Natasha Hodgson
Having just finished her first full week of (very successful) previews of Operation Mincemeat, we’re welcoming the hilarious and smart co-writer / star of the show, Natasha Hodgson. She plays (among many other characters), the vivacious and (overly)-confident Ewen Montague, who is an integral part of the story.
In a past life (before Mincemeat got off the ground) she worked in corporate London and it’s fair to say that her life has changed substantially since the fateful day she and the other members of SpitLip (David Cumming, Felix Hagan and Zoe Roberts) decided to write a musical.
Read our full interview with Tash below – we could all do with some of her delusional optimism! It always works out in the end.
What do you consider to be your best asset?
An optimism that borders on delusional
What was your proudest moment?
Dead heat between us winning the Olivier for Best New Musical and the time a plumber told me I’d correctly replaced a bottle trap
What is your favorite drink?
Expensive red wine after something either incredibly good or quite bad has happened
What is your favorite food?
The celebration/commiseration cheese I am eating with the wine I mentioned earlier
What is your favorite condiment?
Do pickles count as condiments? A jar of pickles? An entire jar of pickles.
What is your current obsession?
I am currently listening to “Why” from Tick Tick Boom probably 5 times a day. I loved that movie so much when it came out, and for anyone who writes songs, or theatre, or maybe anything at all, it just slices through your heart. There are a lot of good songs in it, but the one about making stupid art with your friends and being lost in the story and the work, and then looking up blinking at the evening light smiling and saying “hey, what a way to spend a day” – oh man, I’m welling up just thinking about it.
If you could give up one of your vices, what would it be?
You’ll never take my vices!
What is the one professional accomplishment you long for most?
I want to make a really, really good soufflé. Like, worryingly good. So few treats in life can be pivoted to celebrate either cheese or chocolate, and I am humbled by both.
Not technically a professional accomplishment, but I tend to prefer focusing on things I have control over. It makes the madness die!
What is the one thing you waste too much money on?
Video games that I play for one hour and then am too impatient to excel at and just get furious instead 🙁
What is the one activity you waste too much time doing?
Shouting “BUT THIS IS LITERALLY IMPOSSIBLE” at the practice level of a video game I have just bought
What do you consider to be the single greatest threat to your health?
My instinct to turn to cheese as a reaction to absolutely anything that happens
What’s the single best trait you inherited or learned from your parents?
Just going for it! Don’t think about it! Figure it out later!
What’s the single worst trait you inherited or learned from your parents?
Just going for it! Don’t think about it! Figure it out later!
What in the world most thrills you?
Making my friends laugh
What current trend in popular culture most irritates you?
Listening to podcasts on 2x speed. That shouldn’t even be an option. It’s inhuman. There is simply no reason that anything needs to be as fast as that, you are creating your own mental illness doing it – either hear people at their own pace or not at all by god!
What was the most embarrassing moment you’ve ever experienced on the job?
I was once dressed in a full Yeti costume in a shop for a FatFace promotional day and a teenage boy threatened to dropkick me.
What is your favorite place in the world?
Being on the sofa with my friends under a blanket as we carefully discuss why a tv show is so good
What is the most important trait you seek in a romantic partner?
Full clean drivers license, no snake
Do you prefer the company of dogs or cats?
Dogs socially, cats for business
What would have to happen to make today the best day of your life?
It’s warm and sunny outside, someone has brought snacks, that show we watched last night was so great and let me tell you why – no first lets get another bottle no no this one’s on me
What is your personal motto?
It’s all funny eventually