One Nation Magazine talks to Tamzin Outhwaite star of BBC One’s new thriller Paradox

This gripping series stars Tamzin Outhwaite (The Fixer, Hotel Babylon) as Detective Inspector Rebecca Flint, who is thrown together with Space Scientist Dr Christian King (Emun Elliott) when a series of rogue images are transmitted from space into his laboratory.

The fragmented images appear to be of a major incident but, shockingly, they also suggest it is yet to happen – it’s in the future.

With each episode of this high-concept and intriguing series set to a relentless ticking clock, Christian, Rebecca and her team, DS Ben Holt (Mark Bonnar) and DC Callum Gada (Chiké Okonkwo), face a race against time as they only have 18 hours to put together the clues of this most complex of jigsaw puzzles and try to prevent almost certain tragedy.

The reason how, and why, these images are being transmitted to them is a mystery. Forced to intervene in the course of destiny, the underlying question posed throughout Paradox is: “If you could see the future, would you change it?”

Created and written by Lizzie Mickery (Messiah, The 39 Steps and The State Within), Paradox is directed by Bafta award-winning Simon Cellan Jones (Generation Kill, Our Friends In The North) and Omah Madha (Law & Order: UK, Burn Up).

DI Rebecca Flint is a high-ranking detective who always goes the extra mile to solve a case. However, when she is shown images by space scientist Dr Christian King of a disaster that appears not to have happened yet, her world and belief system is thrown into turmoil. Actress Tamzin Outhwaite, who recently starred in ITV’s The Fixer, explains what drew her to Paradox and the part of feisty police officer Rebecca.

One Nation Magazine’s Editor talks to Tamzin Outhwaite about Paradox

How did the role of Paradox actually come about?

I was in LA with my husband, Tom, and my agent called saying how fantastic this new script was. I’d always wanted to work with the writer Lizzie Mickery and I knew Murray Ferguson at Clerkenwell Films had worked on Persuasion, so I was really excited about it.

When the script arrived, it brought up a lot of questions for me. In fact, I am still questioning a lot of the concepts in it. My opinions change all the time which is what makes it so exciting and interesting.

What’s Rebecca really like?

Rebecca is very driven and doesn’t want to be defeated. When the images come through she takes complete and utter control and just goes for it – she doesn’t question too much. She’s also excited by having the power to be able to change the future for the right reasons and she thrives off the ticking clock and having to get it done.

She also gets a buzz from being able to change somebody’s life and the sense of achievement she gets afterwards becomes very addictive. After this experience I think she’d find it very boring to go back to ordinary police work.

How does this role compare to others you’ve played in your career?

What I love about it is the way it starts with the ordinariness of the police unit, but then there ends up being so much more to it. It certainly stands out for me as one of my most intense and biggest roles. I’ve also absolutely loved doing the stunts!

What sort of stunts did you film?

I had to drive towards an explosion with Chiké, who plays Callum, and my instincts were telling me to stop before I hit any human beings. But the director wanted me to drive as fast as I could.

Everything was planned in fine detail to ensure everyone’s safety but, in order to get the shot we needed, I had to drive towards the cameraman. Even though everything was controlled, it was the scariest stunt I’ve ever done because I was so nervous I was going to run him over! Needless to say it made my heart really race and I wanted to get out of the car straight away.

A real life space scientist, Dr Margaret Aderin, worked as a consultant on the series. How did you find working with her?

Fantastic – she is quite literally a rocket scientist! When we say: ‘Yeah, but it’s not rocket science, is it?’ it actually is in her life. I spoke to her at the very beginning of filming and she is an incredibly interesting woman whose career is about constantly questioning the issues we cover in the series.

What research did you do for the role?

I hadn’t played a copper before so I spent some time shadowing a female DI and I was surprised to learn she is called Ma’am by her colleagues, which seems quite old fashioned.

She talked to me about an awful lot of things and explained she worked across the board from Child Protection to the Drug Squad. However, what really shone through for me was she loves her job and I wanted to ensure Rebecca had the same enthusiasm for her work.

Having worked on Paradox, what are your opinions on changing the future?

My opinions have changed a lot and I tend to analyse my dreams more now and wonder if they are premonitions. I do think that maybe we see the future in all sorts of ways, but the question in Paradox is do the images of the future come from God or a scientist?

What have you got planned next?

I’m starring in Sweet Charity at the Menier Chocolate Factory. It’s going to be strange singing and dancing after all these years but I’m really looking forward to it.

How have you found juggling motherhood with work?

It is a struggle and your social skills become very honed because you have to work out who’s having Florence at what time, and where. If only she knew what chaos and organisation went into bringing her up – I think children would be quite amused by all the flapping that goes on around them!

Being a mother is an absolute delight, though. I’m really enjoying everything that’s happening at the moment.

Paradox starts on BBC One in November and producer Marcus Wilson (Whitechapel, Life On Mars) sums up the five part thriller: “I hope viewers find Paradox a thrilling rollercoaster ride with huge amounts of excitement, emotion and spookiness. It should thrill and terrify, but also leave viewers questioning what they would do if they had the opportunity to change the future.”

Synopsis – Episode One

World-renowned space scientist Dr Christian King claims to have received a series of images from space. The images appear to have come from assorted sources, some look like CCTV imaging and others look like photos but, most disturbingly, they appear to show fragments of an event – a huge explosion in which many people are killed. Shockingly, Dr King claims the disaster is yet to happen and that it will take place in 18 hours time.

Is this an elaborate warning of a terrorist attack, or could it be something else? DI Rebecca Flint and her team, DS Ben Holt and DC Callum Gada, are put on the case to investigate Dr King and the images. They are uncertain of what to believe but have to put their reservations aside to race against a ticking clock to prevent the possible catastrophe from taking place.

As the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle come together, it becomes clear that this is a chain of events which no person could possibly predict or plan. Rebecca and her team are stunned by their findings but must continue their investigations without arousing suspicion – if news of this reaches the public’s consciousness there will be chaos.

With time running out, and tragedy drawing closer, DI Flint begins to contemplate the impossible – that the images might not be a coded warning or an elaborate threat, but a genuine glimpse of the future.

One Nation can’t wait! Let us know what you think?

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