Fans of The Split were bereft when it was announced The Split season 3 would be its last. So you can imagine their joy - and ours - when the BBC confirmed the cast had reunited for a two-part special called The Split: Barcelona, which sees Nicola Walker’s formidable divorce lawyer Hannah Defoe and her family gather for a beautiful wedding. And What To Watch was on the guest list!
Two years on from series three, The Split Barcelona sees Hannah, her sisters Nina (Annabel Scholey) and Rose (Fiona Button), their mother Ruth (Deborah Findlay) and Hannah’s now ex-husband Nathan (Stephen Mangan) descend on a magnificent vineyard, in Catalonia’s wine region, as Hannah and Nathan’s eldest daughter Liv (Elizabeth Roberts) prepares to wed her Spanish beau, Gael (Alex Guersman). As Hannah wonders if she herself might ever find love again, can family lawyer Archie Moore (Black Sails’ Toby Stephens) encourage her to take a leap of faith?
As the cast and crew gather on a very windy Platja de Canyadell, a picturesque beach situated in the town of Torredembarra for filming, What To Watch catches up with Nicola to find out more…
How did you feel when you heard The Split would be coming back?
"When series three ended, writer Abi Morgan and exec producer Jane Featherstone talked about doing more and I know we, as actors, all really love each other and would love the opportunity to work together again. When Jane and Abi confirmed there would be a special shot in Barcelona, we were all thrilled."
What’s it been like filming in this region?
"All the way up to filming, I kept expecting the location to change. It’s been great being out of our usual office environment and not being able to hide under our desks! It’s lovely filming on the beach but very windy - hopefully we won’t need to do too much in ADR!"
What’s happening with Hannah when we rejoin her?
"Hannah's on her own and seems very happy. Hannah and Nathan have been divorced for two years and he has this whole new life now; new wife Kate, two new children… even a new earring! He hasn’t brought his new family to the wedding, so we get to see how Nathan and Hannah are coping with divorce; their marriage is clearly over but it’s not ‘the end’."
What’s the dynamic like between them post-divorce?
"Hannah and Nathan have a totally different relationship now, they still love each other, they’re just not in love. They’ll always be connected because of their children, so they still adore one another, just not in a married way. In fact, I think they're lovelier together not being married. Though they now find each other intensely irritating - there’s lots of amusing bickering and sparring between them…"
And of course she now has Archie to take her mind off Nathan!
"I don't know what you mean, ha, ha! Archie’s a family lawyer, who’s at the wedding to see that Liv and Gael’s pre-nuptial agreement is signed. Archie’s long-time friends with Gael’s father Alvaro (Manu Fullola) and mother Valentina (Romina Cocca), whose story is a big part of the drama. Viewers will think the drama’s about the pre-nup for this upcoming wedding - but we soon learn there are issues in Alvaro and Valentina’s ‘perfect’ marriage."
We love the relationship between the Defoe sisters and their mother Ruth. What’s the dynamic like between them this time?
"The scenes with the sisters are really funny. For instance, Nina has a new partner and the Defoes are not backwards in coming forwards about how they feel about him! All three sisters are honest about their faults; they’ve all made terrible decisions and are all fallible. The sisters are the antidote to TV’s idea of 'strong’ female leads, which are unrealistic. Women are often weak, funny, angry, weepy, shouty... and, as we see on Liv’s hen do, a little bit drunk-y!"
Do these relationships remain at the heart of The Split in this special?
"On the surface, The Split is a drama about divorce and people falling out of love but Abi describes it as a Trojan horse, purely designed to talk about love in all its forms. Yes, there’s a wedding in this special but, at its heart, it’s about what matters in life - and that's family. Filming this special was very emotional. Abi lets the audience laugh… then likes to deliver a dagger to the heart. When I read the script for episode two, I was an emotional wreck!"
The burning question is: will there be more to come from The Split after this special?
"We’ve all been together for seven years on this show, we all get on so well and lots has happened in our real lives off camera. Whether there’s more for The Split depends on whether Abi feels she’s got something new to say. But I'm hoping it's not the end."
The Split: Barcelona airs on Sunday 29 December and Monday 30 December at 9pm on BBC1.
