28 S MAGAZINE ★ 26 MAY 2019
Gayle
Actress Michelle Gayle is casting
her spell over theatre audiences,
playing Hermione in Harry Potter
Words by Rachel Corcoran
W
hen it comes
to talent,
Michelle Gayle
is as versatile
as they come.
At 16 she was playing a rapper
in Grange Hill, two years later
she was in EastEnders as Hattie
Tavernier, one of the Square’s first
black families, before leaving to
launch a successful pop career
in 1993. She had seven top 40
singles, including Sweetness and
Do You Know, received three BRIT
nominations then went on to
challenge people’s perceptions by
playing Belle in 1999’s West End
production of Beauty And The Beast.
She has been a finalist in reality
shows Reborn In The USA and The
Games, she’s often heard voicing
her opinion on Loose Women or
the Jeremy Vine show, has written
a book – Pride And Premiership- for teenagers and has managed
to fit in having two children.
There’s a reason Michelle has
many strings to her bow, and we’ll
come to that later, but it is linked
to her latest role, which we are
meeting to talk about at London’s
Palace Theatre. Again, her role
contrasts with most people’s idea
of what a well-loved character
looks like, but fortunately, she
hasn’t had the sort of negative
comments she got for Belle. She
is playing Hermione Granger in the
two-part play Harry Potter And The
Cursed Child, set 19 years on from
the final novel, Harry Potter And
The Deathly Hallows.
“Hermione is such an iconic
character and the chance to work
with the writer Jack Thorne, the
director John Tiffany and JK
Rowling, you can’t say no,” says
Michelle. “I want to learn from
the best people – and they’re
a triumvirate of super people.
“I had five auditions and each
one I got a bit more nervous and
excited about. Then, once you’re
in, you think, ‘I’ll never pull this
off.’ It’s such a test and very
few actresses, especially black
actresses, get the chance to have
that range on show. The fact she
is so well loved is the scary bit
because everyone has a Hermione
in their head. You have to do her
justice. There was a furore about
me playing the first black Belle in
Beauty And The Beast 20 years
ago, but fortunately I’ve only had
positive reactions to this.
“There was never any reference
to Hermione’s ethnicity in the
books, but because Emma Watson
played her in the films, there’s an
assumption there.”
Michelle’s most positive
reactions have come from sons
Isaiah, 19, whose father is her
first husband Mark Bright, and
Luke, seven, her child with husband
of eight years Tony Lynch.
“I’ve watched all the films with
my eldest but have caught up
with them recently because my