Nigel Harman and Samantha Womack talk about joining the cast of Mount Pleasant for the third series. It's possible they haven't taken some of their questions all that seriously...

Hi Nigel and Samantha. Can you tell us about your characters Tanya and Bradley?

Nigel: I play Tanya. I'm a bipolar kleptomaniac.

Samantha: You stole my answer.

Nigel: I'm very vivacious and flirty.

Samantha: I'm Bradley and I'm quite percussive.

Nigel: Bradley lives in the grey areas of life in terms of legality. He's a bit of a chancer and a brilliant salesman, but he does have a fiery temper. He loves his wife and family more than anything and when things become a bit touch-and-go in London he takes them all to Manchester to protect them. He's very open and friendly, although I wouldn't cross him.

Samantha: No, I wouldn't either. Tanya lives in the moment. She's good with jazz-hands. I like her to waft in and out of a room. She's as surprised as everyone else at the chaos she causes.

Did you know each other before Mount Pleasant?

Nigel: Not really, we just knew of each other and we have jobs in common. We weren't on EastEnders together and we both did Guys & Dolls in the theatre but, again, not at the same time. We met back then and we have friends in common.

Samantha: I wrote to him consistently.

Nigel: Sam sent me a lot of fan mail. It got a bit embarrassing when I'd see her outside of my bedroom window waving. I begged her to go home for ten years.

Samantha: I feel like I've known Nigel for a long time. We have very easy banter.

Nigel:: Sam's name on the cast list was one of the reasons I joined the project. If you're going to play a husband and wife, you want to do it with someone you get along with.

Samantha: I didn't know initially who'd be playing Bradley which made me a little nervous. I was very pleased it when it turned out to be Nigel.

Nigel: We had to hit the ground running with filming. If we had met in real life before Mount Pleasant, we would have probably been polite to each other for longer but we've just dispensed with all that. It works for us and our characters.

Samantha: From the very first scene we had a rhythm.

Rumour has it the Mount Pleasant cast are a lively bunch. Was there a fun atmosphere on set?

Nigel: After filming there's a lot of discussion to analyse the finer points of the craft over a few scooners.

Samantha: We're all there bright and early with our lines learned.

Nigel: Some are brighter and earlier than others. I think the make-up artists sometimes have a hell of a job in the morning trying to make us look like we're alive or sober. We do have a really good time and you want that to translate on-screen. The pace of filming is really quick over long hours. We work hard and we play a little bit harder.

Samantha: I was researching my character. In all seriousness, because we're joining three series in, there can be awkwardness if you don't know your cast members. It's hard to manufacture a connection on screen without getting to know your colleague so if you do that socially it makes work more fun.

Nigel: It's team bonding. We should have gone to Magaluf for a week to really fuse as a unit.

Samantha: I don't think they'd have us.

Can you give us any teasers about the storylines in the series ahead?

Nigel: The boundaries of acceptable social behaviour are overstepped by Tanya, and Bradley isn't very happy about it. We get to see his shadier side come out. He has a history. It makes Tanya question where she's at with her family. We get into trouble then realise we all love each other and try to stick it all back together, but sometimes it doesn't seem possible.

Samantha: Usually Bradley throws Tanya on the kitchen table and then everything works out fine.