Storm force

BRENDAN GLEESON took home the American Emmy award for outstanding lead actor in a TV mini-series or movie for his portrayal of Winston Churchill, but he had initial doubts about taking the role in the drama Into The Storm.

‘‘There was never a real ‘yeah! I definitely want to go and act in that’, I was very worried about it to be honest,’’ admits Gleeson.

With Churchill as such an icon, Gleeson was unsure whether he’d be able to do the character justice in the sequel to the 2002 film The Gathering Storm.

‘‘I didn’t know if I was going to be able to do it or whether it was a bridge too far,”

he says. “I wasn’t sure what my relationship with this character could be. So, we did a camera test at the outset – for both me and the producers, to see whether me playing Churchill was just a daft notion.’’ Pleased with the outcome, the 54-yearold actor agreed to the role, but his biggest concern was whether he’d be able to hide his Irish accent and be believable as the wartime Prime Minister.

His voice coach, he says, “was my saviour”

as she worked with him for two weeks before filming began.

“At the beginning, she asked me whether I was looking forward to the role. I said: ‘Absolutely not, I have a ball of dread in my stomach and I don’t think it will go away and I don’t believe a word coming out of my mouth’.’’ Luckily for Gleeson, his acting experience kicked in and he soon found he was improving: ‘‘By the second week I had a little run where I thought, ‘Actually, I kind of believed that’. The real test was whether I was able to get hold of Churchill’s private intimate voice. It had to be perfect, otherwise it wasn’t going to work. That’s where the terror was.”

Gleeson also had to tackle his own opinions of Churchill. In the 1991 film The Treaty, he played Irish politician Michael Collins who battled with Churchill over the Anglo-Irish Treaty.

‘‘I knew how it felt to be on the other side of Churchill’s wrath and will. I was wondering, ‘Why am I taking this role?’ I knew I’d have to shed some baggage if I was going to do it honestly.’’ ‘‘It was very interesting, having played Collins, who sat facing Churchill across HOW do the lyrics of that song go?

Something like: “Pick yourself up, dust yourself down and start all over again.” Contestants rejected by the public on both Strictly Come Dancing and The X Factor would do well to pay attention and follow that advice.

Former Footballers’ Wives actress Zoe Lucker, pictured, did just that on Strictly.

Pushed into the bottom two by the public vote, she twirled her way to victory in the danceoff and put it behind her to come back strongly last week.

Well done, Zoe.

Unfortunately, her reprieve was only temporary, as she found herself back in the bottom two and eventually out of the competition altogether on Saturday.

But she showed true grit.

She didn’t let public rejection get her down. Unlike Danyl, who found himself in the lion’s den – as I like to view the crazy media circus surrounding The X Factor – after ending up in the bottom two last week.

He survived the sing-off, only to face another public slagging off in the following days as he was branded the most unpopular X Factor contestant ever. Someone went as far as to claim he was more unpopular than Hitler. It could have been worse – he could have been called more unpopular than Gordon Brown.

Instead of cocky Danyl from previous shows, we were presented (on mentor Simon Cowell’s orders, I bet) with humble Danyl, who looked like he was on the verge of tears every time his press cuttings were mentioned. And, believe me, the other judges and presenter Dermot O’Leary weren’t slow in reminding Danyl how unpopular he was as part of the mind games (as Cowell called them) played to ensure their acts do well.

I’m with Cheryl Cole on this one, despite her bizarre dress choice on Saturday. She noted that the public vote – or rather, lack of it – was because Danyl hadn’t connected with the audience.

She and Dannii Minogue have told him previously not to be so cocky.

HE’S a great stage performer who knows how to put over a song, but I get the feeling he’s doing it for himself, to show anyone listening just how brilliant he can be. He just doesn’t seem to care about the audience, just himself. Maybe that’s the mark of a great artist, but it won’t win him any votes. I fear his time on The X Factor may be limited.

Back on Strictly, Hollyoaks actor Ricky Whittle scored 39 out of 40 and a standing ovation for his quickstep, denied a perfect score only by Craig Revel-Horwood’s nine.

With Zoe and Ali failing to get enough votes to keep them out of the dance-off, head judge Len Goodman was able to mutter and splutter about it being ludicrous and nonsensical that two such good dancers should end up bottom of the leader board after the public vote.

He must know that you can’t trust the public. Being bad doesn’t stop people liking you.

Look at John & Edward, the terrible twins on The X Factor who’ve had more publicity than Danyl and Hitler put together.

Despite many finding them irritating and their singing poor (although I did hear several notes in tune on their chaotic version of We Will Rock You), they’re real crowd-pleasers.

Danyl should take note. Get a ridiculous hairstyle and sing poorly – and then he might just win over the public.

Last dance: Zoe Lucker and James Jordan Last song: Rachel Adedeji Steve Pratt Tonight’sTV By Steve Pratt email: steve.pratt@nne.co.uk the table in The Treaty, and then to switch chairs. It’s like an old acting exercise, where people have to switch roles.

When you’re in someone’s corner, you’ve got to fight for them. I had to leave behind some pre-conceptions.

His respect for Churchill grew as he delved further into his character. ‘‘His faults really were his strengths and his strengths really were his faults. He had a bull-headedness and determination to push things through. If you’re on the end of it, it doesn’t feel too good. If he’s actually stopping a savage like Hitler, it’s pretty fantastic to have him on your side,”

says Gleeson.

The film addresses how once the war was over and the troops returned home, Conservative Churchill didn’t publicly pursue a welfare state like the Labour Party did, a move which cost him his job.

Yet Gleeson doesn’t think he lost the connection with the British population.

“Going through the Blitz and talking to people gave him a fantastic common touch, but at the same time he did like the hierarchy structure that was in place and thought that, fundamentally, it worked.

“He introduced social reforms in the early years and was very conscious of the fact he wanted to treat people fairly, but he was part of an old order.’’