Merlin: Secrets & Magic (2009) s01e04 Episode Script
Maid To Be Queen
Welcome to the series that goes behind the scenes to see how Merlin's made.
Coming up, we chart the rise and rise of Gwen - a merry maid who is getting lots of male attention.
I have some men fighting over me which is quite fun.
And look, the boy is back in town.
We speak a lot with Lancelot.
It's good to see everyone and see that they seem to be having fun.
All this and more on Merlin's Secrets & Magic.
.
.
And action! Release the wilddeoren! Trapped behind bars, soon to be wolfed down by a wilddeoren and with two dashing heroes fighting to save her, just another day in the life of Gwen, the simple servant who's become a main attraction.
'I guess she does get all the guys, which is strange' cos she would never have considered herself to be a vamp or even attractive to the opposite sex.
She gets all the men.
She had snogged everyone, it's not fair.
But way back when we first said hello to the lowly Gwen, was a very different story.
She's a very sweet girl, quite selfless.
Tends to generally think of other people before herself.
Also, has a very noble heart.
Afraid? Not in the slightest.
Tends to speak her mind accidentally.
Why didn't you say? You shouldn't need to be told to think of someone else.
You're not a child.
As we all know, one day Guinevere will be queen, um, in series one there's not much to suggest that you would imagine her as queen.
She looks great, doesn't she? Phew! Yeah.
Some people are just born to be queen.
Not that I want to be her.
Who'd want to marry Arthur? Perhaps in series two she begins to grow a bit more as a woman and just in character.
Do not flatter yourself, I am not your guest.
I am your prisoner! As you wish.
'It's exciting to see' where she's going to go and how she's going to get there.
Maybe you can see a bit of the inner queen emerging, but she's got that sort of humbleness, you can't really imagine her commanding, necessarily.
To go from where she is now to there, it will be great fun to find that.
There was definitely something commanding about Angel herself.
When she auditioned for the role of Gwen, she caught the eyes of the producers from the get-go.
We had seen a lot of actresses for Gwen.
We were getting right down to three days before doing the read-through and filming and we hadn't cast her.
We just hadn't found the right actress that had the level of dignity that you would believe was a queen, whilst at the same time, could be humble.
Also, you wanted somebody that had a comic ability.
Then Angel came in one day and she read it, I was with James Hawes, the director.
We just looked at her and thought, "Wow, she's fantastic!" I'm Guinevere, but most people call me Gwen.
Lady Morgana's maid.
The bit you did at the end, but just calm it down.
Less of the kooky Gwen and more of the calm, queen to be.
'I was thinking I'd like to play Guinevere.
' I though it would be great, she's a female lead.
And she's in this showgreat! When this came along, they were like, "We want you to audition for Gwen," I was like, "Oh, right," and they were like, "Gwen is Guinevere.
" I was like, "Cool!" What's up? I was hoping you could help me with this armour, I can't figure out how to put it on.
I can show you if you like.
'Angel had done a fair bit of very good work,' what she was playing in this was something she was used to doing.
In the second series she has had some very challenging episodes.
What does she think of life? It's what's been handed to her.
I'm guessing her mum's died or not there any more.
Let's say she's died.
Yeah.
I imagine she's died at quite an early age.
Yes.
Maybe in childbirth or something.
Gwen's been a grown up, or the mother of her family with her and her dad.
'I felt like this was my character.
' I really wanted the part.
The audition went really well and I didn't have to do any more auditions after that, it was just one audition which was just like When you are an actor you are like, "I want to audition as little as possible.
" So, that's great.
It was great cos Angel has this extraordinary presence on screen.
And she has a great ability to do really big emotional scenes whilst, at the same time, have a real lightness of touch.
I'm sorry I thought you were dead.
And, following the success of the first series, Angel and the rest of the cast return for the second more experienced, more relaxed and up for more fun.
It shows a lot about the show, that people can have fun as well as produce an amazing product - everybody's enjoying themselves.
There's a lot of buddy movie stuff going on this series - I suppose there's a lot of that between Colin and myself as well.
Bradley brings a lot of his great comic timing and sense of humour to the roles.
What are wilddeoren? They're like giant .
.
baby rats.
We've had the same crew from the beginning, the same core cast.
We do genuinely all get on really well, and that translates onto the screen.
You can see it in the episodes, in the relationships.
One relationship that had to work was that of Angel and Bradley - off-screen, just friends, on-screen, the future Mr and Mrs Pendragon.
He's very funny I remember from the first read-through, he seemed very confident.
