She grew up surrounded by stories and poems, which fired her imagination and piqued her curiosity during her early years in the Western Isles. So, it’s hardly surprising that Sorcha Groundsell is thrilled to be a key figure in what she describes as a “watershed moment” with the creation of a new high-profile – and expensive at £1 million an episode – drama An t-Eilean (The Island).
The four-part crime thriller, which will be shown later this year in Australia, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Iceland and the United States, has been shot mostly in Gaelic and the 26-year-old leads the cast as Kat Crichton, a young family liaison officer, who is assigned to look into the brutal killing of the wife of a local tycoon.
The murder investigation takes place on Lewis and Harris, from where Kat mysteriously fled 10 years previously. In that regard, there’s a sense of life imitating art, given how Sorcha’s early years were spent on Lewis, prior to her attending Glasgow Gaelic School and embracing drama classes at the Citizens Theatre and the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. If you don’t know her name yet, the chances are you will have caught sight of her striking and subtle performances in a variety of different programmes.
She was the star of the Netflix series The Innocents; played Douglas Henshall’s daughter, Jane Muncie, in the ITV drama In Plain Sight about the horrific real-life crimes carried out by serial killer Peter Manuel; and subsequently made a memorable appearance, again with Henshall, as his character Jimmy Perez bowed out of Shetland. Her other credits include Grantchester, His Dark Materials and a recurring role in the BritBox adaptation of Irvine Welsh’s Crime, so she’s no stranger to the dark side.
Gaelic enterprise
But there was none of that when we spoke – or not until later – about her involvement in what has been hailed as a genuinely groundbreaking new venture. She said: “It’s fantastic to be involved in this and it feels like a really big opportunity for the Gaelic language – which I love – so it’s a privilege to be part of it. We filmed for nine weeks, five in Harris and four in Glasgow, so it was like a home from home for me. I was familiar with all the landscapes and, personally, it gave me a wonderful excuse to be back there, though it was strange to be in a working capacity. But all the cast and crew were so committed, and we all felt the same way, so it was very enjoyable with a great atmosphere on set and everybody really invested in the drama. Across the world, we are seeing indigenous languages step confidently out from the shadows to enjoy the recognition they deserve. And I see our show as part of that wider movement; a celebration of all that makes us unique.”
If there was once a time when it might have been difficult to attract audiences for a Gaelic enterprise, Sorcha believes the climate has changed. A major part of that was the success of Scandi thrillers in the mould of The Killing, Borgen and The Bridge, where viewers weren’t deterred by foreign language content. And if we can watch Danish and Norwegian conversations, why not those in Gaelic – even though there will be sections of An t-Eilean which are in English.
She told me: “If I had to estimate percentages, I’d say that it’s maybe 70% (Gaelic) to 30% (English), because we have two strands of the story. The one about the people from the mainland (including her boss DCI Ahmed Halim, played by Sagar Radia) is more English language, while the family drama is in Gaelic. There’s no reason why people can’t handle subtitles, and everybody involved in the production got a lot of inspiration from these Scandinavian dramas you’ve mentioned. They really forged a path, and I honestly believe that subtitles are no longer an obstacle to an audience enjoying a series and we are much more tolerant of them these days. That has created a little window for us to expand our viewership. I certainly hope that is the case, because I am so proud to have been part of a production that is pioneering these new horizons for Gaelic. One showcasing the beauty, creativity and depth our language brings to the world.”
The dark side of human experience
A few days before I chatted to Sorcha, I watched her in Shetland where her character, Bryd Fleming, met a terrible end in a scenario which is unforgettably grim. As the police reach the scene, the camera closes in on her dead body and stares directly into her eyes. And then it lingers a little and there’s nothing. A void, a shell, an abyss.
She said: “I think you’re describing the episode of TV which has traumatised my entire family. A few people texted me after it was broadcast and asked: ‘Are you OK?’ It was challenging because I’ve never had to play ‘dead’ in anything before, and this was really dramatic with my body wrapped in plastic in the back of a car. It was intense, but in the best way. As an actor, you very often don’t have a full story arc, but the more they showed me, the more scripts I saw, the more fascinating that character became, and she had such a vivid secret life. I had been trying to find a way to connect with Shetland for a long time, because I was such a fan of the show, and I had previously worked with Douglas. So much of the intensity of that scene was down to his performance. He is the master of subtle emotion and one of the reasons why that is so moving was down to him.”
Of course, one might argue there has been an excess of “women in peril” plotlines and females being gratuitously murdered in TV history, but the tide seems to be turning. So, we have Ashley Jensen and Alison O’Donnell in charge of Shetland inquiries, Lauren Lyle meeting and beating the men in “Karen Pirie”… and now, this latest thriller, where a strong woman has no qualms about getting her hands dirty. But what is this obsession with crime dramas? Why do so many love them so much? Sorcha said: “I think they showcase something in human psychology and we are all interested in the dark side of human experience. Crime drama provides a platform for that investigation and makes us think: ‘What part of the dark side do we all have?’ But – and this matters – they also bring us a very satisfying, problem-solving structure where, usually, there is a resolution at the end.”
Text by: Neil Drysdale. Main photo: Photo: Black Camel Pictures/BBCAlba.
Which Australian network has picked up An t-Eilean? SBS or commercial???