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Patron Saint of high-heeled lesbians

Tammy MacIntosh saw the role of Dr Charlotte Beaumont as a challenge, she tells Tim Hunter.

ON A very cold Melbourne winter morning, All Saints actor Tammy MacIntosh is anything but. She's warm, sunny and flirtatious, happily inviting me to lunch in a St Kilda Road cafe, insisting I sit next to her rather than opposite. She knows she's turned every head as we've walked through. Does she mind? Not at all.

And this sets the tone - she's candid, relaxed and tactile, often holding my hand as we talk about her six years on All Saints. She's been playing Charlotte since episode 184. "I came in for six weeks and I forgot to leave," MacIntosh says. "I should get around to that at some point."

But first there is a double celebration to share with the All Saints team - the series notches up its 400th episode on Tuesday and has just been sold to the BBC.

MacIntosh had worked on Police Rescue and was finishing a two-year stint on the Australian science-fiction series Farscape when she joined All Saints..

Playing Charlotte, a sexy, high-heeled lesbian, was a new challenge.

"That's why I took the role of Charlotte in the first place, because I imagined, naively, that I could make a difference if I played it a certain way and made it a normal, don't-have-to-blink-at-it type life. Suddenly, I realised it wasn't that simple and it would never be that simple.

"But she's been empowering to play. I felt much stronger and more confident in who I was than I had in a long time."

In the past 200-plus episodes, Charlotte has been through quite a lot - several girlfriends, working with her former husband, a one-night stand and unplanned pregnancy, a miscarriage and then a surprise relationship with Spence (Peter Phelps) resulting in the baby Charlotte had always wanted.

That storyline coincided with the birth of MacIntosh's son, Ben, and a new insight into acting. "When I went back to work, I had no idea of how to act. I got back on set, and had to give birth to Zach on behalf of Charlotte, and I thought, 'Who invented acting? It's the stupidest thing. I have to get up in the morning, leave my family, come here, and pretend that I'm having a child. Stupid!' It was completely alien to me for the first time in my life and that's after 20 years in the career. It was extraordinary."

Playing a doctor in a series such as All Saints means having to speak the medical jargon like you mean it; something MacIntosh didn't worry about too much.

"I think I went to St Vincent's once on a half-hour trip. But it's unbelievable the amount I've learnt. I was on set and someone asked me something about a particular procedure, and I knew the answer, and I had to stop and go, 'I can't believe I know that'. I love it; it's like going to med school."

Since she joined the series in 2002, All Saints has changed a lot. It's moved from Ward 17 to the more energetic emergency department and has a new look. Next to All Saints stalwart Judith McGrath, MacIntosh is now the longest-serving cast member. Many others have come and gone in the meantime, including Georgie Parker, who played Terri Sullivan from 1998 to 2005.

"The leaving of Georgie was something that everyone was really worried about but in actual fact, because we restructured the show, we switched from shooting on tape to high-definition video, and all that, it's worked."

All Saints' strong ensemble cast has also contributed to the success. "Guest stars or additional crew that come on all comment on what a well-oiled machine it is, and how we get things done. It's nice that amidst the shooting schedule, the amount we've got to do, all the medical stuff, and a cast of 12, that we can all get along, remember our lines and present a show that not only rates its tits off but is believable."

The ensemble cast makes it possible for the focus to move regularly from character to character. Charlotte has been out of the spotlight for a while but with tensions rising between her and Dr Zoe Gallagher (Allison Cratchley), that seems likely to change. MacIntosh takes my hand again and looks directly at me.

"Do you get sick of watching Charlotte?" she asks. Not because she's insecure; she wants to know if Charlotte has reached her limit yet. She hasn't, MacIntosh confirms. "It's not over for Charlotte yet but I can't tell you," she teases. "You'll just have to keep watching."

By Tim Hunter
July 26, 2007
The Age