Do
you remember the young female hostage of the Blowfish in Episode 1 of Series 2
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang? Well, I caught up with Seren Whyte, recently, and got
talking about acting and cars, mostly the racing kind.
Hi
Seren, how did you get into acting, who inspired you?
Seren: I have always loved acting but my
biggest inspiration was my drama teacher when I was in school, she was so talented
and encouraging. I lived for my drama classes and knew that a career in acting
was definitely what I wanted to do.
How
soon after college or beginning your career in acting did the gig for Torchwood
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang come up?
Seren: I filmed Torchwood a few months before
I went to drama college and I loved every minute, it marked the beginning of my
professional career and was a fantastic way to start.
Had
you seen any Torchwood prior to the role? Or Doctor Who?
Seren: Yes, we would watch Doctor Who every
Saturday night as a family and then torchwood when it was released in 2006
which made it quite exciting when I got the audition and then offered the role.
Do
you come from an acting family?
Seren: Not at all everyone was quite surprised
when both my sister Elise and I decided to pursue careers in acting but they
are extremely supportive
When
did the Rally Driving bug bite?
Seren: The
Rally Driving Bug bit in 2012, Elise and I were competing on a rally called
‘LeJog’, which is Land’s End to John O Groats in December and is considered the
toughest endurance rally in Europe. We were only going to do that one just to
prove that woman could do it to and to raise money for ‘The Pink Ribbon’
Foundation but we relished the challenge and found ourselves hooked on driving.
Other
than television roles, have you worked in theatre?
Seren: The majority of my work since beginning
my career has been in theatre and I really enjoy performing at different
theatres and exploring the towns and cities that I have been based in. I love
working in both stage and screen as I find the subtle differences required when
you switch between disciplines really interesting. I would find it very hard to
pick my favourite between the two.
You
blog with your sister about the rallying, how did that come about, and how long
have you been rallying for?
Seren: We have been rallying for nearly seven
years and we started the blog mainly to keep a written history of our
adventures for ourselves so we could look back and see whether we had made any
progress but also to remember all the crazy things that happen on every rally.
We still keep track of each rally but now we create Facebook live videos after
every day.
Have
there been any or many scary/hairy moments during your rallying time?
Seren: Any form of motorsport is dangerous and
we have had our fair share of scary moments, for me one of the scariest moments
was losing the brakes of a BMW 1602 at the top of a mountain, we had to drive
down a steep twisty road using the gears to keep a slow and steady pace to get
down the mountain safely. It was very early on in our rallying so it was pretty
terrifying at the time.
Do
you share the driving, or does one navigate and the other drive?
Seren: We used to share so that we could have
a go at both driving and navigating but it became quite apparent that Elise was
much more gifted at reading maps than I am so we now stick to her navigating
and me driving. Although our next rally in Cheshire we will actually be
competing against each other both as navigators which could be rather interesting.
What
has been the best road or track to drive along?
Seren: One of the best things about the
rallying is that they take you over some of the best roads in the UK and
Europe. My favourite has to be ‘The Pass of the Cattle’ in Scotland, it is a
very wiggly road up and over a mountain, it has the most spectacular views on
both sides and at the beginning of the road there is a sign that says it is not
suitable for leaner drivers or caravans.
How
did your panto season go onboard the ship, and do you often do panto?
Seren: In the summer I performed with my
sister in Aladdin on a Brittany Ferries Ship. The season was excellent, we had
such a talented and friendly cast on board that the show went down a storm and
we had a lot of fun both on and off stage.
I really enjoy panto and have been lucky enough to be in at least one
every year since graduating from Drama college.
Are
you working on any new acting projects?
Seren: There are a couple of exciting projects
happening this year but unfortunately, I can’t talk about them yet
What
are your plans for the festive season? Do you still work then or enjoy with
family?
Seren: I always hope to be performing in Panto
over the festive period as there is something quite magical about being a part
of so many family’s celebrations. Unfortunately, over the last few years I have
been in Panto in towns and cities that are too far from home to travel back for
Christmas. Luckily, I have been with my sister, so we always cook our own
Christmas dinner and then we have a second Christmas (our real Christmas) with
the family after the contract has finished.
If
you were a leading lady in any genre role, who would be your leading man or
woman and in what genre would it be?
Seren: I would like to be a leading lady in an
adventure sci-fi and it would be really exciting to be able to combine my
driving and acting together in a role, as for my leading man it would have to
be someone a little quirky but as long as there was chemistry, I would not be
fussy.
Of
the roles you've been in and roles yet to gain which have been the most
enjoyable and which would you love to get your teeth into?
Seren: I love portraying characters that are
quite far from my own character as they are more challenging, and I find that
more enjoyable. I have really relished playing the evil roles and would love to
one day get my hands on Lady Macbeth, I just think she is such a fascinating
character with so much depth to her actions and words that it would challenge
me to push my own limits as an actress to be able to do it justice.
Thank you so much for the wonderful
interview, Seren.
Headshot
photos credit – Alishia Love
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