Shetland Actress Ashley Jensen has given fans a glimpse into what it’s like shooting the series as she opened up about the challenges she faced during filming.
The actress, 55, is set to grace our screens once again tonight as she reprises her role as DI Ruth Calder on the ninth series of the BBC hit show.
She has now become the lead character of the show, taking over from DI Jimmy Pere. The series has been off-air for nearly a whole year, with fans eagerly awaiting a new instalment.
Ahead of the new series, Ashley appeared on Wednesday’s episode of BBC The One show and admitted that at one point her hands ‘stopped working’ as the set was hit with frosty weather.
Speaking to hosts Alex Jones and Vernon Kay, Ashley revealed: “This year we got the proper Shetland weather and we had snow in April and 60-mile-an-hour wind and it was very very cold.”
She continued: "Every time we go to Shetland it’s all pretty much filmed outside because that’s the part we have to show as they are authentic Shetland islands so we had to have heat pads in our pockets.”
Reflecting on one brutal moment, the star went on to say: “At one point we had to shoot a scene where I had to get out of a car and get a phone and house keys out of my pocket and my hands literally stopped working and it was genuine frustration. It was pretty cold.”
Elsewhere, the actress spoke out on another weather challenge she faced while working on the remote island, as she said that she was unable to leave while filming.
She explained: “You can’t get home unless you have five days clear of no filming. You have to stay on the Island because the weather can literally turn at any moment.”
Ashley added: “There could be beautiful sun, then by the time you get to the airport, there is a thing called haar, which is a sea mist that comes down and planes can’t take off or land so they keep you there. But I think that is quite good because it leads to everyone having a bit of camaraderie and everybody getting along.”
Shetland airs from 9pm on BBC One and iPlayer.
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