Everyone else was terrified cos it was the first read-through, and Bradley just seemed really comfortable, cracking jokes all the time, and he was really funny.
I thought, "I've got to get to know you, you're funny!" Since then we've had a good relationship, a lot of banter Words of wisdom for the day? Crumpets.
I would say hi, but you are holding the camera in front of your face, which has hampered my shot, and I'm sure the Merlin fans want to see Oh, no, maybe you should put it back Anyway But, at first, the seeds of the on-screen romance struggled to blossom.
There's a scene where Gwen brings Arthur some food, and we're in this village where they have very little.
'They've barely got any food.
' Arthur? Gwyneth made you some food.
Thanks I think.
Food is scarce for these people - you shouldn't turn your nose up.
Oh, no I shouldn't have spoken to you like that.
I'm sorry.
Gwen I don't know what I was thinking, it won't happen again.
Guinevere Thank you.
You're right.
There's a moment between them then which is quite important for the future.
We'll be fine.
How can you be so sure? Because I have faith in you.
I meanwe ALL do.
'She stands up to Arthur much more' as she's getting a bit tougher and stronger.
They butt heads with it, and then they come to see who each of them really are - Arthur starts to see her as a woman rather than a servant and she sees him as a man rather than a prince.
And all that soon led to some serious smooching The kiss Yes! Everyone keeps talking to me about this kiss.
'Apparently, it's very romantic and lovely.
' 'Sometimes, your job as a director 'is just to stand back and see what happens, 'and they were so so tender with each other,' it was one of those wonderful moments where you think, "That'll be special".
'Kind of surprising, I didn't think they'd introduce it that early, 'but I guess it was a "Will they, won't they?" thing, even though we know they will in the end, but it's just WHEN, in this particular story, that they will.
But you know it's going to be, hopefully, an exciting moment for any Merlin fans.
So, all going swimmingly, then But, uh-oh look who's just turned up to cause a love triangle - Gwen's old flame, the smoking hot Lancelot.
'Lancelot comes in, throws a spanner in the works,' I have some men fighting over me SHE LAUGHS .
.
which is quite fun! Lancelot has very strong feelings for her and sees her in a context that he doesn't expect at all.
He's in the ring, ready to face someone, and she's there as a prisoner.
It's a great story of these two lovers on their way to help Gwen - what will happen when all three of them meet? And what place better for the two suitors to see each other again than a dingy dungeon surrounded by rampaging rodents? Welcome back, Sir Lancelot, a real hero! There goes my hero Watch him as he goes There goes my hero He's ordinary 'It's good to see everyone' Most of the people in the crew are the same group, and still seem to be having a lot of fun.
Only one of you will emerge from the cage alive.
Do you accept the challenge? 'In this episode, you see a Lancelot that' has kind of given up on life, and has no respect for himself.
'He's just fighting for money and living each day with what he knows how to do best - fighting - but he's probably a little bit ashamed of himself.
Lancelot I could not believe my eyes when I saw it was you.
I thought my mind was deceiving me.
This is a poor girl trapped in a cell - not only does he have feelings for her, but what will become of her? 'There's a real need to be living again.
' I have thought of you often.
Have you thought of me at all? I thought I would never see you again.
'In a way, her love with Lancelot' is more realistic to her, because they're from the same background.
No matter what it takes, I will find a way to get you out of here.
I will.
'I think Gwen doesn't want anyone to be upset' and I think there's a moment where Arthur suddenly realises that 'Lancelot is here because of Gwen.
' What are you doing here, Lancelot? I came to save Gwen - what about you? Likewise! And she kind of thinks, "I don't want either of them to feel bad, "so I won't be too nice to either of them "I want them both to feel the love.
" Sometimes, though, trying to share the love can give you a headache, especially when a giant CGI rat gets in the way of romance.
Remember, guys, it's a really romantic moment the last seconds of your life together.
Roll the sound.
I am sorry! This is my fault.
You have nothing to be sorry for.
You reminded me of who I am.
I will die with faith in my heart.
That is worth more than anything.
It's interesting, the whole love triangle, of playing around with it, because when Gwen falls for Arthur, Arthur knows he can't be with her, and then when Gwen falls for Lancelot because she doesn't think she can have Arthur, Arthur realises that he loves Gwen, but then it's too late cos Lancelot's on the scene.
I think Gwen feels a bit bad about the whole thing - whereas I - Angel - might quite enjoy it! Whatever happens next is anyone's guess, but the future certainly looks rosy for the royal to be.
