Donna Air’s Comeback: ‘As A Working Mum, There Are Only So Many Roles You Can Do’

For most of us of a certain age BBC drama The Split marks a fourth coming of Donna Air, the Geordie actress who, somehow, has been in the public eye for 30 years.

There was 10-year-old Byker Grove Donna, who turned into pop star Donna (Byker Grooove!, anyone?). Then – on moving to London at 15 – there was from-lads-mags-to-Big Breakfast-presenter Donna. And, from 2013 to 2018, there was the, ‘Did you know Donna Air is dating James Middleton, brother of the actual Queen-to-be?’ Donna.

Now, aged 40 and back on primetime telly in the second series of Abi Morgan’s BBC drama The Split, she is sitting-in- a-West-London-café-talking-to-Grazia Donna – and she’s great company.

‘I’m not sure, I can’t even remember what I did yesterday,’ she laughs, when I mention she’s not acted on the small screen for 10 years. ‘I would agree it’s my most visible acting role in a while. So, if I’m a bit ropey, I apologise in advance!’

If you caught the show, you’ll know she’s not ropey. The Split revolves around a family of divorce lawyers, their cases and their own (very messy) love lives. Donna plays pop star Fi Hanson, and her attempt to divorce her controlling, record producer husband (played by Doc Brown) is at the centre of the series. ‘He’s been gaslighting and emotionally abusing her for some time, so when we meet her, she is a bit lost, a bit broken, very confused and doesn’t know where to turn and who to trust,’ Donna explains. ‘It’s such an interesting subject to cover and a great role to play, so I was thrilled, really.’

Donna’s reasoning for having such a big break from acting is refreshingly honest in an age of actors who seem to have sorted the kids, the career, the relationship, the nights out, the friends... all, of course, with no help... ‘I think, like lots of women will appreciate, being a working mum, especially an actress, there are only so many roles you can do at certain times in your life that work around your family.’ She is mum to 16-year-old Freya from her relationship with businessman Damian Aspinall. ‘This part was brilliant because I got to be in my own bed every day. But the reason I took such a big gap in the past was that, being a single mum, I didn’t really want to go to America and leave my daughter here. I didn’t want to go and do a shoot in the middle of the desert for seven months. Now my daughter is begging me to go and do a shoot, she can’t wait to get rid of me!’

Not that Donna has any regrets. ‘Putting my daughter first was never a sacrifice, it was a pleasure,’ she says. ‘I did have to be creative and invent a different career for myself that worked around that. I started doing lots of other things on the business side, advising companies and finding creative business roles that I really enjoyed and that gave me and my daughter stability. There is this thing that women can have it all now, but I don’t think we can, not all the time.’

The Split may ostensibly be about divorce, but it’s more about relationships, love and family – something Donna related to.

‘I’ve always felt divorce is not about the relationships, it’s really always about the children,’ she says. ‘And having been through a separation myself, where children are involved, you do have to remind yourself constantly it’s not about your needs, it’s about what’s best for the children involved. How do you make it easier for them?’

There are no airs and graces to Donna, as she admits to a decent dose of impostor syndrome, acting with ‘girl crush’ Nicola Walker in The Split. ‘I think even the biggest actor in the world can sometimes feel out of their depth. If you don’t feel like that, you’ve got a bit of an ego problem.’ And she seems resigned to people still asking her about Byker Grove. ‘You can guarantee most people still want a quote on Ant and Dec, or a member of the royal family,’ she laughs.

Inevitably, being a celebrity, having had a relationship with a near-royal, and now playing someone famous in a high-profile relationship, will bring a lot of speculation. Did she draw on her experiences – and the oppressive nature of the watchful public eye – to play Fi ? ‘She lives her life in the public eye more than I did – I made a conscious decision not to. I’ve never really courted paparazzi or public life, so I don’t have a problem like that. Also, I’m not a huge star, like Madonna or Gwyneth Paltrow; I’ve managed to keep my relationships private.’

Which celebs did provide inspiration for the Hansons? ‘I’m not sure. I think anybody can be a victim of abuse, or gaslighting and a family breakdown. I don’t think that is specific to celebrities. But gosh, you’d have to ask Abi. I’m sure she gets her inspiration from somewhere... maybe from Grazia!’

‘The Split’ is on BBC One, Tuesday at 9pm, and on iPlayer

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