Hannah Waddingham on how her ‘Home for Christmas’ variety special is ‘a squeeze of love from me, always’ [Exclusive Video Interview]

Hannah Waddingham‘s “Home for Christmas” variety special is gearing up for Emmy season after previously being nominated at the BAFTA Awards, Makeup Artist and Hair Stylist Guild Awards and Art Directors Guild Awards. The musical extravaganza was filmed in front of a live audience at the London Coliseum, and it streamed on November 22, 2023 on Apple TV+. Gold Derby’s Latasha Ford recently talked with the “Ted Lasso” scene-stealer to talk all things “Hannah Waddingham: Home for Christmas,” including how it’s “a squeeze of love from me, always, to anyone and everyone who watches it.” Watch the exclusive video interview above.

“Myself and my manager, Nick Todisco, it started with us,” Waddingham explains about the origins of the program. “I always want to shout him out, because he was the one that encouraged me and said, ‘No, you can do this and there will be an audience for it.’ And I said, ‘You’ve gotta be kidding me, no there won’t.’ And he pushed me. So I have him to thank for that, till the end of time.”

The 2021 Emmy winner for “Ted Lasso” continues on, “I’d grown up very much at the London Coliseum. I know every inch of the building, from running around it since I was eight. And the serendipitous timing of my daughter being eight at the same time? You couldn’t have made it up. So of course I had my daughter there in the same box that I was in. And my mom was there, who’s significantly — bless her — more ill since then.” In all, Waddingham calls the experience “a real capsule moment.”

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“I wanted it to be something that was a massive nod to my theatrical roots, so we knew that going into it,” the entertainer notes. “The ebb and flow of the arc of the guests in it kind of presented itself to us. I wanted to make sure that it wasn’t starry for starry’s sake, you know? I wanted it to be people that mean something to me, that move me, that have been along with me for the ride.”

Waddingham readily admits that her daughter’s enthusiasm for “Hamilton” actor Leslie Odom Jr. was part of the reason he appeared on the Christmas special. “This guy has to be a global superstar, because he has everything going for him,” she gushes. “His voice is absolutely ridiculous. You could listen to one note of his voice and know that you were in for an absolute dream.”

Also in our chat, Waddingham talks about the song selection for “Home for Christmas,” which specific performance caused her to “work very hard to not get emotional,” and how her stylist reacted when she got into the hot tub wearing her velvet red dress. She concludes by stating, “I want people to love it forever. That’s what we did it for.”

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