Barclay’s deft ability to navigate roles as far afield as a doctor in global smash comedy, Ted Lasso, sister to Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra in rom com, Love Again and now a gutsy working-class detective in the revival of the popular British investigative series, Lynley, Barclay credits to her theatre beginnings.
Sofia confesses, ‘As a kid I had so many emotions that I couldn’t connect to. I would watch old movies such as Cinema Paradiso and be able to understand my life better. I still come back to that now, I watch an amazing film if I want to have a good cry and feel better.’
‘British theatre is a real gift. You start off often in fringe venues and get paid very little, however, it gives you this ability to balance the greater sense of responsibility to the ‘art form’ without a heaviness to life. It enables you later in your career to build a trust muscle of what you can handle, go beyond your comfort zone, get used to the uncertainty and manage yourself as a creative,’ she elaborates.
Barclay’s four-part Lynley series has received astounding critical acclaim. It is based on the original series of novels by Elizabeth George which were first published in 1988. So, how did Barclay introduce DS Barbara Havers to a new audience?
‘When I got the script I was bowled over by this female character who gets to be feral and unapologetically who she is. She’s often driving the narrative forward but not from a place of powerlessness but from a place of self-expression – I love that in real life with the women around me too.’
Barclay worked collaboratively with the scriptwriter, Steve Thompson, to look at the hints of her backstory, ‘I felt with Barbara there was such an immediate sense of corrective experience she’s trying to have. It feels like for her every single case she approaches is a chance to get a bit of justice that she felt she never got when she was young and wounded.’
Boots: Jimmy Choo
Further exploration of Havers’ past might well come in a next series (she hints at) due to the gripping dynamic between Barclay and lead co-star, Leo Suter (Vikings) who plays DCI Lynley with juxtaposing restraint.
‘We met in a chemistry test and just clicked. It’s rare now that series do them and I think it was such a good idea to honour the books in that way,’ she ponders.
Barclay is taking stock of the characters that have played pivotal roles in her career thus far. She has been writing her first screenplay with the support of Aluna Labs over the last two years ‘which has kept me sane between filming’.
‘It’s the most incredible creative initiative I got into founded by (fellow Brit actor) Vanessa Kirby to help women writers, where you can pitch projects and then if accepted, they put you in a room with ten producers or so. I have coffee with one of them next week,’ she continues, ‘we all know what a lonely job writing is so the Aluna Labs groups and incentives have been phenomenal.’
Barclay is an expansive thinker, she loves the interconnectedness of writing character and acting, ‘I turn to great art and cinema when I need to feel connected to humanity and my own humanity, so I have faith in it.’
Sofia stars in Lynley available on Britbox from 4th September and coming to BBC One in early 2026.
@sofiabarclay
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Jemima Marriott
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Hasan Hejazi
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