From project to project, Máiréad Tyers is a vibrant presence in the acting world — entrancing audiences with her captivating performances. Showcasing her remarkable versatility and undeniable talent, she reprises her leading role in the second series of Disney+’s Extraordinary and shines in Amazon Prime’s My Lady Jane.

Extraordinary is a superhero comedy that follows the journey of Jen, a young woman portrayed by Tyers, as she adjusts to the challenges of adulthood alongside intense feelings of not fitting into the real world. Wonderland had the honour of sitting down with the exceptional actor to delve into the beginning of 2024, her early experiences and what drew her to the compelling role of Jen in Extraordinary.

Read the exclusive interview below…

Hi Máiréad! How has your start to 2024 been?
Good, thank you! It’s been an exciting few weeks starting the press for Extraordinary season two. There was a great response after releasing the first look images, so it’s great to feel like people are looking forward to seeing it. Outside of that, I’ve just been auditioning and reading scripts, some great stuff, so I’m feeling inspired and excited for the year ahead. 

Can you tell us a bit about your early career days and how you found your love for acting? 
I always loved performing when I was a child and just wanted to find any way to do it – I even joined a musical theatre class, despite having no interest in singing or dancing, just to have the opportunity to perform on stage. I refused to sing week after week, so you can imagine I didn’t last too long in that class. I just loved storytelling and creating something that felt magical and fizzy. I moved to London at eighteen for drama school and then graduated in pandemic times. It was scary coming into the industry at a time filled with such uncertainty, but I think it taught me to fill my life with other things other than acting. The reality is you usually spend more time auditioning and not working, than you do on a job, so I was grateful for that time to take stock and become rooted post-drama school. 

How are you feeling about the second season of Extraordinary? What can viewers expect?
Honestly, I’m so excited for this season to come out – I think Emma has outdone herself with these scripts. She’s gotten to know us really well as people and characters over the last two years so she writes to our strengths. There’s so much madness in this season – themed episodes, wild costumes, there may even be some singing and dancing. More specifically for Jen, I think she goes through some huge changes in this season which was so much fun to play and I’m looking forward to people seeing those storylines. 

Initially, what drew you to the project and your character?
The scripts were just perfect. I remember reading the opening interview scene and laughing out loud. I was buzzing to put it on tape, never mind actually get the job. I guessed that Emma might have been Irish from her surname so that excited me too, obviously. When I went into the audition room for the first time and met Toby the director and Gilly and Susanne the casting directors, I felt so encouraged and supported. It was a gorgeous audition process, they always made me feel safe and valued. 

How did it feel getting back into character for the second season? Was it easy to slip back in or what were some of the challenges?
I loved it. Emma sent us her season two playlist before it had been commissioned, so I had that on repeat the moment we heard. I remember that the first fitting I had with costume designer Buki for the second season was the most exciting thing ever. The costumes feel so intrinsic to the show and Buki’s vision is remarkable. The second season picks up exactly where the first leaves off, so I was literally putting on the same outfit, it felt like going back in time. In terms of challenges, we started filming the second season two days after the first had come out, so it felt important to block out the buzz of the release in order to focus on filming. Once we got going, it was great and felt like a family reunion. A lot of the same crew came back for the second season, so it was lovely to see everyone again. 

Is there a scene or plotline you’re most proud of in season 2?
Without saying too much, I’m proud of the journey Jen goes on with her Dad. That storyline had to go to real emotional depths at times and I found I could access that in a way that surprised me. I hadn’t had that experience before – I had spent two years working on that character at that stage, so I really cared about Jen and her development, and specifically her relationship with her dad. It was a really special story to film. 

Do you have a favourite memory from filming?
Again, without saying too much, we had some more animals on set this season and they were completely precious. Any day they were on set was an easy days work. 

Let’s talk about My Lady Jane! How did you get connected with the project?
I self-taped for it once we finished filming season one of Extraordinary and really loved the scenes I was sent. In my recall on zoom, I met the two show runners and writers, the director and casting director. They were all women, and the fact it was a female led project felt really important to me, I knew I wanted to be a part of it. It was such a class job – to be on a set with such a high budget was a complete new experience and with actors who I have looked up to for years. I’ve seen the first two episodes and some later scenes in ADR, and I think people are really going to like it. 

Throughout your career, has there been a character that was particularly difficult, or one that felt most natural to play?
My role in Dead Shot felt the furthest away from me; I had to do a northern Irish accent, it was a period piece and my character was pregnant. I only had a small role but it felt imperative to work hard on the physicality and voice, to make that character feel believable and make an impact in the opening scene of the film. Jen in Extraordinary feels quite close to me, there’s definitely traits of hers that I share. Procrastination is for sure one of them. 

Any genre or type of project you’re hoping to explore next?
I’d love to work in theatre. In my drama school, we did more theatrical training and I’ve worked almost exclusively in film and tv for the last three years, so I’d love to try my hand at theatre again. You often only get to do scenes a handful of times when shooting, so I’d love to have the experience of needing to recreate a scene truthfully every night for months. I think I’d find it a challenge but a welcome one.