Rose Ayling-Ellis: ‘I can't represent all Deaf people because all Deaf people are different'
Every day on the set of new ITV crime drama Code Of Silence, the cast and crew learned a word in British Sign Language (BSL), but Deaf actress Rose Ayling-Ellis had some rules.
'I really tried to avoid teaching rude words, because often that's the only one people remember, and they don't remember anything else,' says the former EastEnders star, 30.
'So, [I told them] 'You can only learn your rude words when you learn more useful ones.''
Ayling-Ellis, who played Frankie in the BBC soap from 2020-2022, plays Alison Brooks in Code Of Silence, a Deaf woman who is working in a police canteen when her talent for lip-reading is spotted. Stockport-born Andrew Buchan, 46, stars as DI James Marsh, while Ghosts and You actress Charlotte Ritchie, 35, plays DS Ashleigh Francis, and, together, they recruit Alison to help them surveil a gang, but what starts out as a covert job becomes fraught.
Buchan says learning a word every day was 'magnificent' and lip-reading fascinating. But he says that what Alison is asked to do in the show is 'unfathomable and farcical' when compared with the work of trained forensic lip-readers, who are 'highly sought after by law enforcement.
They spend hours analysing video after video of CCTV footage, trying to catch killers, rapists,' he says. Alison, meanwhile, is 'in no way experienced to do this' and his character, Marsh, is a 'very blunt, monomaniacal, driven, impatient' boss, who is recklessly 'enlisting the help of this complete wildcard, who could derail the whole thing'.
Buchan says working on the show was 'definitely one of the most enlightening, fantastic jobs I've ever done, without question'.
Code of Silence was created by Catherine Moulton (Baptiste, Hijack), who has experience of lip-reading and hearing loss. For star Charlotte Ritchie, the clear communication on set made filming a joy.
'TV sets can be a bit fast paced, can get a bit impersonal, and you can rush past people in the morning and maybe not take the time to communicate and check in,' Ritchie says.
'With this production, there was such an emphasis on really looking at people, really making sure that people were understood, and I think the more that that's possible, the nicer the set feels, and the more people are able to take a breath to work in a way that feels expansive. It just puts communication right at the forefront.'
Ritchie attributes this openness to Ayling-Ellis. 'Rose did a really amazing job — because she didn't have to — but she made so much space for everybody to do that.'
Ayling-Ellis and the rest of the cast are hopeful that Code Of Silence will usher in a new era of inclusion on telly, while also being a gripping six-parter packed with drama.
The entire cast sound in awe of Kent-born Ayling-Ellis, who won Strictly Come Dancing in 2021 with professional dancer Giovanni Pernice. 'I really wanted to do this job, because Rose is really brilliant,' says Ritchie. 'I am just singing her praises now. I need to say something bad about her. She's also a diva! No. Ha ha.'
'I felt like I'd never been truly listened to until I met Rose,' adds Manchester-born Kieron Moore, 28, who plays Alison's love interest, gang member Liam Barlow. 'She pays so much attention to you when you talk. I was constantly learning how to be a better person and a better actor [because of her]. I had that in common with Liam: He's fascinated, he sees [lip-reading] as a skill, he sees this person as a bright bit of light.'
Ayling-Ellis says: 'A lot of people assume that communication is just listening and speaking, but there's so much depth to communication.' She entranced the British public when she performed a dance set in silence on Strictly, a moment that represented the Deaf community in a truly momentous and moving way.
The actress has become a beacon for a community that has long been ignored by television and film, but that brings with it a lot of pressure.
Ayling-Ellis says: 'I've learnt how to balance that pressure and I tell myself I can't represent everyone, it's impossible. I can't represent all Deaf people, because all Deaf people are different and it's not on me to show that on TV.'
Ayling-Ellis was born Deaf and was awarded an MBE for services to the Deaf community.
'It's the industry that needs to cast more diversity of Deaf people and that's not on me, so I've cut that pressure off me. I can only do what I can and do my best, and just do what I love and enjoy it and be passionate about it.'
'The pressure is always going to be there,' she adds, 'but I hope we see more Deaf people on screen.'
Buchan, who recently appeared in the festive smash hit Black Doves, alongside Keira Knightley, found working with Ayling-Ellis broadened him as a person. 'Rose isn't just reading your lips, she's reading who and what you are, so you have to make an effort — in life and in the scenes — to be entirely legible and that's a very new and brilliant experience,' he says. 'It makes everything very alive and present and in the moment.'
Former boxer and Emmerdale and Vampire Academy actor Moore agrees. 'Doing this job has impacted me way more as a person than it has as an actor,' he says. 'There's this level of honesty that comes with Rose that, I promise you, you've not seen, except from younger members of your family.'
Ayling-Ellis and the rest of the cast are hopeful that Code Of Silence will usher in a new era of inclusion on television, while also being a gripping six-parter packed with drama.
'That combination of representation and pure talent was a no-brainer for me,' says Ritchie. 'You see the show and it feels so overdue.'
Code Of Silence will premiere on ITV1, STV, ITVX, and STV Player on Sunday, May 18.
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