that wasn't just like an anecdote that I came over she was so excited to be there He's the only person she wanted to see. George Clooney was like an afterthought. George Clooney being on her dress she was like you're keeping me from

John I need to get to John. How was John's face at that point? It was free. Had work? Yeah. Okay. Yeah. Yeah. But he's still John. But he's still John. But it was like, I think from like Pulp Fiction John onwards, it's not the same John that I grew up with. Because like I was obsessed with Grease. Oh yeah. Oh everyone was. Yeah. And I used to... Was it your soundtrack on holiday? Going on holiday? It kind of always is my soundtrack. And actually when we did Mary Queen of Scots years ago, which is where Jack and I met... That's the other thing I love. Okay, we'll get on to that.

We, Grease suddenly became our soundtrack. I don't know why, but we used to listen to that. To you and Jack. No, no, no, not to me and Jack, to me and the girls. Oh, I was going to think of you and Jack. You didn't sound lovely. No, no, me and the girls did it. So like, so Mary Queen of Scots historically had these four handmaids

who were also called Mary and they're famously. Pimp ladies. Literally, and they're famously known as the Four Marys and we're all still very, very close. We're really good friends. And Grease, I don't know how, but someone just played it one day and so we would do these epic performances

like weekly, I would say. So yeah, so I love Grease, but I used to watch it every night. Did Jack ever get involved? No, he wasn't really, we kept that very separate. But is this how you met? You met on that? You met on the set?

We had met, we had actually met years before, just because we have a lot of friends in common. But did you fall in love on set? Yes. So was that part? Well actually, we didn't fall in love on set, but it was yeah it was around it was around now it is utterly gorgeous he's gorgeous he is

gorgeous yeah he is but now I'm just having this imagination going nah tell me no and you're just there being like oh my god it's him no I think if he had done that it probably would not have been the way it have fancied him, no. The way it's gone. No, it was me and it was all my girls. And we had like the biggest romance. Cause I had one of my best friends, Eileen O'Higgins, who I'd met on Brooklyn a few years before that,

who played my best friend, Nancy. Are you playing in the sequel? I've just finished Long Island. Hope's, I hope so. Oh my God. I don't know. I don't know. But hold on, is it the same story? Yes, well then of course you're bloody doing it. I mean I would be raging if they got someone else to do it.

I would be raging. Unless it was like Jesse Buckley. If it wasn't Jesse Buckley I'd be absolutely raging. Have you read the new one, Long Island? Yeah, I got an early copy. But he leaves it open at the end as well. Stop, enough, don't spoil. Yeah, don't say too much. I won't say too much.

But I will say, without giving anything away, it is giving the audience of Brooklyn what they wanted the first time round. Okay. I'm going to... Saoirse is stroking Prince the cat. You have a dog called Stella. I do, yeah. Tell me about your dog.

What sort of dog, yeah? So Stella is a petite basset griffon von Dion. Sorry. What? Jesus. It's a French brand. French brand. How did you come across this dog?

Because I think it was about a year before lockdown when the world was still as it was before. Crufts was on and I watch Crufts every single year and Petit Passet, a PBGV is what they're called. A PBGV? PBGV won Crofts, and I saw the dog, and I was like, that's the dog I want. I want a winner. And I want a dog that has long, sort of scruffy ears,

because that was sort of Jack's criteria. He needed a dog that had ears that he could tie on above. Okay, show me the ears, come on, show me the dog. She's so lovely. And she's so long and blonde, and we're so long and blonde. Long and blonde. So she's definitely your dog.

Oh, she's definitely our dog. This is Stella. Stella's the blonde. A PBGV, or is it? PBGV, yeah. Let me see you, darling. Oh no, she's really, that's. Let me see.

And she looks really sad, but she's not. She's very, inside she's dancing, yeah. She's very intent, yeah. Oh me see darling. She looks really sad but she's not. Inside she's dancing. Oh my god she is gorgeous. So does she travel backwards and forwards to LA? No she doesn't it's too far for her to go and also I'm not there enough I'll be there for like a week or two at a time. So is your home permanently London? Yes it kind of as permanently as one can live in London if you're not actually from London. So like, you know, I'm Irish as you know, Jack Scottish. So we have our bases there,

but we're mainly in London. Where does your mum live still? She lives in Dublin. Yeah. Let's talk about your mum and home and food memories from your childhood. What's a big food memory from your childhood? And who was around the dinner table with you? Who was around the dinner table?

So we used to, or Mam used to take care of my best friend, Christopher, who is the son of my dad's best friend Chris. And they had grown up together from the age of like five in Crumlin in Dublin. And then we are well, mom and dad moved to New York. They had me over there. We then moved back to Ireland. They moved there because that's where the work was. They were like, they did.

They so dad worked in construction for a little bit. Mam was a cleaner and then she became a nanny and she used to take me to work with her. So when I was about three, that's when we moved back home. But they'd been there for about 12 years, all in all. And then we moved back to Dublin for probably about six months but it was so expensive at that stage because the Celtic Tiger had happened. So there was this, basically there was a huge recession in the 80s and 90s which made people leave.

