Rose Leslie reveals how Kit Harington’s surprise proposal really went down
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Rose Leslie reveals how Kit Harington’s surprise proposal really went down

As you already know, Rose & her partner Kit Harington officially announced their engagement in The Times three weeks ago (yay !). Kit had spoken about it on The Jonathan Ross show recently (and showed a funny video of Rose reacting to a very scary April Fools’ prank which you can watch here), and today it is Rose’s version of the proposal which has been released :

NOW TO LOVE – Our favourite Game of Thrones couple Kit Harington and Rose Leslie are going to tie the knot, and we’re sure it’s going to be nothing like the Red Wedding. But while we’ve all heard Kit’s side of the story of how the proposal actually happened, we haven’t heard it from Rose.
Speaking exclusively to TV WEEK, the actress assumed Kit would propose in Iceland during a holiday next month.

For Thanksgiving we happen to be going to Iceland, which is obviously a country we have many memories from and we both independently love,” she revealed. “I felt sure that was when it was going to be. I was confident to the max.” So when Kit popped the question well before their trip, Rose was shocked. “I was blissfully surprised when he dropped to a knee and asked me to marry him,” she said. “We happened to be in the English countryside, which is kind of an area that I don’t know that well. It was at night time under a beautiful blanket of stars … The man did well. It was highly romantic.

According to Kit AKA Jon Snow, he fumbled his way through the romantic moment. Speaking on The Jonathan Ross Show, he said his grand plans didn’t get carried out the way he’d hoped.

“I was going to string up some lights in some trees and do all the romantic stuff, but we were in the country and we were under this beautiful night sky and had a log fire burning and red wine and I blew my load early,” he said before laughing at what he’d insinuated. “Sorry that’s a really bad expression!” he continued. “I was meant to do it the day after with the lights. What I meant to say was, I popped my question a bit early.”

While Rose’s GoT character Ygritte was killed (by her real-life fiancé, no less) in season four, Rose tells TV WEEK she’s still heavily involved with the cast and community. “Yes, I still very much consider myself a part of the family. I love experiencing that world again and going to see them on the sets.”

Rose plays lawyer Maia Rindell on the drama series The Good Fight and will soon be filming season two. (source)

The Good Wife spin-off courting all new dramas
Filed in Article Interviews Television The Good Fight

The Good Wife spin-off courting all new dramas

The Good Fight is currently airing in Australia on SBS and a new interview of Rose was released in The Chronicle to promote the show there. I have added the scans to the gallery and you can read the interview below :

THE CHRONICLE – While her real-life partner battles White Walkers on Game of Thrones, Rose Leslie is taking up the good fight in the courtroom. The Downton Abbey and Game of Thrones star, famous for her line ‘You know nothing Jon Snow’, joins the returning cast of The Good Wife in the new spin-off The Good Fight.

Picking up one year after the events of the final episode of The Good Wife, a financial scam has destroyed the reputation of young lawyer Maia Rindell (Rose), while simultaneously wiping out her mentor and godmother Diane Lockhart’s (Christine Baranski) savings.

« I was aware, certainly, of The Good Wife, » Rose tells The Guide. « It had been on for seven years. I came quite late to the party, but girlfriends of mine had been speaking about it for a while. I was really excited (about The Good Fight), mainly because it meant I could work with Christine, and because it’s a very familiar universe where we get to create new characters. »

In the show’s first episode, which premiered last night, Maia is navigating her first day as a lawyer at Christine’s law firm when her father is arrested. As the news of his investment fund’s crash and alleged fraud hits the news, it turns Maia’s world upside down. « When we first meet her she’s fighting to stay sane, » Rose says. « The name Rindell used to bring with it so much respect and clout; it’s all she’s ever known. Then to have this enormous turnaround and for it to be tarnished and disgraced is such a mortifying experience.

« That jarring reality of suddenly you wake up and your world is no longer what you’ve known for 26 years was one thing that piqued my interest when I read the pilot. It’s a fantastic premise. » Both she and Diane must forge new futures for themselves if they are going to weather the storm. « Maia has to dig deeper than she ever has within herself, and the passion she has for the law is possibly the last resort she has to hold her head up high, » she says.

« There’s a strong desire to carve her own way in the world… and a determination in this young woman that I was very much drawn to.

« There’s a resilience within her that builds up by the end of the first season.

