Shameless S08E07

Like what you see? I can make these go faster than helicopter blades...

Pauline McLynn had waited a long time to lose her screen virginity but now she's finally done it she's, well, Shameless. The actress who made her name obsessing about tea as Mrs Doyle in Father Ted opted for something spicier by moving into the Chatsworth Estate and into the bed of desperate, drunken and feckless Frank Gallagher.

Craggy Island priests Ted and Dougal would have had a seizure at her not-so-prim-and-proper librarian Libby Croaker but, at 47, Pauline revelled in her role and the steamy sex scenes which, during filming, left nothing to the imagination.

She laughed: "I have never been asked to kiss anyone on screen before or simulate sex so it's been an eye-opener. I'm now familiar with every inch of my body. I'm not a vain person but I do worry for the viewers. There's nothing which will frighten them. Well, it may do, but in order to make sure the crew are safe I've had to take a long, hard look at myself."


Pauline may be full of humour and bravado now but the chatterbox admits she was almost lost for words when the subject of her sex scenes was first brought up with her co-stars.

She said: "When I first joined I was talking to some of the cast about the sex scenes and they were all saying 'oh yeah, they'll start you off on one of those just to break the ice'. Exactly the words you don't want to hear.

"But everyone on the Chatsworth estate is having sex with somebody else. In the first episode, Libby and Frank meet and when people first fall in love they usually have sex and it's no different for us. It is a strange experience, pretending to have sex in front of the crew and another 17 people in the room. There is no glamour in it. You're never going to get lost in the moment, put it that way.

"We did one take nude, because it annoys me when you watch shows and think 'Why are they still wearing underwear?' But once you get that out of the way, there comes a point where you say 'ah, turn a camera on, it's fine'."

She added with a chuckle: "I don't know how I'll feel when it's on, mind you."

That she embraced the saucy scenes and didn't run a mile was partly down to the fact that David Threlfall, the actor who plays Frank, directed it.

It's also down to the fact that Pauline is a huge fan of the show, which fed her enthusiasm when she first heard about the role - and is now chewing on her nerves as she waits to find out if Libby, a hopeless romantic with a mother from hell at home, is accepted by her fellow fans.

She said: "They put it about they were looking for someone to play Frank's new love and I came and auditioned for it. It's not a long journey from London to Manchester but it is if you are terrified.

"It's my dream job, one of the best things on television, so with the thought of even getting a foot in the door of Frank's world I was getting over-excited. Of course, I did the worst audition in the world. I didn't hear for a while and talked myself out of it but as it turned out here I am and isn't it grand? David directed the first episode of the series and in many ways I found that helpful.

"I'm now the love interest of one of the greatest TV creations ever, Frank Gallagher. How lucky am I?"

Of course, she has experienced good fortune before, as the slightly demented, Mrs Doyle. The final series of Father Ted, which saw her pick up a British Comedy Award for Best Actress, was filmed in 1998, although you'd never know it - it's shown regularly and still the subject of an annual convention, the Ted Fest.

Pauline, who lives in London with her husband, agent Richard Cook, has starred in Jam and Jerusalem, is a regular on panel shows including Just a Minute and Have I Got News For You, and is finishing her eighth novel.

She could be forgiven for wanting to leave Mrs Doyle in the past but she understands the interest and is gracious about - and grateful to - the woman with the "ah go on, go on, go on" catchphrase.

She said: "Father Ted is an iconic series now. To have been a part of it, well, I'm just so bloody proud of it. Wouldn't I be the biggest eejit to start going, 'no, no darling I'm past that now'.

"I can't believe I'm getting another bite at the Channel 4 cherry. I'm also finally getting asked to play somebody my own age. I'm usually older and in character."

Pauline is due to return for the next series of Shameless, now Channel 4's longest-running series, but is wary of looking too far ahead. When we speak, she'd not long heard Jam and Jerusalem had been axed.

She talked about it on her blog and called on disappointed fans to express their views to the BBC.

She said: "That may have been a misjudged call - and think if people felt strongly enough they should make their voices heard."

Strong, sexy and shameless... just the woman to take on Frank Gallagher.

Television Series: Shameless (S08E07)
Release Date: January 2011
Actress: Pauline McLynn
Video Clips Credit: Trailblazer
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