And there were so many people that, you know, didn't finish their third level education. And, you know, it was still very much like a working class country. And so they just went where the work was and then when they came back Ireland was sort of being transformed into this like modern European country. My dad would say modern. Modern! That's what my mum says. At a certain point I was like I don't think that's how you're supposed to say that. Modern and patron and film. What's a patron? A film and Patron. And Patron. And film. What's Patron? And a film.

Patron. Oh, a patron, yeah. A patron. And would you say, my mom always says Chimley, for chimney. Yeah. Chimley. Yeah. I like it.

I'm sure. Yeah, it's very weird. I mean, it's confusing. So it's just you and Christopher. So yeah, so Chris, so I'm an only child, but Christopher, it's weird because I never had siblings. I wish that I never had siblings, I wish that I had had siblings but my mom always took care of other people's kids so I was sort of brought up with other kids anyway which I think was kind of the

best of both worlds and when we moved back to Dublin we eventually moved to the countryside. Dad's friend Chris and his wife Bernie followed. Christopher was like two and a half years younger than me and Bernie went back to work. And so my mom, nannied him basically. So he grew up with me. And so every single meal time we were together after school. And usually mom would make, I mean, even just the smells that are here,

it's like so familiar to me. The chicken and the spuds and the garlic and the onions and all of that. So Mam used to do more traditional dishes like Irish Caudal and... Do you know what Irish Caudal is Lenny? No. So codal, codal is basically like a stew

and you can make it, I think you can make it with a beef stock but she always made it with a vegetable stock or a chicken stock and she just throw everything into it so like sausages, rashers, onions, celery, barley, carrots, spuds, like everything so you were getting so much so much of that nutrients that you needed but it was all in one meal. And that's the way Irish people do cabbage with bacon or ham. They should do cabbage and bacon for Easter. And you liked that?

Because I can imagine giving that to my kids and them being like, Ma, I'm not eating it. Did you enjoy the kind of homely cooking? You know what? I think at the minute I haven't been able to cook a home cooked meal in weeks and I love to cook so much and it's made me so sad. And I got home last week after being away for so long and I was like, I just need to cook a roast for us. And it was just the two of us. And I made a roast, all the trimmings, the whole thing. And it was like the most comforting thing

to have all the food that I grew up with. So this is perfect. What's your favourite roast? Chicken or beef? I don't love beef. Jack, I don't because I like cows and also I get a tummy ache when I have beef. Thank god I've done chicken. No, chicken's perfect. But I would have had beef, like I would have eaten beef as well. Just shat yourself for the rest of the day. Yeah exactly. I think you're right. But yeah, so we grew up where, I don't know, we were in a household where food was just always

really important and mam was a great cook. My dad is an excellent cook actually. I feel like that's something that he probably should have gone into. Really? What was his best dish that you'd have? He would cook, I mean, he was one of those people where he would just like open up the fridge and he'd pull out anything and make something delicious out of it. So there was

never like a specific recipe but he would just flavour things in a really delicious way and he'd cook a lot of Asian food and you know. Because I was in New York for the first three years of my life, I was actually exposed to so many different cuisines anyway. So I always had a taste for different things. I've always loved really, really spicy food. Are you working on a film now? No, but-

That's good, you're having a rest. No, I'm not, I'm doing press. That's more exhausting. Which brings me on to what happened on Friday. Yeah. And you now have become viral, which is probably what you did not intend to happen. No.

When you're talking about a film. Good for you saying it. For people that don't know about this, Cisha was on Graham Norton and amongst brilliant people, Denzel Washington, Paul Muskell and Eddie Redmayne. They're all having a joke about Eddie's training. The Dev Jackal, yeah. Dev Jackal, and they're talking about a phone,

and you basically deliver, talking about using a phone in self-defense, and you deliver this incredibly concise and powerful, less than 10 words, Marie. Have you read the Marie and a Hyde article on it? Is that the one? In The Guardian. Yeah.

Babe, it's brilliant. Jack gave it to me this morning because I'm very conscious not to become too aware of what's being talked about. But she's brilliant anyway. She's amazing and I've read a few of her bits before and she's incredible and I think she put it, in a way she put it better than I ever could. I mean I guess it's, I've found it interesting to become aware of my own reaction to all this over the last few days because I even think I had a moment being honest where I felt bad. I was like oh god should I not because there was so much awkward yeah and then I thought no no mustn't do that because then you're sort of falling into that trap again. But I, I guess because that's the kind of conversation that I would have with my

female friends and my male friends, one of which being Paul Mescal, like he is one of our dear friends and like we'll make comments like that all the time at the dinner table. And I'm so lucky that, that you know we live in a very liberal sort of household and we have a lot of artists and actors and musicians and stuff around us so the women in my life are very vocal about their experience and my mam is as well to be honest a lot of the women a lot of these you know incredible strong Irish women from home they'll be the first one to tell you like this is what the experience was like for us. So I've never really shied away from that. Same with my mother-in-law. I've never shied away from that. But I have definitely found over the