« I had always wanted to work with the Kings (writers Robert and Michelle King). They are incredible at writing court dramas and they write so vividly. They make sure their characters are flawed and imperfect. » (source)

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Magazines Scans > August 2017 | The Chronicle Daily News – The Guide [+ 2]

Leslie Up For The Fight
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Leslie Up For The Fight

THE WEST AUSTRALIAN – To many she’s renowned as Kit Harrington’s other half.

But Rose Leslie’s gripping turn in The Good Fight, a sassy and slightly edgier spin-off of the Emmy award- winning series The Good Wife, will see the Scottish- born, London-based actress well and truly step out of her famous boyfriend’s shadow.

The 30-year-old portrays Maia Rindell, the daughter of a well-known billionaire couple who also happens to be Diane Lockhart’s (Christine Baranski) goddaughter.

The 10-part series picks up a year on from where The Good Wife finished, with Diane eyeing a cushy retirement — until she becomes entwined in a financial scandal involving the Rindells.

With her retirement dreams up in flames, Diane’s reputation, as well as her financial status, is in ruins.

Fresh-faced law graduate Maia, who had been offered an internship at Diane’s firm, is thrust into the public spotlight and struggles to come to grips with her predicament as a result of her family’s tarnished name.

Growing up at Lickleyhead Castle in Aberdeenshire, Leslie also hails from a well-to-do family — her mother is a descendant of King Charles II while her father is the chieftain of Clan Leslie — but, much like her character, she remains incredibly grounded.

That’s what piqued my interest,” explains Leslie, whose acting credits include Game of Thrones and Downton Abbey.

Being aware of her background and being told that she is a daughter of billionaires prior to filming the pilot, I was surprised and also impressed by the idea that she wasn’t entitled and that she has this strong desire to prove her worth.

She is determined . . . to make sure that she carves her own path in this world, and then of course before any of that can happen, her father is caught in this horrendous scandal.

I loved the idea of being staged as a stable woman and then for that to be turned on its head and have the relationship with her parents begin to crumble . . . and also to test her financially, professionally and mentally. That was also something I enjoyed grappling with.

Continue reading Leslie Up For The Fight

‘The Good Fight’ Star Talks Relinquishing Control and a « Tougher » Maia in Season 2
Filed in Article Interviews Television The Good Fight

‘The Good Fight’ Star Talks Relinquishing Control and a « Tougher » Maia in Season 2

THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER Much like how viewers met Alicia Florrick (Julianna Margulies) at her lowest point in the series premiere of The Good Wife, viewers were first introduced to Maia Rindell (Rose Leslie) just as her world was falling apart.

A bright law student who had just passed the bar and received a job offer at a large Chicago firm, Maia seemed to have the world at her fingertips, that is, until it came to light that her father (Paul Guilfoyle) had orchestrated an elaborate Ponzi scheme that robbed hundreds of thousands — including her godmother and mentor Diane (Christine Baranski) — of their life savings. Not exactly the best way to enter the working world.

However, Maia followed Diane to her new firm and slowly but surely built a solid reputation as a young but smart lawyer, even as she juggled the many stresses of her family’s scandal. At the end of the first season, Maia’s world appeared to come crashing down again when she was arrested for helping cover up the Ponzi scheme on the heels of her father skipping town.

After a turbulent first season for her alter-ego, THR jumped on the phone with Leslie to discuss how she channeled her own nerves for Maia’s big breakdown, how those flashbacks in the penultimate episode informed her portrayal and the « more resilient » Maia to come in season two.

Going back to the very beginning, how did you hear first hear about the role? How was the character of Maia first described to you?

It was a relatively quick turnaround from learning about a character and hopping onto a plane to New York a week later for the next five months. On the phone to [creators and showrunners Robert and Michelle King] and also Brooke Kennedy and some other producers, they were describing the role to me — obviously being a fan of The Good Wife — and very much assured me that we are within the same universe and now it’s with different characters and their own situations. As a result, they determined that Maia was somebody who was tarnished due to her father’s behavior with the revelation of her father’s scam. As a result, she would be forced to mentally and professionally struggle to stay afloat, as well as financially.

