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BAZ BAMIGBOYE: Why Olivia Cooke is cut out to be the leading lady

Olivia Cooke had no concerns about taking the leading role in a film populated almost entirely by men

Olivia Cooke had no concerns about taking the leading role in a film populated almost entirely by men

Olivia Cooke had no concerns about taking the leading role in a film populated almost entirely by men.

She plays the title character in director Barnaby Thompson's belly-laugh-inducing black comedy Pixie, which opens on October 23.

'Ever since I started work, it's been a bit of a boys' club,' said the 26-year-old from Royton, who attended the Oldham Theatre Workshop from the age of eight.

There are three other, much smaller, female roles, but that's it.

Cooke was not fazed. 'I've inherently just been able to combat that quite easily,' she told me, 'to the point where the director, Barnaby, said to me: 'You're a bit scary, Olivia.' And I was like: 'OK.' '

She snorted. 'Boys are easy to get onside a lot of the time.'

Olivia plays Pixie, a young woman on the lam in Ireland pursued by a host of characters who wish her ill. 

They include Alec Baldwin as a drug kingpin who does double duty as a Catholic priest; Colm Meaney as her gangster stepfather; Dylan Moran as a cocaine dealer; plus youngsters Fra Fee, Chris Walley and Rory Fleck Byrne.

Ben Hardy (Roger Taylor in Bohemian Rhapsody) and Daryl McCormack are the unfortunate lads Pixie takes on the road with her. Earlier, one of them warns that she'll 'take a Kalashnikov to your heart'.

Cooke laughed when I mentioned that line, but Pixie's got more of the femme fatale about her than she might like to admit.

Director Thompson, who made the film using a screenplay written by his son, Preston, said the actress was blessed with an 'endearing cheekiness'. And it's true; there's an energy about her that comes across on screen.

She plays the title character in director Barnaby Thompson's belly-laugh-inducing black comedy Pixie, which opens on October 23

She plays the title character in director Barnaby Thompson's belly-laugh-inducing black comedy Pixie, which opens on October 23

Thompson added that while cast and crew were based in Belfast for two months, Cooke acted as a sort of concierge for the ensemble, sussing out 'hotspots' (her term) where they could hang out and socialise after filming.

'That's a reputation, isn't it?' she quipped. 'We were all away from home . . . it's nice to break bread at the end of the day. I think maybe, much like my character, I have to find a bit of lightness wherever I can.'

I've watched Cooke over the years, on TV (The Secret Of Crickley Hall, Bates Motel, Vanity Fair) and in films (Ready Player One). But she's at her best here, enjoying being two steps ahead of the blokes.

She puts her comic touch down to her upbringing in the North West. 'All my best friends, who I grew up with, are so funny; and they're a little bit older than me; so I feel like I copied their personality and made it my own as well.'

Kingsley Ben-Adir ¿ born and bred in London's Kentish Town ¿ found an unusual way of getting under the skin of American civil rights leader Malcolm X

Kingsley Ben-Adir — born and bred in London's Kentish Town — found an unusual way of getting under the skin of American civil rights leader Malcolm X

Kingsley Ben-Adir — born and bred in London's Kentish Town — found an unusual way of getting under the skin of American civil rights leader Malcolm X.

The 34-year-old gives a sublime portrayal of the charismatic spokesman for the radical Nation of Islam in One Night In Miami, the stunning directorial debut by Oscar-winning actress Regina King.

The film imagines a meeting between Malcolm, Cassius Clay (Eli Goree), on the eve of his decision to change his name to Muhammad Ali; singer Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr. from the original Hamilton, on fine form) and NFL-star-turned-actor Jim Brown (Aldis Hodge). The four argue about how best to wage a cultural and societal revolution.

'I did mantras on set between takes,' admitted Ben-Adir, who cut his teeth on stage and playing pathologist Dr. Marcus Summer in Brenda Blethyn's TV show Vera. (He described Blethyn as 'my mentor'.) 'I would just be exploring Malcolm's voice for all to hear, just reeling off his speeches.

'I think a lot of the guest actors coming in found that a little difficult to deal with, but I think it was helping the concentration. It certainly helped me get into a vibe.' That vibe has produced one of the performances of the year, in a movie that's headed for awards season. 

One Night . . . was shown at the Venice Film Festival this week, and it's screening at the Toronto International Film Festival today. Amazon Prime has plans to stream it (although no date has been set yet).

And one would hope that the London Film Festival will also give it a gala.

Ben-Adir's portrayal isn't an impersonation of the man born Malcolm Little, and known as Detroit Red in his drug hustling days, until he emerged from a stint in prison with a new name: Malcolm X.

The 34-year-old gives a sublime portrayal of the charismatic spokesman for the radical Nation of Islam (above) in One Night In Miami, the stunning directorial debut by Oscar-winning actress Regina King.

The 34-year-old gives a sublime portrayal of the charismatic spokesman for the radical Nation of Islam in One Night In Miami, the stunning directorial debut by Oscar-winning actress Regina King.

Instead, he captures the sense of what was to come. 'The FBI and the Nation were coming for him,' he said. The film's set in 1963 — two years before the activist's assassination.

'I studied him so closely,' Ben-Adir said. 'I have never had an experience where I spent so much time with one human being. It was the most obsessive I've ever been.' He said he was searching for a version of Malcolm X that wasn't the stereotypical 'lacerating demagogue'.

The film was shot on location in New Orleans where, the British actor (now back in London) told me, it was impossible not to feel 'more aware than you've ever been of just what's going on' at the moment in terms of racial tension.

Ben-Adir will be on TV soon in a two-part drama for HBO called The Comey Rule, playing another American icon: President Obama. He doubled down on researching that role, too, because as he pointed out: 'This is Obama! He might see it.'

Howard, a fascinating documentary on Disney+ about the life of Howard Ashman, the artistic visionary behind the 1991 Academy Award-winning Disney film Beauty And The Beast (and many other classics).

It was Ashman who wrote the lyrics for the movie's songs (Belle, Be Our Guest, Something There, etc), with Alan Menken. He died five months before the film was released but was honoured with a best song Oscar (for the title number) posthumously. 

A couple of years later, Tim Rice wrote additional songs for the Broadway stage adaptation, which opened in 1994. Now Disney Theatrical is launching a UK and Ireland tour that will begin at the Leicester Curve for a five-week run from May 2021. 

The original Broadway creative team, led by director Robert Jesse Roth and choreographer Matt West, will oversee the production, which has just begun casting for roles including my favourite: teapot housekeeper Mrs Potts , voiced by Angela Lansbury in the film. 

Once the tour is done, there are unconfirmed whispers about the West End sometime in 2022.

Howard, a fascinating documentary on Disney+ about the life of Howard Ashman, the artistic visionary behind the 1991 Academy Award-winning Disney film Beauty And The Beast (and many other classics)

Howard, a fascinating documentary on Disney+ about the life of Howard Ashman, the artistic visionary behind the 1991 Academy Award-winning Disney film Beauty And The Beast (and many other classics)

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