Was it really Annie Griffin who first picked up on your potential for comedy?
She saw me in a production ofAbandonmentby Kate Atkinson at The Traverse Theatre directed by John Tiffany.
He cast me as a ghost up the back of the stage.
There I was floating around in Victorian garb trying to be all sombre.
Slapstick has often been a trademark of your TV characters.
Do you feel that kind of clowning comedy garners the respect it deserves now?
From the public, or from other actors?
I gave up trying to garner respect a long time ago now.
What appealed to you about the web series format forHeathers American Medicine?
Freedom of speech mainly.
We live in an increasingly restricted world when it comes to expressing oneself.
So we wanted to create a fearless character thats always teetering on the brink of political incorrectness.
Amy Poehler-producedBroad Citywent from web to TV recently).
They can stand alone too, though?
Was Heather a collaboration, or your own creation?
It was a collaboration with the very talentedJesse Cleverly.
He takes credit for the writing.
I threw some rough ideas down on paper and he created all the scripts.
Are there other Michelle Gomez characters, like Heather, waiting in the wings for their own vehicle?
How about your Psychobitches characters?
Are they created between the actors and Jeremy Dyson, or performed from his script?
Can you come to him and say I really want to do Thatcher, for instance?
Whose idea was it to play Mary Queen Of Scots as a methadone addict?
Jeremy Dyson is another one of those incredible brains that delivers these incredible characters.
All I had to do was pop on a wig and say it.
My favorites by far were Mary Queen of Scots and Thatcher.
None of this was my doing, I am a mere puppet for the words.
Im an actor and nothing without the script.
Is that more or less likely now that Missy is so well-known?
I def dont want to fall down a coal mine that would be very dull and dark.
Mark me as you will.
So I get to do the bonkers bit.
Have you noticed a difference in the parts youre going up for now, in the months afterDoctor Whoaired?
Are you being seen for more family-friendly roles?
Check outThe Brinkon HBO coming out here June 21st.
Looking back now, what doesGreen Wingmean to you career-wise?
That was my breakout moment I guess.
When I finally got to do what I wanted.
Im not cut out for kitchen sink dramas although id give it a go if asked.
Green Wingwas known for having a lot of room for improvisation.
Did you ever improvise anything as Sue White that they wouldnt or couldnt use?
That show was ground breaking because there wasnt anything they wouldnt use.
Fearless pioneers!!!
Do you have any plans to return to stand-up?
There will be no returning because there was no arriving in the first place.
That was the only stand up I have ever done.
Id always wanted to try it, but I didnt expect to still be talking about it today.
Someone filmed it and put it on You tube and now Im a stand up?
I gave it a go.
How do you walk that fine line in the performance?
Its mostly in the writing and partly in the delivery.
Every good psychopath has to believe what they are doing is for the greater good I guess.
Is that something you stand by?
The Master is like theatrical saffron, you just need a light sprinkling here and there.
Everyones so over exposed these days.
Who cares what I had for breakfast??!!
That said, she would absolutely turn up to meet the Queen.
Lets start the Missy meet Queenie campaign.
All Scottish airports were closed down that weekend so I couldnt get up.
But maybe it was Missy that was meant to meet her and not me.
How closely did you monitor the online guessing game with regards Missy?
I dont monitor it that closely, some of it gets through to me.
I do like the idea that Mary Poppins is the most evil woman in the universe.
Peter Capaldi tried lots of different looks for his Doctor before settling on the buttoned-up shirt.
How much input did you have into things like Missys Scary Poppins costume?
Were there alternatives before that one was settled on?
No I didnt get a choice, and Im glad I didnt because it works so well.
I will say this though, wouldnt it be nice for Missy to bust out that corset?!
Steven Moffat said he wrote the part around you.
You emailed him asking for a villainess role after having to turn down a different role in series 8.
Was it an instant yes when the second offer came?
Are you kidding me?!
When my agent rang to tell me the news, she told me to sit down first.
Its not lost on me how huge it is to change gender for The Master.
Its a huge honour and one I intend to savor every minute of.
For a lady of my advancing years its a huge gift to be given such a kick ass role.
Next well have a female President.
Well if the UK can do it why not the US.
You once described Steven Moffats writing onDoctor Whoas having a casual cruelty as well as wit and humour.
Were you thinking of anything in particular when you said that?
When Missy just blasts people with no remorse but asks them to say something nice first, its outrageous.
But we love it!!!
Michelle Gomez, thank you very much!
Find out more about Heathers American Medicine and Wildseed Comedy,here.