Learning more about Maia, and knowing what brilliant writers the Kings are, they fully delivered in terms of creating a rounded character with vulnerability in all the right ways. Often when playing a woman in a law firm, there is a temptation to be incredibly strong-willed and domineering and I thought that it was rather interesting to approach this new character as rather wounded and a real representation of someone… Because in my mind, with the character, what would you humanly do if this were to happen to you? You would put up all your barriers in every single aspect of your life and I feel there’s a lot of self-preservation with Maia and I felt that was true in their writing of her. She doesn’t scare easily, but the wind is knocked out of her after the current events with her father.
Continue reading ‘The Good Fight’ Star Talks Relinquishing Control and a « Tougher » Maia in Season 2

Glamour US June 2017
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Glamour US June 2017

Rose is featured in Glamour US’ June issue, taking part in a series in which four actresses bared their current emotion : Rose chose « calm ». You can check her portrait in the gallery and read her short interview below :

« For the last couple of months, I’ve been filming in New York City. It’s easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle and adrenaline here, especially after some very emotional days with a big team of people. I have to take a hot shower at the end of the day just to relax and feel subdued. Some people may perceive calmness as weakness, when it absolutely is not that at all. You have to choose to be calm in this chaotic world – without getting walked all over – and that requires you to have a backbone. »

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Magazines Scans > April 2017 | Glamour US [+ 1]
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Rose Leslie out of her comfort zone
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Rose Leslie out of her comfort zone

Rose has been very busy while filming The Good Fight as a new photoshoot taken while she was living in Brooklyn has been released today by Monrowe Magazine along with an interview. Be sure to read it below and check the gorgeous pictures taken by Krisztian Eder in the gallery :

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Photoshoots > 2017 | Monrowe [+ 10]

MONROWE As Gwen Dawson—the youngest house maid at “Downton Abbey”—she secretly dreamed of escaping a life of service, and becoming a secretary (in the show’s very first season). In a memorable season six cameo, she returned to visit England’s best known stately home, as the wife of a rising politician, an eloquent feminist, and an ardent advocate for the education of women. In “Game of Thrones” she was the raven-haired wilding archer Ygritte, for whom Jon Snow broke his Night’s Watch vow of chastity—kindling an impossible passion that both characters would deny, even to themselves, until she died in his arms (toward the end of Season 4), while the wilding armies lay siege to the Wall and Castle Black, telling Snow one last time (with a broad Lancashire accent) that he “know[s] nothing.”

As for the fate and fortunes of Rose Leslie’s latest character, Maia Rindell—a recent law school graduate (from a prominent and enormously wealthy Chicago family, who’s secured a job offer at the law firm of her godmother, Diane Lockhart)—this may depend less on Leslie— or her versatile gifts as an actress, or even on the storytelling skills of Robert and Michelle King in creating an absorbing sequel to their long-running CBS hit series “The Good Wife,” and rather more on the venerable broadcast channel’s marketing bet that it can launch its new subscription streaming service “All Access” by luring the old show’s loyal audience (of 10-13 million regular viewers over seven seasons) back to the colorful political and legal world of Alicia Florrick (played by Julianna Margulies, who won three Emmys and was nominated for seven more in the role), but without Margulies’ beloved character ever actually turning up in the sequel.

MONROWE recently caught up with Rose Leslie by phone, shortly after her return home to London following some five months living and shooting the first season of “The Good Fight” in Brooklyn, New York.

Guy Lesser: So, is Julianna Margulies going to be lured into appearing in Season 2 of “The Good Fight” when you all come back to shoot next fall?
Rose Leslie: I don’t believe so. I don’t believe so. No—but, as a mere actor, that’s not something I would ever be privy to. Were you wanting to see Juliana appear?

Not necessarily. But when a character like Alicia doesn’t die, with, say—
An arrow through the heart?

There’s no closure to her storyline, and of course Alicia does periodically receive mention in “The Good Fight.”
True, true. But I loved the way they ended “The Good Wife” and left the door open— even if there isn’t any way that that she’s going to come through it. But it also reflects life, when, you know, you’re not too sure whether you are going to see an old friend again.

Continue reading Rose Leslie out of her comfort zone

Actress Rose Leslie showcases Spring’s deconstructed trend and talks strong female roles
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Actress Rose Leslie showcases Spring’s deconstructed trend and talks strong female roles

New day, new photoshoot ! This time it is online clothing store Farfetch which has released a new interview of Rose along with beautiful pictures taken by photographer Tom Craig.

