Bernie seems to have really settled into the street, how much do you enjoy playing her?
I love playing her, it is great fun. She is somebody that I would probably cross over the other side of the road if I saw her! But in the nicest possible way. She is just out there isn't she. She is just a completely different energy that doesn't always align with other people’s energy. It comes from a good place but unfortunately, by the time whatever intentions she has got have come out of her mouth, it can sometimes have changed. It comes across as her having no filter but it is usually done with good intention and good heart. She doesn’t suffer fools and she has also always been an opportunist, if something presents itself she will take it. She is from the school of hard knocks
Do you think she has mellowed since her arrival?
Yes I think she has, she loved a party. She was incredibly selfish but she is a survivor. I think what has changed her is seeing love in other people for her that she didn't know was there and hadn't seen before,or had never really acknowledged before. The love she has for Paul and Gemma was always there but she always had her eye on the next thing. But since turning up in Weatherfield and all the stuff with Kel, watching her daughter bring up these children with no money, of course it has changed her.It has softened her but she will still scrap and fight for her family. I think part of her regrets her past, the whole Kel situation rocked her to her core and she is aware of her mistakes and she hopes like we all do never to repeat her mistakes, but good intentions don't always work out.
Can you describe her in three words?
Chaotic. Spontaneous. Daft.
Does she like being around her family? She was a very absent parent, what has changed for her?
Yes she does, she feels like part of a community in Weatherfield now and this is where she sees her future. She loves being at home with the kids, she wants to do the best for Gemma and Ches. They have got nothing but she knows about pulling together and she knows about making things work. She has her eye on chances but now it is for the family not herself.
Would you be friends with Bernie?
That is a tricky one, she would brighten up a dull day, but what I would find difficult about being around that sort of person with her energy is the lack of sensitivity. I’m too sensitive to be able to cope with half the things that come out of her mouth and I would be spending the whole time apologising on her behalf.
How did she feel when Joseph went missing? Was she strong for the family?
She was absolutely devastated and worried about what an earth could have happened to him and trying not to think the worst. She was one of the first ones out looking, she was up all night with Paul, Billy and Dev. She was very strong for the family and she did everything that she could possibly do. It was breaking her heart and she wanted him home. She comes good in situations like that, it is where the lioness in her really comes out
Her and Dev have been very on and off, and then this situation gets them back together, how does she feel about him?
She really likes Dev. It is not without its issues because they ate so different but actually they are both grafters to different degrees, they are both survivors. They both want nice things and yes she really really likes Dev.
What is it like working with Jimmy?
I absolutely adore working with Jimmy, I love him. Working with Jimmy is like going for a ride in a classic car, you just know that it is going to be classy and smooth and grand and cared for. He is such a lovely man to work with, we never stop laughing and he works so hard.
How does she feel when Dev corrects the reporter for calling her his partner?
It cuts her to the core, she is furious with him. She has had that all her life with how she looks. She is not very conventional nor would she want to be. She doesn’t look like anybody else, she doesn’t sound like anybody else. Bernie is Bernie and all her life she has had people ridicule her and bring her down bit when Dev does that it really hurts her, it's not on, he has denied her a couple of times and she doesn't understand what that is about. Why is he not happy for people to know about them, he makes her feel like a grubby secret and actually they have a really amazing time together when they are on their own.
She was originally going to go to the police when she found out about Clint’s deal with the kids, what changed her mind?
Yes she was absolutely going to tell everyone about what really happened, she is going to expose Clint because it is outrageous what he has done. But she gets home and it is chaos. They are really up against it. They are struggling to even have enough money for the bread. There is nothing in the house, there are no pennies down the back of the sofa. She sees this and thinks ‘hang on a minute, the reward money isn’t actually anybody’s money and it was raised because Joseph went missing’ she sort of thinks that maybe the family are entitled to it. She also knows that it will change their lives forever, this isn’t about her taking the money for herself at all. The fact Joseph went missing was because of all the problems in the house caused by lack of money so she sort of justifies it to herself in that way. She doesn't want Chesney to lose his dignity as he is a very proud man and she thinks if she can use this money cleverly to help them no one needs to know.
She is doing it for all the right reasons but is she not worried about being involved in Clint’s fraud?
She is not comfortable with it at all, it is a means to an end. The money lands in her bank account and she is ok with it but quite quickly she isn't at all. She is terrified that at any moment she could be exposed for doing something that she absolutely knows is wrong.
How does she feel when it all comes out and Chesney throws her out of the house?
She is devastated, I don't think she can quite believe that she has put herself in that situation again and it is like she is speaking a foreign language no one can understand why she did what she did. Gemma does to a degree but it is more heartache for the family and that lass does not need any more stress.
Do you think this means the end of Dev and Bernie?
I hope not - but maybe it is for now, he feels very let down but I would love to see them get past this and their relationship to develop. I think they do have a spark that could go on and on, it's not without complications but that is fun to play. I would like to think that they have other journeys to go on.
Glenda Young
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4 comments:
I like Bernie...she has redeemed herself somewhat...she's deffo not a Cilla....more like a Janice. Let's see what happens with Devendra
I agree with Bobby Dazzler above. She's certainly become less selfish anyway, but she's still gobby and daft, and that's what makes her hilarious!
I watched her scene in Roy's where she was keeping an eye on Steve to make sure he wasn't stealing the bog roll - hilarious!
Dev and Bernie would be more fun as two mis-matched people who can't keep their hands off each other. I'd hoped Carla and Peter would be this kind of non-couple but the writers teamed them up. And they got dead boring. Dev would be attracted to Bernie's earthiness and raw sexuality. She would find him fun to be with, sophisticated and generous. She might even train him to be a good lover! On the down-side, Dev is very concerned about social standing and Bernie might let him down at the golf club by saying the wrong thing. She would quickly get fed up with his pretentiousness - funny at the moment but eventually tedious. On the hand, the writers can turn them into a wonderfully-matched couple.
Dev is keeping her under wraps because she does not fit the "type" of women he usually sees himself with, he should be reminded that he is getting old too.
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