Dawn French has revealed she was once up for a part in the big screen adaption of ‘Mamma Mia!’, but things went awry at the final hurdle.
Despite being told she was pretty much guaranteed a role, things got seriously awkward for the actress and comedian during her audition.
Dawn recalls the moment when things took a turn for the worse during Friday’s (8 Dec) ‘Graham Norton Show’.
“I was asked to read for the part and was told it was pretty much mine,” she explained.
“I just had to do a musical audition but it was definitely in the bag. Everyone at the audition was lovely and chatty with me until I sang.
“I was so nervous that I couldn’t sing at all – it was terrible and as I left the room, all those people that had been so lovely to me were just staring at the table and no one said a word.
“By the time I got downstairs my agent had texted to say, ‘This just isn’t going to work love!’”
Which does make you wonder how Pierce Brosnan bagged such a major (singing) role in the hugely successful film.
During the same interview, Dawn also talks about the forthcoming French And Saunders Christmas special, ‘300 Years of French and Saunders’, the comedy duo’s first sketch show in ten years.
She said: “We filmed in front of a live audience. The capacity of the studio was 300 people and 35,000 applied for tickets! There is life in the old girls yet!”
The show will air on BBC One on Christmas Day at 10.35pm.
‘The Graham Norton Show’, BBC One, Friday 8 December 10.35pm.