What more could she want? Well, I've always said that when I become queen, I want to be like a warrior queen so I can do loads of fighting!
Coming up, we chart the rise and rise of Gwen - a merry maid who is getting lots of male attention.
I have some men fighting over me which is quite fun.
And look, the boy is back in town.
We speak a lot with Lancelot.
It's good to see everyone and see that they seem to be having fun.
All this and more on Merlin's Secrets & Magic.
.
.
And action! Release the wilddeoren! Trapped behind bars, soon to be wolfed down by a wilddeoren and with two dashing heroes fighting to save her, just another day in the life of Gwen, the simple servant who's become a main attraction.
'I guess she does get all the guys, which is strange' cos she would never have considered herself to be a vamp or even attractive to the opposite sex.
She gets all the men.
She had snogged everyone, it's not fair.
But way back when we first said hello to the lowly Gwen, was a very different story.
She's a very sweet girl, quite selfless.
Tends to generally think of other people before herself.
Also, has a very noble heart.
Afraid? Not in the slightest.
Tends to speak her mind accidentally.
Why didn't you say? You shouldn't need to be told to think of someone else.
You're not a child.
As we all know, one day Guinevere will be queen, um, in series one there's not much to suggest that you would imagine her as queen.
She looks great, doesn't she? Phew! Yeah.
Some people are just born to be queen.
Not that I want to be her.
Who'd want to marry Arthur? Perhaps in series two she begins to grow a bit more as a woman and just in character.
Do not flatter yourself, I am not your guest.
I am your prisoner! As you wish.
'It's exciting to see' where she's going to go and how she's going to get there.
Maybe you can see a bit of the inner queen emerging, but she's got that sort of humbleness, you can't really imagine her commanding, necessarily.
To go from where she is now to there, it will be great fun to find that.
There was definitely something commanding about Angel herself.
When she auditioned for the role of Gwen, she caught the eyes of the producers from the get-go.
We had seen a lot of actresses for Gwen.
We were getting right down to three days before doing the read-through and filming and we hadn't cast her.
We just hadn't found the right actress that had the level of dignity that you would believe was a queen, whilst at the same time, could be humble.
Also, you wanted somebody that had a comic ability.
Then Angel came in one day and she read it, I was with James Hawes, the director.
We just looked at her and thought, "Wow, she's fantastic!" I'm Guinevere, but most people call me Gwen.
Lady Morgana's maid.
The bit you did at the end, but just calm it down.
Less of the kooky Gwen and more of the calm, queen to be.
'I was thinking I'd like to play Guinevere.
' I though it would be great, she's a female lead.
And she's in this showgreat! When this came along, they were like, "We want you to audition for Gwen," I was like, "Oh, right," and they were like, "Gwen is Guinevere.
" I was like, "Cool!" What's up? I was hoping you could help me with this armour, I can't figure out how to put it on.
I can show you if you like.
'Angel had done a fair bit of very good work,' what she was playing in this was something she was used to doing.
In the second series she has had some very challenging episodes.
What does she think of life? It's what's been handed to her.
I'm guessing her mum's died or not there any more.
Let's say she's died.
Yeah.
I imagine she's died at quite an early age.
Yes.
Maybe in childbirth or something.
Gwen's been a grown up, or the mother of her family with her and her dad.
'I felt like this was my character.
' I really wanted the part.
The audition went really well and I didn't have to do any more auditions after that, it was just one audition which was just like When you are an actor you are like, "I want to audition as little as possible.
" So, that's great.
It was great cos Angel has this extraordinary presence on screen.
And she has a great ability to do really big emotional scenes whilst, at the same time, have a real lightness of touch.
I'm sorry I thought you were dead.
And, following the success of the first series, Angel and the rest of the cast return for the second more experienced, more relaxed and up for more fun.
It shows a lot about the show, that people can have fun as well as produce an amazing product - everybody's enjoying themselves.
There's a lot of buddy movie stuff going on this series - I suppose there's a lot of that between Colin and myself as well.
Bradley brings a lot of his great comic timing and sense of humour to the roles.
What are wilddeoren? They're like giant .
.
baby rats.
We've had the same crew from the beginning, the same core cast.
We do genuinely all get on really well, and that translates onto the screen.
You can see it in the episodes, in the relationships.
One relationship that had to work was that of Angel and Bradley - off-screen, just friends, on-screen, the future Mr and Mrs Pendragon.
He's very funny I remember from the first read-through, he seemed very confident.
Everyone else was terrified cos it was the first read-through, and Bradley just seemed really comfortable, cracking jokes all the time, and he was really funny.
