Joanna Scanlan says Welsh is more 'romantic' than English - and feels more emotion when expressing love in the ancient Celtic language. The actor stars in new drama Y Golau/The Light in the Hall - filmed simultaneously in Welsh and English - and felt stronger feelings for lines delivered in Welsh than 'diplomatic' English.
The 60 year old added the English language didn't feel 'egalitarian' in comparison with Welsh, which better suits 'language around love'. Speaking on the Front Row podcast, Scanlan explained: "[Y Golau/The Light in the Hall] is extremely intense, and I think when you work in a language that's very intense - and my sentences were very direct - that, for me, worked much more correctly to the emotional palette, if you like.
"I found, when we translated into English - it actually started in English - we often translated back into English, so we took away some of the extra words. English seems to me quite a diplomatic language: there's an inherent status, almost, in every sentence that you direct towards somebody, whether it's above or below them.
"It's not a terribly egalitarian language - it has this diplomatic quality to it. I was surprised by my line delivery changing when I changed languages... This is so interesting.
"The line that I really felt that on was, 'I love you' in English. The actor said it to me in Welsh - 'Garu di' - and when he said it in Welsh there was just this huge amount of emotion in it which, in English, I just didn't feel. I didn't have that same response. I think the romance of the landscape and the country and the culture - and of the emotionality within Welsh - really suits that whole area of language around love."
Scanlan, who grew up in North Wales, is best known for her roles in political satire show The Thick Of It and won a BAFTA award for her role in 2020 film After Love.
