• [Daily Mirror Icon]
• 3am
• Celebrity News
• Hannah Waddingham

EXCLUSIVE: Hannah Waddingham says I was asked to do things no man would everhave to do'

Ted Lasso star Hannah Waddingham has revealed what part of showbiz she hates doing due to 'traumatic' moments in her past, where she was asked to 'do things no man would ever have to do'

[Hannah Waddingham at the Baftas]

View 3 Images

Hannah Waddingham at the Baftas

Hannah Waddingham has revealed that she dislikes photoshoots with male photographers after some traumatic episodes in her past. The Ted Lasso actress said that during past shoots, she was required to project a compromised image of herself which left her feeling humiliated.

Waddingham said: I dont mind admitting that sometimes I dont like to be photographed by men, which I need to work out and work on a bit because there have been times in the past that have been very fixed- telling me to do this and move in a certain way that they would never ask a man to move. Photoshoots can be a vulnerable place.

[Hannah Waddingham was unable to perform but still showed her support]

View 3 Images

Hannah Waddingham has spoken about why she doesn't like being photographed by men(Image: Getty Images)

The 51-year-old said that people assume actresses are comfortable in front of the camera. Theres loads of people at a shoot and people assume that youre just endlessly confident, which youre not. Part of the reason why youre an actor is to be other people, not yourself.

Waddingham became a household name after her breakthrough role in Apple TVs Ted Lasso and has since been celebrated for becoming a star later in life, in a youth-obsessed industry.

But the actress who will soon be seen in the new season of Ted Lasso later this summer, insists that the term overnight success does not apply to her, after decades plugging away in theatre.

She said: I started out when I was 21, I was a West End and Broadway leading lady for 22 years, so I find the overnight thing hilarious. No one gets into theatre for fame or money; you get into it because you love the craft and its a vocation. The shift into screen work came because Id just given birth to my child, the love of my life and I didnt want to be out, six nights a week, eight shows a week.

[Waddingham stars in Ted Lasso, alongside Jason Sudeikis]

View 3 Images

Waddingham stars in Ted Lasso, alongside Jason Sudeikis(Image: Apple TV+)

But Hannah, whose daughter, Kitty, is now 11, says that she spent many years knocking, knocking, knocking on the TV and film door that is so often shut closed on theatre actors, but she says, screen stars, often dont have the resilience to tread the boards.

Speaking on the Womans Health, Just as Well podcast, she said: Theatre people are often told, were too big for camera, well how about you try and show us not to be. But Ive often found, because it puts bums on seats, screen people will come into theatre, who with all due respect, havent got a clue the stamina it takes to do eight shows a week.

"You can be a good actor, but the stamina it takes to be onstage, live, we call it show fit certainly in musicals, for eight shows a week, is not for the faint hearted. So, I am very proud of my theatre roots and the people that were around be then from my generation who continue to be in shows because theyre badasses.

The London-born actress spent a more than a decade in theatre before breaking into telly with roles in ITVs Benidorm and the BBCs Not Going Out. Her pre-break out TV role came in Game of Thrones when she starred as Septa Unella, the shame bell nun.

After working steadily, she landed her role in Ted Lasso for which she won an Emmy in 202. In her Emmys speech she urged the industry to give actors from musicals a chance to work in telly.

This week she confirmed that shes in a new relationship, after splitting from her daughters father, Italian businessman Gianluca Cugnetto in 2023.

Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .

[Daily Mirror Icon]

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Choose Daily Mirror as a 'Preferred Source' on Google News for quick access to the news you value.