‘I wanted to see how I can push myself in a complex real-life role’
Jemma Carlton talks to Rachael Davis about Maxine, a new drama about the Soham murders
In the summer of 2002, a chilling crime shook the country. Two 10-year-old girls, Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman, were playing together after a family barbecue in Soham, Cambridgeshire. They headed out to buy some sweets, wearing matching Manchester United football shirts, but they never came home.
The disturbing details of what happened next dominated news headlines, as a massive search operation and subsequent media frenzy came to the most horrific conclusion.
School caretaker Ian Huntley had murdered the girls, leaving their bodies in a ditch, and was later handed two life sentences for his horrific crime. His girlfriend, school assistant Maxine Carr, was also jailed for giving him a false alibi.
In Maxine, a new threepart drama coming to Channel 5, the story of the Soham murders is told from Carr’s perspective.
Jemma Carlton, who plays Maxine in the drama, tells us more.
Why did you want to play Maxine Carr?
Maxine is one of those roles that when it lands in your inbox, you don’t ignore it. It’s kind of a once-in-a-lifetime role. I knew that there would be difficulties that came with it, but I got a lot of reassurance from Channel 5 and [director Laura Way] that the project was going to be handled with a lot of care. Over the years, I’ve been drawn to performances like David Tennant in Des and Maxine Peake [who played Myra Hindley], and so I felt Maxine was a mountain to climb as a part, but wanted to see how I can push myself in a complex real-life role.
Did you feel a lot of pressure when taking this on?
Definitely. That’s why the huge amount of research and preparation behind the scenes was so important. We all wanted to make sure the tone of the series was right. The cast and the crew, the production team worked so hard to get this story right, and they should be proud. It’s my first big TV role, so I tried not to scrutinise myself too much.
What research did you do?
I think I watched every documentary about Maxine that I could get my hands on, and read as much as I could. The production team also gave me a comprehensive ‘bible’ which was full of research and cuttings. Anything she’d said, done or lived, including court transcripts, was in there. I had that in my hands every day, and I referenced it when I was preparing
What was it like getting into character?
It was a really interesting process. Physically, it of course starts with the hair and make-up, and then we go to the voice and movement. I’m from the West Midlands, Maxine is from the East Midlands, so getting those details right was so important. She moves very differently to me, so getting into the right posture of being more delicate in the way I held myself was key. I also had my hair dyed and wore coloured contact lenses. The detail of everything was really important.
● Maxine starts on Channel 5 today at 9pm
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