Jamie-Lee O’Donnell: ‘I Feel Comfortable Making Mistakes’

Jamie-Lee O’Donnell has that unmistakable mix of confidence and wit that made Derry Girls’ Michelle so iconic. Since the show wrapped, the Derry native has continued to bring that energy to every project, and her latest role in Baz Ashmawy’s Faithless is no exception.

Created by Ashmawy, the series is a heartfelt comedy that has many moments of warmth, chaos and the kind of high energy fun Jamie-Lee thrives on. Jamie-Lee plays the character of Chloe in this new season, who she says “is a bit of a lunatic” as we chat to her about the world of Faithless, finding balance and why she’ll always be proud of her Derry roots.

Jamie-Lee’s brand of quick wit and honesty was made for this comedy-drama. The show follows newly widowed father Sam (Ashmawy), as he navigates family life with work and all the chaos, madness and heartfelt moments that comes with the family’s new reality. Jamie-Lee makes an appearance for the second season as Sam’s boss, who she says is “a bit nuts”.

Jamie-Lee took the role “at the very start of the year while I was still living in Derry and I loved the script, loved the character. (Chloe) is a bit mental and I saw it as a fun way to start the year”. Jamie-Lee describes the series as a “high-craic comedy”, with the heart of the show being “about different family dynamics and the unbreakable bond that they all have”.

This was Jamie-Lee’s first time working alongside Baz. She says his comedic writing style built “rollercoaster types of episodes that are really fun and that tone of comedy can go anywhere, it sets you up for something quite unknown. It really takes a certain type of writer and thinking to incorporate that into scripts.”

With the series filled with comedic moments, Jamie-Lee says that that “Baz always came in smiling” and had a very “open energy” which kept a good flow during filming and in between takes. “With my scenes as Chloe, they can go very left of field and become tense quite quickly and because of that there was a certain energy. Baz was very good at maintaining that with me throughout which was always helpful with my performance.”

Faithless touches on many different aspects of a new modern Ireland. Jamie-Lee praises the show for its authenticity and portraying these storylines with “a real heart and positive intent,” allowing the audience to reflect “no matter their understanding of TV and film.”

@virginmedia_television First Look: Faithless 👨‍👨‍👧‍👧 Coming this October to Virgin Media Play & Virgin Media One #vmtv #faithless ♬ original sound – Virgin Media Television

“When people know that it comes from a place of lived experiences and know it’s full of heart and good intention, which Faithless does, it makes it so fun and the laughs so high because the foundations of the characters are so honest. It allows viewers to get in there right away and connect with the show,” she says.

After filming, Jamie-Lee decided that she “needed some sun” and packed her bags for Spain. She jokes that “between Faithless and other projects, what I thought would be a year full of sunshine has actually been a year travelling between Ireland and England. Knowing that I was coming back to live in Spain, I was quite happy to soak up as much Irishness as possible, so I didn’t mind having to stay back home in Ireland.”

Still, no matter where she’s based, one thing Jamie-Lee will never leave behind is her Derry accent. Before her appearance as Michelle in Derry Girls she said, “there was often the question if I should use my accent or not because people weren’t sure if they could understand it”, but ever since Derry Girls became a worldwide success, she is always being asked to keep her accent. “I always joke that if I [auditioned] for something on the moon, they would say – be from Derry!”

 

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“When I took the role as Chloe, I don’t even remember having a conversation about my accent, it just felt natural to keep it,” she says. “It’s an Irish show and the character is Irish. The company could potentially be international so for her to be from another county fits quite well. It’s a great feeling and something that I am very proud of.”

That pride in her roots extends beyond her accent and us part of a wider confidence Jamie-Lee’s been building on over the years. After Baz called her a “heavyweight actor”, she replied saying that she doesn’t think that necessarily, but feels extremely confident in what she does.

“I’ve put a lot of work into my mental health and doing therapy just trying to become the best version of myself possible and to have a peaceful life,” she says. “I feel really confident in myself and in my career, and I love my job, so I try and bring that energy into any set I am on. It has taken me ages, don’t get me wrong, but I do feel comfortable in who I am and my choices and I feel comfortable in making mistakes.”

Faithless is on air every Wednesday at 11pm on Virgin Media, and the full series will be available to watch on Virgin Media Player.