The Thursday Murder Club’s Helen Mirren reveals "real chemistry" with co-star: "Pierce is my wonderful late discovery"

It was a wonderful coming together of the tribe – one of those magical moments in a career. Ben and I started out together in the Royal Shakespeare Company, both ambitious and obsessed. Celia and I became really good friends on Calendar Girls [2003]. I didn’t know Pierce before making this and the Paramount+ series MobLand, but we both did street theatre before he went off and became a massive movie star with James Bond. There was a synchronicity.

How did you and Pierce behave with each other on those two different shoots?

They are totally different characters, but Pierce and I have a very similar way of working, which is serious without being too serious about ourselves. Neither of us is what you would call a method actor. We find a nice, comfortable seat to sit in with our scripts and just chill together. Pierce is my wonderful late discovery. I’d like to work with Pierce for the rest of my life. I feel that we have a real chemistry.

Is sexual attraction a necessary part of that on-screen chemistry?

There is a bit of that in there, but it’s never the whole thing. Strangely, people with great sexual attraction to each other off-screen can have absolutely nothing on-screen. It’s very weird. And people who really don’t like each other off- screen can have this amazing sexual attraction that the audience can perceive. I guess viewers misread the loathing that they have for each other in real life as a frisson of attraction.

Is Elizabeth’s steeliness, as you portray her, protection against her fear of ageing?

Possibly. Elizabeth’s loss of her dear friend in The Thursday Murder Club is intrinsic to the story and it’s heartbreaking. And as you get older, like me, you must confront these tragedies. They come in the most unexpected of ways: sometimes it’s not the person you expect to lose that you lose. You have no idea what’s coming down the line, but it’s getting closer and closer. You could seriously get your knickers in a twist about that, but you just can’t.

Would you be game to get involved in more Thursday Murder Club adventures?

In a nanosecond. And it would be the team getting back together, which would be great. We did have a wonderful time shooting this. So all of us would jump at the chance, quite honestly.

The latest issue of Radio Times is out now – subscribe here.

Check out more of our Film coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.