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Photoshoots > 2017 | Farfetch [+ 9]

FARFETCH — You could forgive Rose Leslie for finding it rather trying to have the same 5 words incessantly yelled at her in the street – even if those 5 words are ‘You know nothing, Jon Snow’ and came as a result of her stellar 3-year stint on Game of Thrones. But it turns out that Rose is so very nice as to insist she actually likes it. ‘It’s a lovely thing to be on the receiving end of,’ she says. ‘I feel so lucky, a, to have [a catchphrase] and, b, to be a part of a show that is universally adored.’ It’s a sunny spring day, but the east London warehouse we’re shooting in is so inexplicably cold that even a person who grew up in a Scottish castle (that would be Rose) is gripped by the chill. Still, she poses gamely around the freezing space to show off SS17’s key deconstructed pieces to their best advantage.

From the big fashion hitters to the titans of television, Rose’s ascent to stardom has come via some of the modern era’s most celebrated shows: her breakout role Gwen in the first season of Downton Abbey, then Thrones’ Ygritte, Wildling warrior and doomed love of Jon Snow. Now her flawless record continues with The Good Fight, the much-anticipated The Good Wife spin-off and a newly minted hit. The series follows Christine Baranski’s Diane Lockhart as she moves to a new law firm after her plans to retire fall through (she loses all her money in a Ponzi scheme run by a close friend); Rose plays Maia, Diane’s beloved goddaughter and offspring of the Ponzi schemer. Here, she shares style advice, reminisces about Ygritte’s costumes and tells us about Maia’s ‘pretty good fight of her own’.

Everyone seems to have gone wild for The Good Fight. Do you think that’s down in part to how very current it feels, exploring subjects like fake news and even opening the pilot with Diane Lockhart watching the Trump inauguration?

Rose Leslie: ‘Yes, and I’m certainly incredibly proud of the fact that [showrunners] Robert and Michelle King decided to be bold enough to take on the administration in terms of highlighting what they feel needs to be brought to people’s attention. In the pilot, I think that with nothing being said, you can project whatever your own feelings are to Donald Trump being sworn in. Diane Lockhart’s face is so beautifully blank – you were able to project whatever your own thoughts were onto her face and be like, “Oh my god, this must be what Diane is feeling.” I thought that was very clever.’

Continue reading Actress Rose Leslie showcases Spring’s deconstructed trend and talks strong female roles

Rose Leslie Reinvents the Role
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Rose Leslie Reinvents the Role

Magazine WWD has published a new interview and beautiful photoshoot of Rose who talks about The Good Fight – the show had its season finale yesterday and will be back for season 2 next year !

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Photoshoot > 2017 | WWD [+ 3]

WWD — Rose Leslie is branching out – and that’s not just because she’s just tried octopus for the first time. The 30-year-old Leslie is finally sitting down to a late lunch at Zuma in Midtown Manhattan, about to depart New York as her new show, “The Good Fight,” wraps shooting season one. It was the Scottish actress’ first time filming in the city and her verdict on it — and the octopus — is positive. Leslie, until now best known as Ygritte on “Game of Thrones” — she, of “You know nothing, Jon Snow” fame — has left the furs and battle scenes behind and is trying on corporate law for size, in “The Good Wife” spinoff “The Good Fight,” the season finale of which aired Sunday night.

It was brilliant to be able to go off in a whole new universe, even though [the characters] are familiar,” Leslie says. “There are similarities with the previous show, but you’re exploring completely different avenues and characters and seeing this woman whom you’ve loved for so long, Christine Baranski’s Diane Lockhart, falling off her pedestal. We’re really seeing her in a kind of free-fall, and that was something that really pulled me to the project — because she’s always been such an inspirational character to watch for women.

The spinoff, which has already been renewed for a second season, follows Lockhart as she seeks to start a new life after financial ruin at the hands of her close friends. Leslie is Maya, the only child of the friends, whose lies unravel in a Madoff-like manner. Much like “The Good Wife,” writers Robert and Michelle King focus the story lines of “The Good Fight” heavily on current politics and social issues.

There’s something incredibly bold and brave about it, and I highly respect the Kings for putting these issues at the forefront of the writing and the episodes,” Leslie says. “We approached the issue of police brutality, and then also of fake news, and just hopefully, as a result, a trickle-down effect. I’m really assuming this is why the Kings pursue this — to help the viewers, or to enable a kind of thought process that’s like, ‘You’re right!’ Once you’re reflecting society into our show, hopefully that will then project onto the audience, who’ll be like, ‘Wait a minute, your show’s based on reality.’

