Daniela Denby-Ashe has moved on from EastEnders to become pouting and stroppy Janey in My Family. Now she's headstrong heroine Margaret in the BBC adaptation of the novel North And South. Steve Pratt reports.

GOING back to the 19th century wasn't without its problems for former EastEnders actress Daniela Denby-Ashe. Four years in Albert Square as Sarah Hills hadn't prepared her for working in a cotton mill in the BBC's new period drama North And South, based on Elizabeth Gaskell's novel.

The heart of the story revolves around Northern cotton mill owner John Thornton (Richard Armitage) and privileged Southerner Margaret Hale (Denby-Ashe, who also appeared in BBC comedy My Family). The two worlds collide when the Hale family move from Hampshire to Greater Manchester.

Recreating the sense of working in a mill was far from easy. Cast and crew installed themselves in a museum in Helmshaw, Lancashire, which contains a working cotton mill. The scenes give an idea of how hard and unhealthy it was for the workers of the era. Not only was the noise deafening, but there was cotton flying around everywhere. In the adaptation it looks like it's permanently snowing inside the mill.

"They had most of the machines running and there are no guards in front of them so it was incredibly dangerous," says 26-year-old Denby-Ashe. "And you couldn't hear anything over the machinery. Everything - action, cut etc - was done with cards. There was one point where I was shouting, 'Go again' but no one could hear.

"We didn't have real cotton flying about, it's really flammable. We used a combination of burning paper and candles. We wore masks in between takes. The paper went down your throat and would stick, it wasn't very pleasant for most of the crew. And it got extremely hot in that room.''

Despite these working conditions, she relished every moment of working on the project and threw herself into the research.

"There was so much to take in because of the sets, the heat, effects and the costumes. Reading the novel helped because it's written from Margaret's point of view. It was more about manners and etiquette, not that Margaret really abided by those rules. All that went out of the window.

"Margaret's quite modern for that time. She's very opinionated and won't back down. She really believes in what she says, whereas I think women of her era would generally keep quiet and do as they were told."

The actress had to wear corsets ten hours a day for three-and-a-half months. She knows that a lot of actresses find it really uncomfortable but she loved it. "The clothing changes the way you move," she explains.

She had her hair dyed dark brown for the part and likes it so much that she's going to keep it that way. "I feel really comfortable with it," she adds.

A drama of such a huge scale was quite a difference from soap and sitcom. "I didn't think about the size of the project. I put that to one side and got on with it," she says. "When I left EastEnders I had no idea what was round the corner. It was my decision to leave. I thought it would be my mistake if nothing came of it.

"When I first left, being labelled was definitely something I was aware of. I knew it wouldn't be easy to walk into a room and no-one know what I'd done before - people would have pre-conceived ideas as to what I'd be like.

"It was hard in some ways, but I think My Family helped me out. People knew I could do something different. Hopefully North And South will prove that again. It was just a dream come true.

"I hope that the story and the characters are real enough for viewers not to think about me having been in EastEnders or My Family and that I can portray the character as she's meant to be."

In the opening episode it's clear that there's an attraction between Margaret and John but their differences overwhelm any amorous intentions. Over four parts, little by little, they becoming increasingly aware of their feelings.

"There's always been an underlying thing between Margaret and Thornton. She obviously thinks he's attractive, but his actions outdo what she thinks of him in a sexual way. She's in denial of her feelings for quite a long time.

"In the end they accept that they're different and make huge compromises to get together. You can't help it when you feel that way, no matter what the circumstances are." She ended up loving the character and her journey. "She goes from being this 19-year-old naive girl to an open young woman," she says.

* North And South begins on Sunday on BBC1 at 9pm.

Published: 11/11/2004