Niamh Algar, the star of ITV’s Malpractice, has opened out about her experience filming the medical drama, which led her to believe she was in a hospital.
The Wonder actress, 30, portrays Dr Lucinda Edwards in the suspenseful thriller, which also stars James Purefoy from Sex Education and Helen Behan from This Is England.
The five-part series follows Lucinda as her life unravels during a terrible shift on an A&E ward during which an opioid overdose victim suddenly dies, sparking an inquiry into her conduct that fateful night.
Niamh talked ahead of the show’s premiere, revealing that she felt ‘triggered’ while filming in a tense hospital setting.
When asked about the violent surgery sequences, the Censor actress said that she had a ‘buzz’ while nailing the ‘choreography and blocking’ of the surgeries.
‘The sweat was real,’ she added.
The Virtues star added that the set, which was a former tax office in Leeds, was based on genuine A&E departments and had several wards.
She continued: ‘I felt like I was in the hospital. And there was a time where I was hooked up to ECG machines and someone said, “Your heart rate is off the charts.’ I was like, “Why is it doing that?’
‘It would really trigger you, like, “Bl**dy hell am I in a hospital?”’
Niamh also expressed interest in how Lucinda will be received by Malpractice viewers, stating that she was ‘compelled’ by the character.
She continued: ‘I don’t like playing characters on the basis of trying to be liked. It’s more trying to find something that people will relate to.
‘[I’m] trying to find something that grounds [audiences] in the story.’
Malpractice continues on Sunday at 9pm on ITV and ITVX.
