“If you want to be famous & rich, don’t be an actor” – Isabella Laughland on Urban Hymn, vanity and Potter

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It didn’t take long to realise just how palpable the difference is between actress Isabella Laughland and the character Leanne she plays in forthcoming musical drama Urban Hymn.

HeyUGuys were fortunate enough to meet the up-and-coming performer for a coffee in central London, mainly to promote her latest endeavour, and most impressive role to date, taking the supporting lead in Michael Caton-Jones production, set in the aftermath of the 2011 London riots – and unlike the role, who is an addict, in and out of prison, Laughland is a pragmatic young woman, level-headed, attentive and accessible – and vitally, really easy to get along with. But while she certainly doesn’t seem cut from the same cloth as the character, that’s not to say she couldn’t connect to the role on distinctly human terms.

“I went to school with girls like Leanne,” she began. “Not quite as extreme, but girls who were certainly written off from a young age and no-one really tried to find out what their talent was, or invested any time in them, so she’s a character I knew through other people. But I know what it is to question your self-worth and not to feel that you fit in anywhere or that you’re no good at anything. Leanne has traits that we all recognise in ourselves.”

To portray an addict means to display the ugliest version of yourself on screen, and it’s something James McAvoy discussed in length following his role in Filth, but Laughland is happy to free herself of any sense of vanity, claiming it to be a dangerous quality for any actor to hold. But that’s not to say she feels comfortable watching herself on screen.

“Vanity can be the biggest downfall for actors, if your vanity gets in the way you’re fucked. Though it’s interesting that when you’re meant to look dishevelled and awful, you’re wearing a lot of expensive make-up.”

“But I can’t really enjoy watching the film. With Harry Potter I’ve grown up with it throughout my life and when I popped up on screen for five seconds I looked away and then got back to the film, but with this, I couldn’t really enjoy it, I was always analysing my own performance.”

It was Harry Potter where Laughland was given her breakthrough role, starring as another, and somewhat different, character called Leanne. But since then we’ve seen her in hit TV sitcom The Inbetweeners and on stage too – but Urban Hymn is undoubtedly the first screen role that allows her the opportunity, and platform, to prove her range as a dramatic performer, playing a troubled, lost soul, part of a disenchanted, unsupported youth, that caused so much havoc during the riots, which she, as a Londoner, remembers all too clearly.

“I remember I was going to a house party in Ealing and it all kicked off there and I got a text from my mum telling me not to go out and I thought she was just being over-protective and ridiculous, and I came out of the tube station and heard this noise and saw groups of kids running down the streets, and so we stayed at the house. The next morning was like something out of a video game, it was nuts. I was really scared. We forgot that a man lost his life and what started out as a peaceful protest was taken over by a minority who saw this as an opportunity.”

Though despite being the most nuanced role she’s had yet, it was one picked solely on the strength of the screenplay, and in no way a means of furthering her career. Laughland is far from a careerist, explaining to us what she looks for in a project.

“I wasn’t thinking about it from a career point of view, I just wanted to play the character and do her justice, she’s such a gift of a part. And the script – three female leads, two non-white as well, was such a rare thing to see and I hope it will happen more and more,” she said. “I wanted to do her justice, I didn’t want her to just be another statistic, I wanted her to have a voice. These are girls who walk among us who people aren’t particularly interested in because they’re not glamorous or sexy. We have no idea what jewels they have inside of them, they could be the next greatest actress or musician, but because they haven’t got the support network nobody is prepared to give them the time. At my school the naughty girls were some of the most intelligent you could meet, there was one girl who designed her own school bag and she had such a talent, which she’d learnt by herself, and my school didn’t really care.”

“I once did a play above a pub in Earls Court because the character was so great, I knew I had to do it, I didn’t care that nobody would see it, it was so rewarding for me. It always comes down to the character, whether it’s a comedy or a drama. If you want to be famous and rich, don’t be an actor. It’s a marathon, not a sprint.”

urban hymnWhen posed with the question of whose career she seeks to emulate most, there wasn’t even a moment’s pause before her response.

“Anne-Marie Duff. She’s someone I love, she’s got the right mix of theatre, TV and film and she’s so wonderful in whatever she does. She also keeps herself to herself, we don’t know much about her.”

Laughland had her a taste of the blockbuster however, growing up on the set of Potter, as a quite remarkable entry point into this surrealistic world – and from there came memories she’ll cherish forever.

“It was amazing,” she smiled. “Just to watch those actors on the top of their game was a real blessing. I remember my one big scene, and I was in the make-up chair and Alan Rickman and Maggie Smith walked past.”

“I keep in touch with everyone, and we send the odd text now and again but people are so busy. You do gradually lose touch with people, but it’s always lovely to see them. I had a coffee with Jessie Cave the other day which was lovely, reminiscing about the good times.”

As is the case with so many former child actors, Laughland admits it was a passion of hers from an incredibly young age, but she’s been brought up well enough to know it’s not wise to put all of your eggs in one (and somewhat precarious) basket.

“I think before I even had a real thought I knew I wanted to be an actor. My mum said I had to get some qualifications, and so I did, then I hit 16 and she was like, well if you want to be an actress now, you can. But I always knew.”

The future seems incredibly bright for Laughland, and needless to say she has a wise head on her young shoulders. But focusing on the present she’s got Urban Hymn’s release on the horizon, and is understandable looking forward to seeing all of her close friends and family finally getting the chance to see it on the big screen. Well, maybe not all of them.

“I am excited for people to see it, I’ve been banging on about it for long enough,” she finished. “Not my boyfriend’s parents though, I hope I can still go out with him after they’ve seen it. That could be interesting.”

Urban Hymn is released on September 30th. You can read our 5* review here.