Joanna Christie

Joanna Christie

Age:

Currently: Making her West End debut as Jill Mason in the revival of Peter Shaffer's Equus. Jill, a stable girl, becomes involved with her co-worker, Alan Strang (played by Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe), who commits an appalling crime of blinding horses. "So many factors in Alan's life combine to make this one terrible event happen," Christie points out, "but the night with Jill is the thing that pushes him over the edge. When his obsession for horses and that whole teenage thing of finding sex and love for the first time combine, it erupts and he flips out.”

Hometown: "I'm originally from Huddersfield in West Yorkshire", says Christie. "But from the age of 13, I went away to school in Northamptonshire. I came to London to go to drama school when I was 18." She now lives in Shoreditch.

Early Aspirations: Christie performed in amateur productions and local pantos as a child. “I wanted to go to stage school,” she says, “but my parents were adamant that I got an all-round education first, which I am now very grateful for. They supported me in my decision to go to drama school after that." She auditioned extensively for drama school. "I got on a waiting list for a couple, but then I got into Mountview, and it was either a case of taking a year out and trying again the next year for the others, or to take the place I'd been offered. I wanted to get on with it and start becoming an actress, so I took the place." She did a three-year degree training that resulted in a BA in performance.

Daniel Radcliffe and  Joanne Christie in Equus

Springboard: From the age of 17 and through drama school, Christie continued an association with the National Youth Theatre, a company dedicated to young talent. This provided the actress with some unusual experiences, including a play she did with them just after finishing drama school: "It was called Immaculate Conceit and was a new play at the Lyric Hammersmith,” she recalls. “I was playing a lap dancer who became pregnant with the next messiah. I was the next Virgin Mary!" Despite its provocative premise, the show opened many opportunities for Christie. "It was a good springboard into the business, as my agent was able to bring casting directors to see me in it," she says. She soon started getting work. "I did lots of different things, radio, telly and theatre, and then I went away to India with a theatre company to perform in a production of A Midsummer Night's Dream there.” She finished the five-month tour of the piece just over a year ago.

Coming Back to a Blank Slate: "I didn't realise how hard it would be after being out of town for five months—people forget about you a bit, so it seemed very quiet for a long time,” Christie says. "Audition-wise, it seemed very quiet and depressingly so. I got to a point where I thought, 'This isn't working, and I'm not going to waste my life on it if it’s not going to happen'. I got to a low point and decided that I'd better move in a different direction. I got a job in PR, which I didn't like at all, but I thought it might be a means to an end."

Last Chance: Christie's agent called during this depressing time. "It told her I wasn't sure I could carry on doing this,” she says. “It all seemed so futile. She asked me to go to this one last audition. I did, but I didn't get that job either.” However, the casting director who saw her got in touch again a few weeks later about Equus. "They rang me up on a Friday to come in on Monday to audition. I did and didn't think it went well, so I threw the script away. But then they rang me on Tuesday and asked me to come back that day—to read with Daniel! I was at work, so I printed the script off again, looked at the lines again, and went over in my lunch break." Was she daunted to be reading with the star? "It was too quick for that,” she cries. “I didn't have time to think about it.”

Meeting the Wizard: Everyone wants to know: What was it like to meet Radcliffe? “He's so down to earth and normal,” Christie beams. “He doesn't make you feel nervous. There's nothing starry about him. He's one in a million. He's 17 and he's had such an extraordinary life—he could be a nightmare and so messed up by his bizarre teenage years, living on a massive film set and having enormous global fame. But he's so lovely and such a gentleman and so polite and intelligent. He's an amazing guy." Is Christie aware that she's now the envy of every Harry Potter fan? "I was a bit scared of the jealous fans,” she admits, but they've all been lovely so far."

Joanna Christie and Daniel Radcliffe

Going Nude: What about the prospect of having to appear naked? The actress knew from the beginning that full nudity would be required. “ It's such a great opportunity to work on such a great play with such great people that there was no way I was going to turn it down because I had to be naked,” Christie exclaims “It's been liberating. Everyone has a human body—it's nothing new! All my friends who have seen [the show] have said that the scene isn't shocking, gratuitous or in your face but very subtle and natural and lovely, as it should be." And she's not, after all, alone on stage naked. "Whatever I'm feeling about it, it's a million times worse for Daniel. The pressure on him was very big, but we're doing it together and we both feel very supported by each other. We got on with each other from the word go and trust each other totally, which we need to do to be able to do the scene."