Borgen star interviewed

First of all, can I ask you... Have you been surprised by the success of Borgen? Oh, absolutely. I'm still not really... come to terms with it, because it was... even risky for Denmark When we did it we were told to expect a... a smaller audience than... than "The Killing" and the other series that've been very popular in Denmark because it's political, it's a bit, you know... maybe for the chosen few, and.... When I started travelling, I just... I couldn't believe it Why do you think it's been such a success soap in Australia? Which, after all, is so far away from Denmark? Oh, God! I'm the last one to anwer that question. I have no idea. I have no idea, I mean... I hope it's because it's a good show... And I think it's hard to see your own... I mean there must be something exotic about it, but... but we're so used to that, so we... I can't see it. I mean... ... there's something about... you know putting of... that I am female political leader that is ... ... sort of new ... No, I don't know! But I was just really happy (laughs). People often mistake your co-star for a real-life spin doctor Does anybody mistake you for a real-life Prime Minister? Well, not mistake, but ... I remember... there was recently... a lot of demonstrations in Denmark about something... a welfare issue And I when I walked out, you know, people say: "That wouldn't have happened if you were the Prime Minister" and "Could you... you've got to do something about it!" I think, I think... I did also hear... somone talking about the Prime Minister saying something on the news the other day And then... "No, I'm sorry, that was you saying that, wasn't it?" You know, that sort of... confused it a little bit, but ... I do feel that... like when I went to France I was really received as a ... you know ... a state's minister, which was very nice. So tell me, what can Australians expect to see in the final series? Well, the second series... is filmed in... what you call ... continuation of the first series So that direction of the first series sort of continues in the second series. that's kind of one story that ends there, and then... the third series, which you might get... later on, is something completely different. But … but I think my character has a really nice voyage and tries to get back to basics, sort of back to the ideals and back to the... to why she wanted to be a politician in the first place. Have you had feedback from Australian fans? about their views on the program? And can you in any way relate to our first female Prime Minister who only recently left office? Well, when I hear about female politicians in other countries sort of comparing it and this and that What I find quite special about our show is that although it is a gender issue we really played that down a lot I was not... I didn't particularly play a female prime minister There's two episodes that touch that subject that it's because she's a woman but apart from that I think we toned it down a lot and when we eventually got a female prime minister she had much more... you know... she was confronted much more than my fictional character ever did so I think my prime minister gets off a little more easily Do you understand what I'm saying? Are you saying that in a sense it's easier to be a woman prime minister in Denmark that it is to be a woman prime minister in ... I think it's easier to be a woman prime minister in the fictional world. And in the sort of ...mildly idealistic world Why is that, then? women still face this glass ceiling? If it's easier to be a woman in the fictional world rather than a real-life world I think it was... I mean I found it really boring if... because it is the first female prime minister that's the first episode God! We have the first woman. If I had to play the whole series: "Oh, and the woman comes in... "... and the is dancing", oh, it would be very boring. It would be just the same issue continuing, So it was a politician, a new politician that was much more what I played somebody who is very new to a position and to a... to the whole cynical... the whole, what do you say, all the compromises, and ... whatever what power does to a human being but it was much more that story that we were telling what does power do, can you be... have the power and still be a human being more than can you still be a woman So many of the issues that, or problems that she has, my prime minister, we have actual parallels from the real world but that was just men. so it's not... I for example have never... my character has not been... there was no... in no episode do we talk about my clothes or my handbags, or my... haircuts, which they do much more with female politicians than with male politicians. Did you follow Julia Gillard's travels at all... when she was prime minister? I didn't follow anyone. 'cos, it's a ... I mean it is and it's very compromised, and it's... It's a tale and I couldn't... I actually I banned myself from seing the news for a while because I just had to believe in this system in our sole story and I mean people do do their parallels all by themselves, I don't have to help them (laughs) by having a certain person that I follow, so now, I did not follow... in other words. And finally, can I just ask you about Sidney? You've been visiting here What's your perception? You seem to have brought the wheather with you. Oh, no, no no! I left a very sunny Copenhagen. Oh, I think it's fantastic! Well, we are also here because of the Opera House and all that what an amazing building! I mean, what an emotional piece of art. It's incredible. I just went to the zoo today and coming on the boat and seeing the skyline and all...oh! I'm definitely coming back.