“The Good Wife,” which ended in May 2016, carried a strongly loyal fan base, much like Leslie’s previous shows “Game of Thrones” and “Downton Abbey.” “God, I’ve been so fortunate, actually,” she says. “Because [‘Thrones’ and ‘Downton’] were hits and so universally loved that I’ve only ever been on the receiving end of pure joy, when people are expressing the pleasure they derive from something like ‘Thrones’ or ‘Downton Abbey.’ You’re so energized by the story lines and by the worlds that you know that it’s real escapism for some of the fans. And, that’s an incredible, extraordinary feeling — to know you’re a part of something that gives people joy.” (source)

‘The Good Fight’ star Rose Leslie Loves ‘Stranger Things’, Misses ‘Breaking Bad’ and Hearts Gingers Everywhere
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‘The Good Fight’ star Rose Leslie Loves ‘Stranger Things’, Misses ‘Breaking Bad’ and Hearts Gingers Everywhere

TV INSIDER – My current favorite show:
« It’s a toss-up between Taboo and Stranger Things. »

The funniest person on TV:
« Daisy May Cooper on BBC’s This Country. Her approach to the character is so astute. »

The show that always makes me laugh:
« Takeshi’s Castle—my favorite humor of all time is slapstick. »

The show I miss most:
« Breaking Bad. Nothing has ever replaced it—yet! »

The show I’d like to guest star on:
« The Fall. Gillian Anderson is mesmerizing. »

What I eat while watching:
« Most recently it was mint gelato from Talenti. »

My guilty pleasure:
« The Great British Bake Off. That’s my sweet tooth talking. »

My dream costar:
« Damian Lewis. Gingers have to stick together! »

Rose Leslie on The Good Fight: ‘Maia’s same-sex relationship is just a fact – move on’
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Rose Leslie on The Good Fight: ‘Maia’s same-sex relationship is just a fact – move on’

THE EVENING STANDARD — People are often crushed when they hear actor Rose Leslie speak for the first time. “They’re like: ‘That doesn’t sound right! You’re lying! You’re not her!’” she says with a self-deprecating chuckle. The “her” being Game of Thrones’ wildling warrior Ygritte, and the crushing sensation being disappointment that Leslie sounds nothing like her most famous character delivering her catchphrase, “You know nothing, Jon Snow”.

Even with manners as lovely as Leslie’s, disappointment is sometimes inevitable: “Say, you’re with your mates and having a nice time in a beer garden and someone asks you to do it. You’d feel a bit like a performing monkey if you put on the accent.” This is the major downside of being talented and successful — you’re for ever confronting strangers with the unwelcome reminder that TV isn’t real life. Game of Thrones fans can at least be comforted by the knowledge that the real Leslie also hails from “beyond the wall”, in rural Aberdeenshire, where she was raised in her father’s ancestral home, a castle on the outskirts of a village which, until a few years ago, wasn’t even on the map. Five years of boarding school in southern England at Millfield did it for her Scottish accent but it was a Scottish Bafta New Talent award for her role in the Edinburgh drama New Town which, in 2009, launched Leslie’s screen career.

Since then she’s played a housemaid in Downton Abbey (the contrast with her own “above stairs” upbringing was much remarked on), Idris Elba’s foil in Luther and a ruthless killer in Channel 4’s cult hit Utopia. In many ways, though, it’s her latest character in The Good Wife’s new spin-off, The Good Fight (Thursdays, 9pm, More4), that’s least likely to cause crushing moments in a pub beer garden. Maia Rindell is a natural hard-worker born into a life of privilege in Chicago. As the series opens, she’s just passed the bar and is about to embark on an illustrious legal career with the help of her well-placed godmother, Diane Lockhart (Christine Baranski). Then an unforeseen misfortune turns the world against Maia and she’s forced to strike out on her own, eventually taking up a junior position at the firm where Lucca (Cush Jumbo) now works. Good Wife fans, you will not be disappointed: The Good Fight is as compelling, stylish and subtly progressive as its much-loved predecessor.

Continue reading Rose Leslie on The Good Fight: ‘Maia’s same-sex relationship is just a fact – move on’