last few years, post Sarah Everard's murder, that there's been more of an impetus, I think, for women to go out of their way to grab the men that they're close to and be like, do you know that this is what runs through our head every day? Like 90% of the time, subconsciously. And I remember myself and my mother-in-law having a conversation with Jack and his brother after that happened. And we said, you know that like when we get into an elevator, if a guy comes in and it's just us in the lift and the doors close, the thought will come into our head

that we could be attacked. Like categorically that is what will happen. That is our reality. And I think even for us, it's so sort of repressed and normalized. So in a way, even though I didn't expect this sort of reaction, I am incredibly refreshed and proud,

actually, that we're all talking about it. And I think we can do it in like a calm manner. I don't think the lads, like we have to keep it in context, the lads didn't hear my comment and then say, sure, what are you talking about? They didn't. They were very humbled. They were. And there was kind of an awkwardness about it but they were... it was funny and that's what Marina said. She said these are the nice guys in showbiz. They're brilliant. They're wonderful, brilliant actors. Yeah. And so it was quite an interesting dynamic that happened. It was. I wonder what it was like when you finished. Did anyone bring it up again after? Was it like, sorry babes? Or was it... This is the mad thing. Have you been on Graham Norton? I have and it's like when you finished. Did anyone bring it up again after? Or was it like, sorry babes, or was it? This is the mad thing.

Have you been on Graham Norton? I have, and it's such a, like, it's just so snappy and fast and it's kind of bonkers. Yeah, it's kind of bonkers. And also the show, you know, most of the show is there, but it is edited. And I actually came away from filming it on Thursday night when you do. And Paul and I went for a drink afterwards. And I remember being so from filming it on Thursday night when you do and Paul and I

went for a drink afterwards and I remember being so in my head about it and I was like I thought I was shite on that tonight and I don't think I did a good job and like you were amazing but I just got really in my head afterwards and I forgot all about it, I forgot about anything that had ever been said, nobody made a comment about that at all because it was sort of part of like a much wider conversation. And then, I don't know, maybe two days later, once it had aired, and I was really anxious about it airing because I was like, I'm gonna come across so badly.

I had a big spot on my face and I was like- Oh, I thought you looked gorgeous. You looked so glowy. I was like, I can see the spot on my cheek. But so that's all, stupidly, that's all I was thinking about. And then my best mate said, everyone's contacting me about the phone comment.

I was thinking the phone comment, what's she on about? And it was only when she sent me that little clip that I realized that they'd obviously kept it in because I didn't know what they'd included in the edit. So yeah, it's, I'm very so yeah it's I'm very grateful for I'm very grateful to for one comment that I've made to have started a conversation that absolutely needs to be had you know. Are we ready to eat? Yeah definitely. The spuds. The spuds do look good they've got a bit of parmesan on them. Are you happy? Okay good. Oh good mum they look great. They look great. Is that rosemary you've got on them?

What is that? Little bits. So Blitz watched it and thought you were magnificent, thought the whole cast was magnificent. How was it working with Stephen Queen? It was amazing. I mean, I'm a huge fan of his and that was the reason why I wanted to do the film

in the first place. And I also knew that if he was going to make a movie set during the Second World War, it was most likely going to have quite a fresh take on that story. I think that, like, for me as a, you know, as a female actor, most of the time when war epics or war scripts will come into your inbox, you're usually on the sideline you know you're not really in the in the sort of thick of things and I like to be in the thick of things and so I was interested to hear what his plan was for

it and when he told me that he wanted the central relationship between to be between a child and his mother. That's what made me really excited about it. You know, obviously you guys are really close as well. I just love that relationship between a child and their mother. And it's been so important to me and so formative to me. And to get to kind of, I don't know,

embody that on screen is so nice. He was a beautiful thing, he was brilliant. He is brilliant and he was nine when we started it. He'd never made anything before. Wow. And he just, yeah, and he just snapped right into it. He was amazing. And we're really close as well.

And I read about, you know, because obviously, how old are you when you did Atonement? Twelve. But I was nine when I started. And you were quite protective of him, making sure that you were checking in with him because of being such a young star. Yeah, I was always checking in with him.

I am really protective over him, hopefully not in an annoying way. But I'm also very conscious of the experience that his parents might be having during all this because I was always very sensitive to the fact that, you know, I would audition for things when I was a kid. And I remember casting agents and producers and directors would always refer to my mom as, oh, is this mom?

And I'd always go, this is Monica, this is her name. And I always had a real thing about that. And I feel like when a parent is on set with their kid, they're sort of overlooked a lot. Mam never was because she wouldn't have let that happen. Okay. And Elliot had a chaperone most of the time, but I always wanted to make sure that like if his mam and dad wanted to speak to me or if there was anything that like I could implement on set that would make him feel safer and happier and like he was having more fun then I would absolutely do that because at the end of the day it's his movie and we were there to support him so yeah I love him.

