Page 3 Profile: Gemma Arterton, actress

Former Bond girl Gemma Arterton will play the gutsy Rita in the West End adaptation of Made in Dagenham (Getty Images)

Going off-script?

Arterton has said she is ill-disposed towards the practice of streaming theatre productions on TV, even though it has allowed millions of people to enjoy performances they would otherwise have been unable to experience. The former Bond girl believes live theatre should be seen in the flesh not via a screen.

So she wouldn’t be caught dead in a stage play broadcast to the nation…

Actually, Arterton is set to star in a BBC4 transmission of the revenge tragedy The Duchess of Malfi. It was filmed for broadcast following its staging in the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse at Shakespeare’s Globe theatre earlier this year.

Talk about sending out mixed messages!

“I had to do that thing at the BBC,” the 28-year-old told the Radio Times. Speaking of the launch of the initiative, which she appeared at with the BBC Director-General Tony Hall, she complained: “When they showed a clip I was mortified. And then I had to go, ‘Oh yes, it’s great’.”

So she’s got her fingers crossed nobody tunes in?

The Clash of the Titans actress, who studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, said: “To be quite honest, I don’t really believe in filming theatre, that’s not what it’s about. I felt quite uncomfortable about the fact they were filming it at first – it’s theatre, you’re not performing it for the cameras.”

Some people just can’t afford the luxury of a theatre trip though. Despite her clear reservations about the enterprise, Arterton, who grew up in Gravesend, Kent, did eventually concede: “I guess for people that can’t get to the theatre, and can’t afford it, and I guess for educational purposes as well, it’s great.”

Doesn’t she know broadcasting performances is all the rage these days?

The National Theatre has enjoyed huge commercial success streaming shows into cinemas, with productions such as King Lear playing to 3.6 million people in 600 venues worldwide. The RSC and Shakespeare’s Globe have also boosted their audiences with live screenings. The Duchess of Malfi will kick off a new BBC arts strand, bringing complete performances to viewers. Mr Hall said it would give audiences “front-row seats” to cultural events.