How real life Scottish murder inspired Netflix smash thriller Dept. Q

Scottish Sun

2 days ago

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ACTRESS Chloe Pirrie studied episodes of BBC Scotland's documentary series Murder Trial to prepare for her dark role as a prosecutor in Netflix smash Dept. Q.
Edinburgh-born Chloe played Merrit Lingard in the gritty nine part series that sees her cross paths with DCI Carl Morck (Matthew Goode) - the cop tasked with setting up the new cold case unit staffed by a bunch of police misfits.
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Chloe Pirrie was inspired by real life murders
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Chloe plays Merritt Lingard in the show
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Renee and Andrew MacRae disappeared in the 1970s
But she got up to speed for the part by watching BBC Scotland's Murder Trials documentaries which charted real-life court cases including Bill McDowell being found guilty for murder of lover Renee MacRae and her three-year-old son Andrew who disappeared in the 1970s.
Chloe, 37, who had previously appeared in the Black Mirror episode The Waldo Moment in 2013, says: 'I did a lot of research around the legal world in Edinburgh.
'The court system there has been televised quite a lot through the BBC documentary series Murder Trial so I could see how it works, and how it feels like a bit of a club.
'Merritt would absolutely exist outside of something like that, and actually be in conflict with it.
'That immediately told me she would be someone who is potentially not well liked – but that she probably doesn't give a s**t that that's the case.'
The series is based on the books Department Q by bestselling Danish author Jussi Adler-Olsen, with their Copenhagen setting swapped for the cobbled streets of Edinburgh.
But in 2020 Chloe appeared in the Netflix miniseries The Queen's Gambit as Alice Harmon, the birth mother of Beth Harmon ( Anya Taylor-Joy)
And that helped her land her major role in Dept. Q - which also stars Trainspotting star Kelly Macdonald - as it was made by the same US director Scott Frank.
She says: 'What attracted me was the chance to work with Scott again after The Queens Gambit.
'He's so wonderful and so supportive of his actors and just a proper class act who helps you work at the highest possible level you can.
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'So he contacted me about the show and sent me the script. I wasn't familiar with the books, so I quickly read them and could see what a great drama they would make.
'Scott's idea also intrigued me of blending a Scandinavian crime noir with a Scottish setting – it felt like it could be a really interesting tonal combination.
'I was also really intrigued by Merritt - she's an enigmatic, strange and flawed person who goes through hell.'
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There are big things ahead for Chloe's character
However, viewers will be in for a shock over what's in store for the high-profile prosecutor.
And the Scot admits she had to do her research for that 'intense' part of her role.
She says: 'For Merritt I spent a lot of time looking into the effects of solitary confinement and what it does to people psychologically, and
'She's made some enemies along the way getting to where she has in her career – and even though a lot of other characters say some brutal things about her - she never behaves like a victim.
'So yes, I really enjoyed playing her, even though sometimes (the role) was horrible to inhabit.'
She adds: 'I try to be careful, you have to be mindful that your body doesn't know the difference between what's real and what isn't when you're putting yourself in an intense state.
'Intellectually you know, but your body doesn't physically understand that it's not happening.
'Often though there comes a point if you're on a long job, where you're so tired and so exhausted that it kind of becomes impossible and you have to surrender to it – and that's what happened filming this.
'I just made sure I gave myself the time I needed to recover afterwards.'
However Chloe admits she found the claustrophobic conditions 'weirdly comforting'.
She explained: 'It was an incredible set design and it really was a small space which felt very immersive.
'Those scenes were weirdly comforting. There's a kind of freedom that comes from surrendering to the horrific circumstances Merritt finds herself in.
'I think she finds her pure self. She's completely shed her social and relational life and is in survival mode. I felt strangely at home there.'
Despite the trauma Chloe hopes that Merritt will return for another instalment after the success of Dept. Q which has rocketed to the top of the Netflix charts.
She says: 'It was really cool, especially because Edinburgh is one of these cities where there's a version that the tourists experience but there's also parts of it that people don't necessarily see – parts where people live with massive wealth disparity.
'So what I love about the show is you're really seeing Edinburgh – all of it - in a very true way.
'I really enjoyed seeing the city I'm from portrayed in a three dimensional way.
'I also loved working with my own accent and being able to offer up really specific Edinburgh sayings. It was quite a full circle moment for me.
'So if it's right for her to come back, then absolutely.'
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The cast is a who's who of Scottish talent