The accent also in Blitz was unreal. I know you're an accent! Do you think it was alright? Babe! It was so good! It was so good. I was shocked. Thanks. Where was so good. I was shocked. Thanks.

Where's my bleeding son? I know. Yeah, okay, so you didn't think that was too strong. Cause you don't ever wanna take the piss, do you know what I mean? No, it's Stephanie. The top thing is. I did love the style, you look so pretty right now.

That's Jacqueline Duren, the costume designer. Did you keep any of those numbers? No, cause they're all, they have to go into storage afterwards, like we did. Did you have to wear a wig? Pickups and stuff. Yeah like the best wig ever. Wigs cost so much money like if you want a really good wig it could cost you like 15 grand and my wig I think was that amount of money. It fucking looked it. It looked gorgeous. You could see every single bit of it. But what I was so surprised about was Paul Weller. I thought he looks like Paul Weller. And then I looked at stuff and it was him. Elliot said to me last night we were doing a Q&A

and my hair was straightened and he looked at me in the middle of the Q&A and he was like you really look like Paul Weller right now. You know? But yeah, he was lovely and very humble actually. He just like, he knew that, you know, this wasn't his kind of arena and he was so open to learn and about it. And he's also like the real McCoy as well. So I think for us to have him and Hailey Squires, that made such a big difference.

But the accent that we had to do, it's not the London accent that you would hear nowadays. It's still gonna be old fashioned. So that was the tough thing because I've grown up hearing modern day, you know, Cockney accents. Let's talk about your mom sounds fantastic. Monica sounds fantastic. She's great

She's fucking great. Does she get over a lot to London? She like London? She doesn't get over. Are you based in London? Yeah. Yeah she doesn't get over as much as She should probably but she has a dog called Fran and Fran was sort of like my replacement when I left So she's like but Fran needs me and I'm like my replacement when I left. So she's like but Fran needs me and I'm like but I'm your child. You birthed me. So she doesn't get over as often as she should and also she's working now and she's kind of she's been working with a property developer in Dublin. Wow. And she

does some other charity work as well, which is really amazing. And she does all of that voluntarily. Yeah, she's amazing. So I get back and forth as much as I can. I read that you were partly homeschooled. Mm. By Monica.

Not by man, by a toot. Okay. Yeah. Was that because you were already in the world of acting? And so it kind of made it easier? Yeah, I guess just the sort of to-ing and fro-ing that happens when you're a child actor meant that it was supposed to be more seamless. I don't know if it was. I would say it's the one aspect of being a child actor that I didn't love.

I didn't like that I wasn't part of that sort of social setting. How did the acting start? So it started because my dad, who was working in a bar at the time in New York, he got discovered by a bunch of actors from the Irish Rep in New York. So he became an actor, absolutely had no plans to do that. And he hadn't trained or anything, but that's what happened to him. And so eventually the work took him back to Ireland

and they needed a kid for this short movie that he was doing when we went back to Dublin. And so he was like, well, I've got one right here. How old were you? I was maybe I don't know six seven. And that's when you were like I like this? Yeah I knew I liked it straight away but I never got whenever I'd hear about kids being like aware of like what their career was gonna be. I was so, I think I was a really worldly kid but I wasn't, but I was still very innocent you know and I was raised in the country and like was very much a

child. So this was just a thing that I really liked to do straight away and then I did a couple of Irish TV series and the cast and agents from one of those shows cast me in my first film which was an Amy Heckerling movie and who did Look Who's Talking and Clueless and things like that. What was it called? It was a bit of a mouthful. It was called, I Could Never Be Your Woman, which is the name of the song, I think. I could never be your do, do, do, do. Which I think do a sample. Wow.

So yeah, so that was my first movie and I was Michelle Pfeiffer's daughter and Paul Rode was in it. Oh my god, I was dreaming. And Graham Norton was in it. Graham Norton had like this weird cameo in it and I've said it to him since I'm like, do you remember that you like said yes to that?

Oh my God, that's so funny. So that was my first thing and then I did another film and then I did Atonement, that was my third movie. And that's when I loved it. I mean, you had Christopher as like your friend and kind of brother. But I'm interested with how friendships were made was it a lot on set yeah I mean it was how that's kind of affected you it I don't think it

affects me in a negative way now I don't think it's ever affected me in a negative way but there was definitely a period in my teens where I wasn't in a traditional schooling environment. I wasn't around a lot of young people. And it was hard to make friends. So I didn't have a lot of mates from the age of like 14 to 18, I would say. And the friends that I did have before that, they continued on into secondary school and they got boyfriends and girlfriends and kind of did their own thing. And I did feel a little bit like I,

I don't know, I just wasn't, I wasn't a part of that next stage as a kid. So Christopher was my constant. And I made one really great friend on a film called City of Ember when I was about 13, which was in Belfast and Lucy and she's still my best friend to this day. How many films have you made? I don't know. That's like us. No, but I mean, it's vast. Filmography, as they call it on Wikipedia.

