Jodie Comer planned to ditch Scouse accent but which actor persuaded her not to?

Jodie Comer has revealed fellow Liverpudlian actor Stephen Graham persuaded her to keep her Scouse accent.

The Killing Eve star has often surprised fans when appearing as herself in TV and radio interviews with her strong accent – but she has confessed she had planned to ditch it at the start of her career.

Comer, 27, told the Radio Times: “Do you know what, it’s funny because when I was much younger, when I was with another agency and really young, I don’t know where I got it from, but I thought ‘I have to lose my accent’.

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“And I remember working with Stephen Graham and he was great. He was like, ‘Don’t you dare lose your accent!’ And I didn’t. Maybe it’s just this idea of being working class from the North West, you don’t hear those voices all the time on television.”

The Doctor Foster actress worked with Hollywood star Stephen Graham in 2012 on the BBC crime thriller Good Cop.

Scouse is the term given to the accent and dialect originating from Liverpool and Merseyside.

Comer was born and grew up in Liverpool but has become a worldwide star playing Russian assassin Villanelle in BBC America series Killing Eve.

She is about to appear in the BBC revival of Alan Bennett’s Talking Heads monologues, which have been filmed in lockdown with social distancing rules in place.

Comer plays Lesley, an actress who believes she has found her big breakthrough role and her accent develops during her performance.

Comer said: “When you first see her, it’s like she’s presenting this idea of herself. I love this idea of the way we all have a phone voice.

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“It’s like Scouse, only it’s all a little bit better pronounced, but it’s still where she’s from. And then the more she relaxes and is more honest with the audience, you see who she truly is.”

Alan Bennett's Talking Heads will begin on BBC One at 9pm on Tuesday 23 June and the whole series will become available on the BBC iPlayer at the same time.