Ellie Abraham
Dec 12, 2022
content.jwplatform.com
National treasure Kate Winslet opened up about an embarrassing onstage incident that almost saw her empty her bowels while naked in front of an audience.
Winslet recalled the humiliating incident during an appearance on BBC’s The Graham Norton Show, the Titanic actress explained that it happened during a play at Manchester's Royal Exchange theatre when she was just 18.
During a scene in which she had no clothes, Winslet explained she “nearly did a poo on stage”, which would have been very unfortunate as the round stage had audience members seated all around it.
Winslet revealed, “I nearly did a poo on stage once” which piqued the curiosity of fellow panel guests Jack Whitehall, Lenny Henry and Nadiya Hussain. Winslet then remarked, “I'm just sitting here realising that you're now gonna make me tell that story”.
She continued: “When I was 18 years old, I was in a production of What The Butler Saw in Manchester. I played a character called Geraldine, who is applying for the job of the doctor's secretary. And he [the doctor] says ‘well let me see, I need to give you a full body examination. Please strip’.”
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The 47-year-old actress then explained that in a normal production, you’d go behind a curtain and the audience wouldn’t be able to see you, but because the stage was round, audience members circled the stage.
Winslet further explained: “So, I go behind the curtain and I do what I've done for nights on end. I have to then lie on this bed and I lie there really awkwardly and uncomfortably and suddenly.... it's happening, it's happening, i'm gonna s**t myself and I'm lying on a white sheet, naked on a stage.
“So I'm like oh my god it's happening now, it's happened. I'm convinced I've totally s**t myself. So I'm like ‘what am I gonna do?’ Because now I need to get up from behind the curtain and look for all my clothes and I'm like ‘I've done a f***ing poo’.”
Winslet dramatically told the story, explaining that when she stood up, she scrunched the sheet around her in pure embarrassment.
She said: “And I'm still thinking ‘happening, happening’ while standing in front of an audience who can see me from every f***ing angle. I'm absolutely just convinced that if I move my body, there's gonna be poo on the floor. Honestly, I practically shiver off the stage and I hide in a corner and then I thought ‘I've gotta check the sheet’.”
A shocked Hussain asked, “Did you sh*t yourself or not?”
Winslet replied: “Ladies and gentlemen, I had not actually done a poo but the second I got into my dressing room and ran to that bathroom, it was like gunfire.”
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