I don't know, but I've been doing it for like 20 years. 20 years. Crazy. I don't know, but I've been doing it for like 20 years. 20 years. Crazy. I love it. I love it, but like, I'm sure it's the same for you with your music, like, your relationship to the work changes. It goes from being sort of like fantasy-like

and like everything about it is so perfect to becoming more complicated and then you sort of being aware of your skillset and the industry side of it and how you want to use that to make the work that you want to do and that's kind of where I'm at now I feel very I do feel quite empowered with where I'm at now I feel very much in my Saturn return I would say I love that'm very aware of that right now. So the Out Run.

Yeah. Let's talk about it because I feel like that is you. That's what I wanna talk about. Everyone who's seen it loved it. I haven't seen it yet. I'd love yous to see it. It's set. I definitely will. Have you been to Orkney?

No. You guys been to the Orkney Islands? Had you heard of it before? No. So we had never been, Jack had been once years ago ago and he got this book, which was written by Amy Lippschott and that's where she's from. And he hadn't read it when he made the first trip out there. And then we were in lockdown and you know, you're going through a book like a week and he read it and as soon as he finished it he was like this is the next book you have to

we have to adapt and you have to play this role. And so I read it and I'd like I'd never I'd never read anything like that before the way the sort of like poetry was also still being like very grounded in reality I loved all that. And we just wanted to make something about Scotland. And we wanted to make something that was his Scotland, that was modern Scotland, that wasn't someone else's take on that, which is similar to Ireland. What's the premise of the film?

Okay, yes. For people that don't know. So the outrun, it's based on a memoir by Amy Liptrop, and it is about her tackling her alcoholism. So her kind of unhealthy relationship with the substance spirals and becomes uncontrollable when she moves from the Orkney Islands down to London. And over the sort of few years that she's there, she loses kind of everyone and everything that's dear to her until she eventually has to put herself into rehab.

And once she's gone through that process, she unwillingly moves back to Orkney because she has no money, she has no job, she has no partner, she has nothing. And really it's about the recovery process, the sort of healing after the initial healing. And she eventually finds herself in a tiny, tiny little island called Papua or Papua Estre. And it's really the natural world and the small community that sort of heals her and her sort of like finding community while still being in isolation. So it felt very relevant to now because we've all kind of had to reevaluate what our relationship is with isolation and what it is with the people in our life and who we want in our life and how we want to

spend our time. So it's really kind of just that. And in a way it's, I don't want to say it's a quiet story, but like it's, it's a journey that everyone goes through, whether they've struggled with addiction or not. So yeah, I'm very proud of it. I'm so, I'm honestly, I'm like so proud of the reaction that we've gotten from people, because I think even if you haven't suffered from

alcoholism yourself or another form of addiction like a loved one has absolutely gone through that. Yeah. I can't wait to see it and I think that I'm excited about you and Jack doing your... this was Scotland and then you're going to take on Ireland. I have no doubt about this. Absolutely, that's the plan. It was the season of chaos and all through the house not one person was stressing Holla differently this year with door dash don't want to holla do the most holla don't more festive less frantic Get deals for every occasion with door dash

When did you last gone holiday you're so busy Well, honey, We went to our honeymoon. We did a little mini moon in Italy which was nice. What else have we done? We like to do rail travel. Oh my god. We travel by... Sorry, sorry. Are you 60 years old? No, we're not trainspotters. Jack is obsessed with trains. He doesn't know anything about trains, but he loves like yesteryear. Do you own them? Oh.

Yeah, he loves anything like sentimental from the past. And we've done the Orient Express, which is very fancy. No, but was it fab? It was amazing. Yeah. And then we also did this rail trip around Europe, where we, I think we flew into Berlin,

then we went to Vienna, then we went to Milan. That sounds fab. Then we went to Milan then we went to Venice. You had your gap year finally. Finally! I really have my YouTube. Did you sleep on the train? On the train on the Orient Express. You see he's Scottish he's had all these coming down to London on the sleeper. He loves the train. Have you slept on it? Skimble chance the railway cat it's a whistle down the line, it's 11.39 and the night mail's ready to depart saying, skimble, where is skimble? Why the fuck do you think? We've got to get out the thimble. We must find him or the train can't park. All the guards and all the porters and the station

whilst the daughters are searching high and low saying, skimble, where is skimble? We must find him, very nimble. The night train just can't go and he tuts everyone up in bed. He's in charge of the train at night. Sorry, why have you never done that to my children? My eldest is a shame. She's doing it to me, Jessie. I'll do it later. It's for me.

I'll do it. It's about the night train. Oh, Libby. And he's a very- Get him going over. This is like your Shakespeare monologue. This is like what Denzel did on Graham the other day. This is a bad person. I'm just singing about the night train.

It's not not, Jlen. That was very, it also just didn't stop. It just kept going. No, I loved it. It just kept going. I could do more. No, I'm not. It's like when we had, who do we have on?

We had Larry Lam on. Oh, what did he do? Larry Lam. He did, he did the Albert and the Lion. Oh, that was, I thought it reminded you of did! He did! The Albert and the Lion. I thought it reminded you of something. It's about when they take him to Blackpool, his parents and the lion eats the little boy. Why are they always so tragic?

