Oscar Winner Jessie Buckley First Found Fame in This Surprising Reality TV Show
After her gut-wrenching performance as Agnes in Hamnet, nobody was surprised when Jessie Buckley snagged her first Academy Award on March 15. However, her initial claim to fame might surprise you.
By the time she wowed audiences in the Maggie O’Farrell novel adaptation, Buckley had already crafted an exceptional career for herself. Among other things, she has played unhinged nurse Oraetta Mayflower in Season 4 of Fargo, an aspiring country singer in Wild Rose, and an unhappy mother in The Lost Daughter — for which she was nominated for her first Academy Award.
So, she’s done her fair share of ‘serious’ acting — but she’s also a talented singer. So much so that, back in 2008, she competed in the reality competition show I’d Do Anything.
What Is I’d Do Anything?
For the uninitiated, I’d Do Anything was an exceptionally camp singing contest for which hopefuls sang it out for the chance to snag the roles of Nancy and Oliver Twist in the West End revival of Oliver!
Presented by Graham Norton, the series — which focused on a different musical each season — was overseen by musical theatre legend Andrew Lloyd Webber, who also acted as a judge. Think of it as The X Factor, but for the viewing pleasure of insufferable wannabe theatre kids like myself.
How Did the Show Work?
Like The X Factor, there was an audition stage, a bootcamp-styled ‘Nancy School,’ and live shows, where the contestants would sing their hearts out before putting their fates in the hands of public voters. They even held a masterclass with Liza Minelli for the final three.
The best thing about the show, however, was its incredibly unhinged elimination process. After the bottom two contestants performed a sing-off, one would be chosen while the other would be sent home. Then, the eliminated singer would stand in the middle of the stage as the other Nancys menacingly circled her singing ‘Be Back Soon’ — which, as this TikToker points out, was pretty ironic given that this Nancy would not, in fact, be back soon. Or at all. Brutal, right?
The only consolation is that the eliminations for other versions of this show were even worse. For example, for the Wizard of Oz-focussed series, the rejected Dorothys were literally lifted off the stage by a giant moon as they sang ‘Over the Rainbow.’
How Did Jessie Buckley Do on I’d Do Anything?
During her audition, where she sang ‘As Long as He Needs Me,’ she was overseen by acclaimed casting director David Grimrod. She progressed to the callbacks, but he called her “passive” and repeatedly shouted at her to “keep it real” as she was singing. Still, despite being in her teens, Buckley managed to go the distance. Over the next few weeks, she performed a variety of songs live, including ‘River Deep, Mountain High’, ‘Why Do Fools Fall in Love’ and ‘How Do I Live’.
However, her arguably most memorable performance was ‘The Man That Got Away’ in Week Six. Following this performance, she was showered with praise. Judge Denise Van Outen called it the “performance of the series,” while Lloyd Webber told her, “That is the greatest performance I’ve ever heard a young girl of your age give.” Given that she was never in the bottom two throughout her time in the competition, it’s clear the public loved her even then. So much so, she finished the series in second place.
In terms of her fellow finalists, she was in good company, too. The winner, Jodie Prenger, now stars in Corrie, while Samantha Barks, who came in third place, has become one of the most recognisable faces in musical theatre after playing Eponine in the Les Misérables movie and Elsa in the West End adaptation of Frozen.
Needless to say, even then, it was clear that Buckley had something special — but this particular origin story is hilarious to me because, as well as being exceedingly random, it’s a perfect example of the butterfly effect.
If Buckley had never gone on the show and participated in those insane elimination rituals week after week, we may not have the big screen, Academy Award-winning powerhouse we see today. So, I, for one, am grateful.
