Lauren Lyle on Thrills, Chills, and the Joy of Going Off-Script

Left top: shirt KARL LAGERFELD, top POSSE, left hand; ring GABRIELLA FINE JEWELLERY, right hand; little finger MATILDA JEWELLERY, middle finger GABRIELLA FINE JEWELLERY • Right top: rings GABRIELLA FINE JEWELLERY • Left bottom: ring MATILDA JEWELLERY • Right bottom: shirt KARL LAGERFELD

Lauren Lyle has been everywhere lately. Thrillers, true crime, period dramas — if it’s dark, emotional, or slightly unhinged, she’s probably in it. This year she’s adding The Ridge to the mix, a BBC series about a small town, big secrets, and one very complicated sister’s murder. And in case you’re wondering, yes, she plays a psychopathic anaesthetist. Sexy, scary, and a little freaky, just how she likes it.

But here’s the thing: as intense as her roles get, Lauren is just as good at cracking jokes, power-napping, and obsessing over her cat, Lava. She’s got a knack for diving into extremes, and then jumping into a freezing cold lake to cool off.

We caught up with her to talk about comedy dreams, dead-serious dramas, and what it’s like to bring the weirdest parts of herself to the screen.

You have had a mad run of roles lately — thrillers, true crime, big dramas. What headline would you give this stage of your career?

Lauren Lyle: I’m ready for a comedy. I prayed for this era. For real though I’d say I’ve found it so fulfilling getting to go to the depths of either end of the emotional scales recently. I really have wished for roles like these since becoming an actor. So much to sink my teeth into. I’m good at power naps.

Your projects are all over the map but they’ve got one thing in common, they feel human. What’s the little spark that makes you choose a role?

LL: I want to live big and feel big, I think that’s what it means to be alive. So, I guess I pick with that in mind. With Karen Pirie it can be so dark and emotional but also very sarcastic, witty and fun. For season two we really leant into the funny and spent a lot more time making the crew crack up on set which is a joy. My new show that’s coming out in October, The Ridge for the BBC, I play a bit of a Psychopathic Anaesthetist. She is a drug addict but also quite sexy which is something I was keen to lean into. I figured I’m hotter now than I’ve ever been I want to embrace my body and show all sides of what it means to be a woman. Funny, evil, and unhinged included.

Left: top LIBEROWE, shorts, LOULOU DE SAISON, shoes GINA • Right: blazer & shorts THE FRANKIE SHOP, belt ANDERSON’S

Talking more about The Ridge, it’s story of a small town, big secrets, your sister’s murder, and you right in the middle of it all. When you read the script, did you say yes immediately, or did you have to think about living in that world for months?

LL: As soon as I read how weird, strange and freaky at times it was, I was in. I love the term ‘freak’. Mia is unlike a character I’ve played before, and the notes I got were all about going further with her rather than pulling it back. That as an actor is so delicious. She’s hiding so much, uses her body in a way I was so interested in exploring and the fact it’s set in a strange town in New Zealand is very unique. I was very keen to dive into that weird world, the worst part of being away was missing my little cat, Lava.

You’ve called New Zealand a second home. Did filming The Ridge there feel like stepping into a familiar embrace or discovering a completely new side of it?

LL: Yeh, I lived there during high school. I am a very nostalgic person; the day I landed and walked around my neighbourhood the smells of the rain and trees transported me right back to being 16 again. It was wildly visceral. I was able to reflect on how much my life has changed and I felt so lucky to get to come back a totally different person with other lives lived having sort of achieved some dreams that I had 15 years before walking those same streets. I have definitely romanticised my life then and it reminded me of all the heartbreaks I’ve had too. I actually felt lucky for the reminders of things I’d forgotten. Mia is an outsider too so there was an element of that feeling useful to be on a heavier schedule than most of the cast. But I also became close with the crew, some of the best I’ve worked with, so it was a great balance. New Zealand is one of the most special places in the world, I discovered lots of new beaches and had only the best coffee. The crew actually refuse to work on set without it which I adored.

Karen Pirie balances the grit of a cold case with humour and warmth. How do you keep that blend alive without tipping too far into one tone or the other?

LL: It’s one of the biggest conversations we have on set and are extremely mindful of. Making sure we honour and give weight to the dark topics and heavy themes, and then the humour is sort of trojan horsed into the show. I think it allows people to be fully immersed and relate to Karen and her world. I also think life is funny, even in the darkest of traumas. We often have to fall to laughter or we’ll die. They tow the same line, a bit like anger and love being cut from the same cloth.

Left: shirt 16ARLINGTON, trousers THE FRANKIE SHOP, belt ANDERSON’S • Right: blazer THEORY, shirt KARL LAGERFELD, trousers THE FRANKIE SHOP, tie Stylist’s Own

Outlander, Toxic Town, The Bombing of Pan Am 103, you’ve jumped between fictional epics and real-life heartbreak. Does it hit you differently when you know the story actually happened?

LL: Yes definitely. Toxic Town and The Bombing of Pan Am 103 were both an honour to do and you absolutely think about being careful to tell that story with so much integrity and truth. It can be a lot of pressure bringing real life stories to the screen as there have to sometimes be alterations. But it also feels like a small sense of justice that people see what the real people went through and learnt.

From all the roles you have played so far, if you had to pick one that feels closest to who you are, which would it be and why?

LL: Honestly none of them are truly like me. I’ve been told I’ve got funny bones and one of my friends watched KP and said at moments “that’s Lauren” rather than Karen so maybe there are similarities there. Karen can be cathartic as she says some things I wish I could so that can feel close. But I love that I don’t actually look much like an of my characters in real life. I used to keep the KP haircut which I wouldn’t now it’s a hectic look... and I’m definitely not wearing any of Marsalis bonnets from Outlander. Mia in The Ridge really goes OFF at times which I desire to do and really sits close to the surface for me so that felt amazing.

With all these intense, dramatic roles, how do you unwind afterward? Got any unexpected ways you decompress after a heavy day?

LL: I am very into a sauna and ice bath nowadays. I love a bit of cold water. Whenever I am filming it’s become a problem that I’ll find a body of water and have to get in it. I’ve taken big hikes to remote beaches and lakes before filming on a day to dunk in and reset which can be worrying for my pick up times. It’s addictive. Burying my face in my cat’s tummy is heaven. Honestly as well the pub with my friends, I’ll never say no to a group hang. I just want the laughs.

Picture us chatting again in five years — where are you, what are you working on, and how’s life looking?

LL: OH that game? Ok here you go: I will have bought a big piece of land, built a commune with all my friends, freshwater swimming pool, kittens, puppies, chickens. It’s ridiculous. People will flock to hang there but only the best of vibes will be let in. I’ll maybe be doing a play on the West End or shooting a movie with Yorgos Lanthimos/Sean Baker/Wes Anderson. Lots of laughs lots of cries, big good artistic feelings. Having just directed my second feature, I’ll obviously exhausted and ready for a holiday so I’m booking a villa in Ibiza with everyone I love. We’ll stop off via Italy on the way back home just to eat some Nona’s pasta. Stevie Nicks has hopefully just asked me to do her biopic, because my real dream is to be a bit of a rockstar, and Lava my perfect cat will obviously be a part of all of it. Nothing major really.

Interview / Lucas Pontidas, Managing Editor, PIBE

This PIBE exclusive has been produced by:
Photography / Elliott Wilcox
Styling / Andrew Burling
Makeup / Eoin Whelan
Hair / Jason Goh
Talent / Lauren Lyle