It's horrible. I wanted to know, because you were saying about how you long to have a roast and you have to cook. Are you prone to homesickness? Because you've been doing this so long and you travel and I'm sure you absolutely get the most out of when you're on a location. I mean, I know that you're probably working all the time, but do you like the travel aspect of the jobs? And have you ever said yes to a job

because it's been like, well, that's gonna be in Brazil, I'm quite fancy that. Yeah, I think that it's- Obviously the project has to make sense, don't I I? Yeah the project obviously has to come first. I think that a lot has changed over the last few years in terms of how much I value my home life. Yes. Because of who is in it now. Yes. And because I have a little gorgeous angel to look out for Stella. Jack. No, Stella. Even when I'm away, I'm like,

can I just talk to the dog? You first talked to the dog. I've started doing that because she does actually recognize my voice. So I do. But I would say I've just become very used to traveling over the years and I'm very good. Like every musician and actor is

at like setting up a home anywhere, really. I think once Jack is with me, that makes it a lot easier. But every few months, I'll just get like a bout of homesickness for Ireland specifically and Scotland now a little bit too. Because that's my second home now, I'd call that my second home. So I really, really miss those two places

after a few months. There's just something about the feeling of it that I miss. What do you take with you? What are your kind of comforts whilst you're away? Do you have like I always want Marmite so I'll always take Marmite with me so is there anything like that that you'll take with you? I love I love Vegemite. I like it too. I'm a Vegemite girl. Where do you get yours from? I, well I only got- It gets on a card. You can't get Vegemite on a card.

I don't think you can. No you can't, Mum. But you can get it online. I think you can get it on Amazon. You can get it on Amazon. Okay, good job. You can because I was in Australia two years ago. Going over there, I didn't like Marmite or Vegemite,

and then I tried Vegemite on toast with mashed avocado. And I was like, I'm in. Told my mom, by the time I'd come back, there was like 10 bottles of Vegemite. She was like, I did it. I did a sort of bulk buy on Amazon. Yeah. So now I'm obsessed with that.

I do, I actually have Marmite graze snacks. You know those graze snacks? Oh yeah, I love them. Yeah. Always bring those away with me. Oh yeah, I love them. Yeah. Always bring those away with me. Tea, I do bring away with me. Which is your tea? Barry's tea.

Barley's? Barry's. Barry's Irish. Oh, that's Irish, isn't it? Barry's Irish tea or Yorkshire tea, Yorkshire gold. You like strong tea? Yeah. I mean, if you're gonna do it, then do it.

Do you drink it with the tea bag in sometimes? No. Yeah, that's what my niece does. No, that's weird. I think it's not completely weird. But also, it means the experience is changing every minute. It's huge and huge, yeah, but she likes all that. My Auntie Margaret does this thing, and I don't get it.

She's always done it where she'll make the tea, she'll put it in the pot, she puts the pot on the hob. Loose tea or tea bag? Tea bags. Yeah. Puts pot on the hob. Loose tea or tea bags? Tea bags. Yeah. Puts it on the hob and just. To boil it up again? Just lets it stew for like hours.

Ooh. And it tastes so odd, but she's always done it. It's always been this thing that I've sort of associated with her. So she'll pour you a cup out about an hour later. Yeah. It's still hot, but it's still, yeah. Oh wow. It's quite like thick in taste

can you say to Auntie Margaret could you say I'll just make my own no I'm just gonna hear the sound no I wouldn't do that and whilst we clear away start thinking about your last supper we have a starter a, a main, a pud, a drink of choice. We've been a bit slack on the pudding. Oh don't worry. We've got something but I need to check. I'm more of a savoury person anyway. She hasn't messed it up. They're quite crispy aren't they? You know whenever my man's making roast for me she'll always bring the dish over and she's like pick out your roast buds so I always pick them out. It's a very personal experience. I think they probably need a bit more salt. No they don't they're perfect. Do you ever put honey on your spuds?

Oh my god no. Game changer. Because it crisps them up. At what point? Like 20 minutes before the end. But are they very sweet? No, you just put a tiny drizzle. Sess, you're a good cook, aren't you? Yeah. Have you ever done the Marmite in the spuds? No. Maybe Marmite and honey, that could be like Oh my God, I'm gonna throw up.

I think that could work. I think that would be amazing. These are like, did you cook these in butter? Yeah. They're so nice. That's what Jamie Oliver does. Does he? Yeah.

Their butter, lots of garlic and parmesan. Do you want another cup of tea? No, I'm fine with these things. Oh my God, she's gonna eat them. It's forget the ice cream, she's gonna have a bowl of so much. I really don't need a dessert. You don't need dessert.

Okay, so, well, should we just chat then? Are you sure you don't want a bowl of ice cream? No, I'm really, I'm happy. Okay, great, we're just gonna do that. I'm happy to chat. Can I just move these away? That was so nice, thank you. Such a pleasure darling.

