On Outlander, Caitriona Balfe's character Claire has a passion for botany, using herbal remedies in order to heal the sick. To be fair, there aren't that many options in 18th century Scotland, and then colonial America, where the 20th century native ends up after a trip back through time. (If this is confusing, please go watch Outlander. It's a perfect quarantine binge-watch — there's sex, drama, and more sex.) But Balfe has clearly learned a thing or two from the woman she's been portraying for five seasons.
With the COVID-19 pandemic ravaging the United Kingdom, Balfe, like so many other women working in the entertainment industry, is staying home. Here’s how she’s navigating this new reality.
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Name: Caitriona Balfe
Profession: Actor
Please Support: Trussell Trust or your local food bank
Pronouns: She/her
Profession: Actor
Please Support: Trussell Trust or your local food bank
Pronouns: She/her
I was due to start filming season 6 of Outlander, but due to the shutdown we have been postponed to an as yet unknown date.
For the first week, it was actually very nice to be home, as I’ve been in the U.S. for the majority of my hiatus. It’s rare that I am in Glasgow when not also on a full-on filming schedule, so getting to sort out all the things I’ve been meaning to do for the past year and a half since moving into my home has been a silver lining. Lots of closets have been organized, lots of shelves mounted… I now have a to-do list the length of my arm.
My sister-in-law is a nurse — as is one of my close friends — and my brother is a member of the Garda police force in Ireland, so I am anxious about their safety, and all the other essential frontline workers.
Other than that, unsurprisingly, it’s the same usual stuff… My accountant is going to email again looking for papers that I can’t quite find!
It’s okay to let the crazy out once in a while, but I’ve found comfort in cooking, growing, and reading. I’ve got the beginnings of quite an impressive herb garden (the mint seems to know of my previous reputation as a mint murderer and is not playing ball) and it’s been so nice watching things grow from seeds.
I’m consuming way too much TV unfortunately. I had missed the boat on Westworld, which I am now catching up on, but of late I really want to laugh and watch comedy. I just watched Marc Maron standup, which was really good, and I always love 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown. I can’t seem to get into exercise, but what I am doing is putting on music and dancing around like a lunatic for at least three songs every day.
Like I said, you got to let the crazy out.
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