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Last Seen star Maxine Peake on Jenna's secrets – and her rejected Australian accent
Peake's role was always imagined as an Englishwoman in Australia – but what led her so far from home?
- David Craig
Published: Wednesday, 9 September 2026 at 8:00 am
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Maxine Peake has shared thoughts on her Last Seen character's unseen backstory – and detailed her rejected accent for the Australian drama.
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The new thriller, which premieres today on Apple TV, follows Ian Ridley (Patrick Brammall) as he seeks out the truth about his long-missing daughter.
The series is less a whodunnit than a 'whydunnit', as it quickly introduces Jenna (Peake) and Henry (Brendan Cowell); a pious and reclusive couple who have raised the girl as their own.
They live a simple life in the countryside: growing their own produce, leaving their property sparingly, using only basic technology and keeping devout faith.
But how does a Mancunian woman wind up living such an unconventional life in rural Victoria? It's a thought that crossed Peake's mind during filming.
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"I think these two very damaged people, not quite knowing how to live and trying to thrash it out, have created this idyll that is very fragile in many ways," she told Radio Times.
"But they don't see that. There's obviously outside forces that are constantly pressing on it that they have managed to push to the periphery."
Peake questioned: "Why is this woman in Australia? Why has she stayed?
"There was a tentative story in the script, originally, about [how] we inherited the house from one of my relatives," she revealed. "A relative who'd gone out there, maybe [Jenna] followed in their footsteps...
"I just felt that she was running away from her family, as Henry was running away from his family, and that's where I think the connection came from."
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Peake went on to say that, when she first read the Last Seen scripts, she had assumed that her character would be Australian – and was prepared to attempt a fitting accent.
However, she laughed that "nobody" would approve, with the prevailing message from above being that she should just use her usual speaking voice.
The three-time BAFTA nominee said: "I was going to do the Brit who'd lived in Australia for a while, with the inflection, and they went, 'No, everyone will just think you're doing a really bad Australian accent. Just stick to what you know, Peake!'."
Despite her accent work being declined, Peake shared that she feels "quite at home in Australia" – largely due to a kinship with the people.
"There's something I think about – and this is a sweeping statement – but there's a directness and an honesty to, I think, the Australians, which as a northerner I can relate to and appreciate," she reflected.
Last Seen premieres on Apple TV on Wednesday 9 September 2026. New episodes weekly.
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Authors
David CraigSenior Drama Writer
David Craig is the Senior Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering the latest and greatest scripted drama and comedy across television and streaming. Previously, he worked at Starburst Magazine, presented The Winter King Podcast for ITVX and studied Journalism at the University of Sheffield.
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