So starter. So for my starter, I want to have this dish that I had tried for the first time in a restaurant in Aviemore of all places, which is in the Scottish Highlands a few years ago when we were doing Mary Queen of Scots. And it's baked goat's cheese with pine nuts. And I think rosemary and lavender oil.

Ooh. Really nice, bit of like crostini or something like that. I'm just gonna say the first thing that comes into my head because it needs to be like distinctive. So I'm gonna do that for my starter. Okay. What was the name of this restaurant? Do you remember?

It's called, I think it's called the Ship Inn or the- Was it a pub? It's like a pub restaurant. But it was, okay, so people- Jack has definitely cast his Scottish spell, hasn't he? The Bridge Inn, yeah, I'm obsessed with Scottish. The Bridge Inn, maybe, something like that.

We'll find out. You'll find it. Does he wear a kilt? What, every day? Yeah. Yeah. Did he wear one on the wedding? Yeah. Oh my goodness.

Did he wear underwear? Jessica! I don't know, don't they wear, don't they get wet? I think that's a myth. I don't need to know, I think that. Oh really, okay. But also, it's thick wool, so like, it's hot. It would itch as well.

It needs some air. Exactly. Yeah, but It would itch as well. It itches. It wants some air. Exactly. Yeah but it would itch your bits. But when the midges are out because the midges are so bad all the boys got like bitten to fuck. Like the next day they have. Actually probably the worst thing about Scotland in the summer it's so beautiful but there are clouds of midges and they can't contain them and it's just when you want to sit out in the evening and be in the sun it's warm and lovely. I need to get some Scotland recommendations. I need to take my kids. My friends are just in the mull at the moment. We went to Ely and Sianagh recently which is incredible. It's this tiny, tiny island off the coast of the mainland.

Skye is incredible. Mock is great. Like all the Western Isles are amazing. I had a boyfriend on the Isle of Arran. That's so hot. It was... Well, you've got your own boyfriend. He's not from Arran.

He's from the mainland. He's from the Lowlands. He's from the Borders, yeah. But he's. The lowlands. He's from the borders, yeah. But he's proud of his Scottishness. Yes, couldn't be more proud. Okay, so the main. So my main, okay. So the first thing that's come into my head,

because it just, this is a dish that I like dream about. And anyone that I've introduced to it also like has fantasies about this meal. It's penne a la vodka. A la zhizizid hadid. Yeah and it was originated in this place called Allavecchia Battola which is this old little inn in Florence and it's just outside of the sort of central bit of Florence and it's not touristy at all and I was sent there by someone who studied there years ago and as soon as I tried it it was like you know like when people describe when they're about to die and everything just sort of like becomes

very sort of peaceful and calm that's what it's like when you have Penne a la vodka everything just falls into place remember the name of the place Jessie because I'll look up so that's your main so that's gonna have any Penne Allo vodka. Everything just falls into place. Remember the name of the place, Jessie, because I'll look up. So that's your main. Are you going to have any sides with that? You're not fast. I'm going to have some delicious French bread,

but also since they don't have to go together, I'd also love some papadums. Dips with, and the dips? Separate from the Penne Allo. Mango chutney. With mango chutney and the raita. Minty raita. Yeah.

Like the properties that they give them. And the pickles. The lime pickles. Yeah. Okay, gorgeous. So that's just a separate thing. That's just like a snack. You can have that as a snack.

A drink of choice, are you gonna have a drink? What drink would you have? A cup of tea? I had, no, I wouldn't have a cup of tea with food. I would have, I did have this delicious Sicilian chilled red the other day and I can't remember. We didn't offer you a drink. Oh no, I'm happy not drinking at the minute but I did have a lovely chilled red the other

day which I really liked so maybe. Jessie likes chilled red and I don't like chilled red. I think me and you are going to go out for dinner. I am one of the two friends. We am. What are the chilled reds? We're gonna get the pepperoni vodka. Why do people have a thing against chilled red and orange wine? No, Jessie doesn't.

I can't do orange. I hate it. Why? Makes me cry. Too cidery. Makes me, or Pet Nap. That bit farmer. That's my worst.

No, I love Pet Nap. I hate Pet Nap. Oh babe, it's like fizzy juice. Natural fizzy. Oh, it's fab. No. Is it alcoholic? Yes. It's kinda, it was fun. No. Is it alcoholic? Yes.

It's kind of, it was fun. I love it. We can give you one of Gillian Anderson's Pep You Up drinks. Take with you. Oh, that's what that is. And then alcoholics. Yeah, then non-alcoholic.

That's not, that's not Pep Nat. No, Pep You Up. Anyway, we'll give you one. They're actually very nice. So that's what I'd like for my drink. Okay, and then pudding. You're not much of a pudding person. I'm not really-

You say clutching the bowl of spuds. Yeah, I probably have a bowl of spuds. Okay, please can you tell me a nostalgic taste that can transport you somewhere that you're sad. Nostalgic taste. My mom, when I was a kid, you know what's so funny, can I just say, I've gone through a period in the last few years, as I'm sure you and your sister

have as well, where you're like, ma'am, I need my space, which I never had before. I was always very codependent on my ma'am. And I've had a bit of space in the last while. We're still there, yeah. But you know what's so interesting? In the last few months, I've so gone back to that place of just wanting to talk about her all the time,

which I'm so happy to be back there. Anyway, ma'am used to cook mashed potatoes and she used to mix it with broccoli and loads of butter. And she'd mash it up like when I was a kid, when I was a toddler. And it's like the most comforting thing. And I haven't had it in years, but I think if I had that, that would just transport me back to being a baby.

