AKTA INTERVIEWS: YOU NEVER KNOW WHO’S WATCHING — GRACIE MCGONIGAL ON HOW SHE BOOKED BRIDGERTON

Writer: Takunda Muzondiwa

What I love most about this industry is simultaneously the thing that surprises me most about it. 

Despite all the valid criticisms about the business being filled with gatekeepers, the cautionary tales of artists who flew too close to the sun and came crashing back down, the endless stream of ragebait comments asking “when are you going to get a real job”, what continues to catch me off guard is how many people are quietly, consistently rooting for each other. Rooting for people they do not know personally, but they have seen trying, stretching, showing up.

There are whole lists of faces I carry with me. People I have sat beside in audition waiting rooms, sharing that charged silence before you are called in. People I have poured my heart out to on a one-day shoot, only for us to wrap, hug, and never cross paths again. People I have watched from a distance online, speaking their goals out loud with a kind of bravery that makes you sit up straighter. And every time I see one of them book something, announce a debut, share new work, I feel it. A genuine surge of joy. It is a deep, instinctive feeling of “yes!”

Following her debut in Bridgerton, Gracie McGonigal was met with that exact energy. Her portrayal of Hazel in the reimagined series is full of charm and emotional clarity, the kind that draws people in and makes them care quickly. Audiences did not just watch her, they rallied behind her. There was a swell of excitement online, people rooting for Hazel’s love story, and just as strongly, rooting for Gracie herself.

Gracie McGonigal x Akta

That response is not accidental. Gracie brings a level of dedication to her craft that can only be described as an unstoppable force. There is a sense that she throws her whole self into the work, not holding anything back, not trying to fit into something smaller than what the role demands. Her casting also marks an important shift as the first actor with a congenital limb difference to join the Bridgerton cast, a moment that has resonated with many who rarely get to see themselves reflected in this world.

For Bridgerton fans, for actors wondering if it is possible, for anyone trying to figure out how to bring their full self into a role without apology, Gracie McGonigal is someone you must pay attention to.

AKTA: You’ve built a strong stage career, from The Little Big Things to Into the Woods, and now you’ve stepped into one of Netflix’s biggest global shows with Bridgerton. What were the key moments or decisions that took you from training into that world?

GRACIE MCGONIGAL: I started training quite early. When I was 16, I went to the BRIT School. It’s an incredible, free state school in Croydon, and they really uplifted me. They still support me now.

After that, I did a foundation year at Mountview during the pandemic, which was tough being on Zoom. Around that time, I was also auditioning for drama schools and faced quite a lot of negative language. There were very rigid expectations, like being asked to send in a video doing press-ups just to qualify for an audition. It made me feel like there wasn’t space for me in the industry.

I had a couple of offers, but I wasn’t sure what the right next step was. Then I spoke to working actors and tutors, including Nardia Albina, who encouraged me to just start working and auditioning. So I did.

I auditioned for a panto at the Lyric Hammersmith and got it, which felt like a miracle. That job changed everything. I got my agent through that show, and it meant I could pause drama school and see where work might take me.

From there, I did The Crucible at the National Theatre when I was 19, covering Abigail. That was an incredible learning experience, watching Erin Doherty and working with Lyndsey Turner. Then I did The Little Big Things, which is where the Bridgerton casting team saw me.

My agent followed up, and about a year later, while I was doing Fangirls, they brought me in to audition. I had no idea how big the role would be. I thought it might be one scene. And then it turned into Hazel. So yeah, up until now, I’ve very much been a theatre girl. I feel really lucky that Bridgerton's opened the door to a new world for me. 

Gracie McGonigal x Akta

AKTA: Bridgerton is one of those shows almost every UK actor dreams of. What was the reality of your audition process, and when did you realise it might actually be happening?

GRACIE MCGONIGAL: It was just one self-tape, which is kind of mad. I know a lot of actors hate self-tapes, but I’ve actually been really lucky with them. I even got The Little Big Things from a tape no one asked for. I couldn’t make the audition, so I just sent in a self-tape of me singing and they cast me. It’s a nice reminder that people are watching, even when it doesn’t feel like it.

For Bridgerton, the audition came through really secretive. Everything was watermarked, character names were blurred, so you couldn’t fully tell what it was. But I had a feeling. I’ve been such a big fan of the show, I recognised the tone straight away.

It had always been on my vision board. I remember watching it during the pandemic at 17 and thinking, “I want to be in that.” I even took my first headshots thinking, “These are my Bridgerton headshots,” just throwing it out into the universe, not really believing it would happen.

So even at the audition stage, it already felt surreal. 

AKTA: You’ve taken a slightly less traditional route into the industry, without formal drama school training. How have you approached developing your craft on your own, and staying sharp as an actor?

GRACIE MCGONIGAL: I think this is the main question of my life. I definitely have quite intense imposter syndrome because I didn’t go to drama school, but for me it’s meant I’ve had to really take ownership of my own training.

The BRIT School gave me a great foundation. Things like how to find a monologue, how to prepare sheet music, all those practical skills that are actually so important. But since then, it’s been about teaching myself and keeping that going. I take myself to singing lessons, I go to dance classes even though I’m not a natural dancer, and I’m constantly reading plays. I try to stay engaged with the work and with the industry.

Because the reality is, when you’re in a job, especially in theatre, you can end up in a bit of a bubble. Like I’m doing Into the Woods right now and am lucky enough to be working all the time, which is amazing, but you’re not necessarily seeing other work or engaging with what’s happening outside of that.

So for me, it’s about staying curious. Even when I’m tired or I’d rather switch off, I try to keep that curiosity alive, because you never know what’s going to inspire you or what might lead to the next thing.

AKTA: There’s often this idea that actors have to choose between theatre and screen, or that the skills don’t translate. What has your experience been moving between the two, and what did working on Bridgerton actually teach you about that?

GRACIE MCGONIGAL: I think it’s a complete myth that you can’t do both. I’ve mostly worked in theatre up until now, but having done more screen work, I’ve realised how much crossover there actually is.

What surprised me about TV is how quick everything is. In theatre, you rehearse for weeks, but on screen, your first or second take might be what ends up in the show. So you have to be really bold with your first offer and trust your instincts straight away.

And no one really prepares you for watching yourself back, which I find genuinely awful. That part is a bit of a nightmare. But in terms of the craft, I think the idea that theatre is “big” and screen is “small” is quite outdated. It really depends on the project. Some theatre is incredibly subtle, and some screen work requires more scale. I remember watching Bridgerton back and actually wishing I’d gone a bit bigger in certain moments, because I’d been so aware of not wanting to be “too much” on camera.

I think as actors, we limit ourselves a lot. We tell ourselves, “I’m too big for screen,” or “I can’t do that because I don’t have that skill.” But actually, when you just give things a go and train yourself project by project, you often realise you’re capable of more than you thought.

AKTA: On stage, you build a character over time and repetition. On a TV set like Bridgerton, everything is shot out of sequence. How do you stay emotionally consistent in that kind of environment?

GRACIE MCGONIGAL: Theatre is quite indulgent in that way. You get to build a character over time, and if something doesn’t quite land one night, you know you can come back and adjust it the next. Screen doesn’t give you that same safety net.

For me, it’s about having a really clear awareness of where your character is at in every scene. I’ll often write at the top of my script what’s just happened before, what my given circumstances are, and where I’m coming from emotionally as I go into it. That really helps ground me quickly.

Because it is hard shooting out of sequence. You’re making decisions in one scene without always knowing exactly what you’ll do in another that hasn’t been filmed yet.

So a lot of it comes down to preparation and trusting your instincts in the moment.