I thought, "I've got to get to know you, you're funny!" Since then we've had a good relationship, a lot of banter Words of wisdom for the day? Crumpets.
I would say hi, but you are holding the camera in front of your face, which has hampered my shot, and I'm sure the Merlin fans want to see Oh, no, maybe you should put it back Anyway But, at first, the seeds of the on-screen romance struggled to blossom.
There's a scene where Gwen brings Arthur some food, and we're in this village where they have very little.
'They've barely got any food.
' Arthur? Gwyneth made you some food.
Thanks I think.
Food is scarce for these people - you shouldn't turn your nose up.
Oh, no I shouldn't have spoken to you like that.
I'm sorry.
Gwen I don't know what I was thinking, it won't happen again.
Guinevere Thank you.
You're right.
There's a moment between them then which is quite important for the future.
We'll be fine.
How can you be so sure? Because I have faith in you.
I meanwe ALL do.
'She stands up to Arthur much more' as she's getting a bit tougher and stronger.
They butt heads with it, and then they come to see who each of them really are - Arthur starts to see her as a woman rather than a servant and she sees him as a man rather than a prince.
And all that soon led to some serious smooching The kiss Yes! Everyone keeps talking to me about this kiss.
'Apparently, it's very romantic and lovely.
' 'Sometimes, your job as a director 'is just to stand back and see what happens, 'and they were so so tender with each other,' it was one of those wonderful moments where you think, "That'll be special".
'Kind of surprising, I didn't think they'd introduce it that early, 'but I guess it was a "Will they, won't they?" thing, even though we know they will in the end, but it's just WHEN, in this particular story, that they will.
But you know it's going to be, hopefully, an exciting moment for any Merlin fans.
So, all going swimmingly, then But, uh-oh look who's just turned up to cause a love triangle - Gwen's old flame, the smoking hot Lancelot.
'Lancelot comes in, throws a spanner in the works,' I have some men fighting over me SHE LAUGHS .
.
which is quite fun! Lancelot has very strong feelings for her and sees her in a context that he doesn't expect at all.
He's in the ring, ready to face someone, and she's there as a prisoner.
It's a great story of these two lovers on their way to help Gwen - what will happen when all three of them meet? And what place better for the two suitors to see each other again than a dingy dungeon surrounded by rampaging rodents? Welcome back, Sir Lancelot, a real hero! There goes my hero Watch him as he goes There goes my hero He's ordinary 'It's good to see everyone' Most of the people in the crew are the same group, and still seem to be having a lot of fun.
Only one of you will emerge from the cage alive.
Do you accept the challenge? 'In this episode, you see a Lancelot that' has kind of given up on life, and has no respect for himself.
'He's just fighting for money and living each day with what he knows how to do best - fighting - but he's probably a little bit ashamed of himself.
Lancelot I could not believe my eyes when I saw it was you.
I thought my mind was deceiving me.
This is a poor girl trapped in a cell - not only does he have feelings for her, but what will become of her? 'There's a real need to be living again.
' I have thought of you often.
Have you thought of me at all? I thought I would never see you again.
'In a way, her love with Lancelot' is more realistic to her, because they're from the same background.
No matter what it takes, I will find a way to get you out of here.
I will.
'I think Gwen doesn't want anyone to be upset' and I think there's a moment where Arthur suddenly realises that 'Lancelot is here because of Gwen.
' What are you doing here, Lancelot? I came to save Gwen - what about you? Likewise! And she kind of thinks, "I don't want either of them to feel bad, "so I won't be too nice to either of them "I want them both to feel the love.
" Sometimes, though, trying to share the love can give you a headache, especially when a giant CGI rat gets in the way of romance.
Remember, guys, it's a really romantic moment the last seconds of your life together.
Roll the sound.
I am sorry! This is my fault.
You have nothing to be sorry for.
You reminded me of who I am.
I will die with faith in my heart.
That is worth more than anything.
It's interesting, the whole love triangle, of playing around with it, because when Gwen falls for Arthur, Arthur knows he can't be with her, and then when Gwen falls for Lancelot because she doesn't think she can have Arthur, Arthur realises that he loves Gwen, but then it's too late cos Lancelot's on the scene.
I think Gwen feels a bit bad about the whole thing - whereas I - Angel - might quite enjoy it! Whatever happens next is anyone's guess, but the future certainly looks rosy for the royal to be.
What more could she want? Well, I've always said that when I become queen, I want to be like a warrior queen so I can do loads of fighting!