Do you add cheese to that or not? I might don't Jesse cuz your son won't eat it I think that's how you I we need my children. He doesn't he likes melted cheese, but he doesn't like it's very That's okay that he doesn't like cheese It is okay. I need to accept that no you don't accept anything No, I don't you don't I think you need to accept that cuz it's not like it's that he won't eat his vegetables. Do you have one utensil or one thing in your kitchen that you couldn't live without or an ingredient you couldn't live without? Garlic. Garlic. Always garlic. Well you came to the right place today because it's everywhere. Couldn't live without garlic. Utensil?

What could I not do without? Probably like the picky up thing. Oh, what, the tongs? Yeah, probably a tong. What are you tonging? Well, when I baste my roast potatoes, She tongs, she turns them over. I use a tong to turn them over. Cause they're covered in- It's quite methodical.

Yeah, cause they're covered in flour and stuff. You don't just go ah, ah? No, no, no, no, no. because they're covered in flower and stuff. You know, it's just going to... No, no, no, no, no. And do you sing karaoke? Yeah, but I'm afraid to do it on my own. Because I get really nervous singing in front of people. So nervous. So I always have to get up with people.

Do you do a duet with Jack? You know what I've tried to get Jack to do with me and he still won't do it. Which one? Throughout lockdown I was like, come on, it's just us, let's do it. Do you remember Shallow from? Harmony!

Yeah. So I'm like, do Bradley and he won't do it? I'm like, I'll be Gaga, you do Bradley. Can he sing? Yeah, he can sing. He has like the voice of an angel. He's a great voice. So I think, so when in Blitz, when you're singing,

your character sings in the workroom, and it's so charming because the voice breaks and she's so nervous because she's a working class girl that's been asked to sing on the radio live. And were you absolutely terrified? Yeah, I was terrified. I was so nervous and there were other scenes as well that we had where I would sing

that didn't make it into the film. There was like, there's so much that we shot that didn't make it into the movie in the end because that's, you know, it happened with the outrun as well. But it really, I have so much respect for you guys. I did anyway, but especially since going through that experience and getting to a point where you're like, yeah, I think I sound really good.

And then you hear yourself back and you're like, it's fine, but it's like not the way you sound. It's not the way Adele sounds. It's not the way Barbara sounds. Like there is skill, but then there's like a gift from God that brilliant singers like yourself I I think the same with acting for me that sounds it seems like the most terrifying thing in the world Well, so there you go. Well, I guess we're both doing the right job. That's just I can't wait to hear more

I I can't wait to hear more singing. I want to do more. I really want to do more I want to do more like sort of modern stuff. It's not an album. No, God no, no, I don't have the voice for that, but I would love Greta Gerwig to write us a musical. And for me to be in it. Yes. Me and Timothy. Yes. I think that would be fun.

You and Timothy. It's been such a pleasure having you on. It was amazing. Please give your husband Lenny and my regards. And also just good luck with, well, I mean you don't need any luck you're fantastic this is wonderful I can't wait to see the outrun thank you so much for being on such a pleasure to meet you this is

so nice and I hope the rest of the promo run is okay it won't be as good as this it will always have this will always have this the garlic as well with a bit of honey next time. Yes! Mum, I've just got my new friend. I could see you fell in love, darling. I love her. She was gorgeous. She kept on holding our hands, both of us. I know, but you know, she's so beautiful.

I kind of resented having a tan because her skin is so translucent and porcelain. And we're sitting there looking a bit bronzed. Leathery. Leathery. Yeah, I'm a old rhino here. Go and see Blitz. It's on Apple TV and in cinemas and in cin...

Cinnamon. Cinnamon. Ooh. Patron. And also go and catch the Out Run, which she's also incredibly proud of. Dreamy, dreamy guest. Loved it. Loved seeing her just picking the studs. She ate everything. Yeah, she was so happy to be here. I loved it.

Yeah. Makes it all worthwhile being stuck with you for another day mum. I'll piss off. Thank you Saoirse Ronan for coming on Saoirse. I feel... Saoirse. Saoirse you're not Irish darling really. You say thanks. They're going to check that when you go for your passport they'll say say Saoirse. Yeah you're not saying it right. Saoirse. Sirsha. Sirsha. Yeah, exactly. Sirsha. Thank you, Sirsha. We love you.

Thank you for listening and we'll see you next week. To the season of chaos and all through the house, not one person was stressing. Holl it differently this year with DoorDash. Don't want to holla do the most? Holl it don't. More festive, less frantic. Get deals for every occasion with DoorDash.