News | Entertainment
13 Jan 2026 4:10
NZCity News
NZCity CalculatorReturn to NZCity

  • Start Page
  • Personalise
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • Finance
  • Shopping
  • Jobs
  • Horoscopes
  • Lotto Results
  • Photo Gallery
  • Site Gallery
  • TVNow
  • Dating
  • SearchNZ
  • NZSearch
  • Crime.co.nz
  • RugbyLeague
  • Make Home
  • About NZCity
  • Contact NZCity
  • Your Privacy
  • Advertising
  • Login
  • Join for Free

  •   Home > News > Entertainment

    Jessie Buckley "wasn't well" during her stint on Andrew Lloyd Webber's "bonkers" TV talent show I'd Do Anything

    The 36-year-old actress/singer launched her career in 2008 as a contestant on the reality show which was a competition to win the role of Nancy in a West End production of hit musical Oliver! and she finished in second place behind winner Jodie Prenger - and Jessie has now admitted she struggled during her time on TV.


    She told Vogue magazine: "It's bonkers, in hindsight. I was just likeL 'Oh my God. I get to peek behind this curtain already. I get to sing. I get to be part of this industry that I really was hoping I could be part of.'

    "And I look back at it and I feel like: 'God, you're so brave.' I don't know if I'd have that courage now. And I don't know if that was kind of innocence or ignorance."

    However, her mental health was suffering behind-the-scenes. She added: "[I] was not well fully. I was depressed and I - just wasn't well.

    "There was a lot that was really messed up."

    Jessie went on to reveal she particularly suffered from "a lot of body shaming" adding: "And bringing me to femininity school. And I was growing into my body.

    "I was 17. I was in a moment of discovery. As women, it's such unfair objectification ... Back then, I was just trying to move into a space of myself.

    "I really hope that a 15, 17, whatever-age woman never has to be brutalised quite like what happened on that show. But I didn't recognise it fully at the time. I just felt it, which was difficult."

    After coming second in the competition, she was offered the chance to be Prenger's understudy in Oliver! - and Jessie admits she turned the job down by walking into the office of famed theatre producer Cameron Mackintosh.

    She explained: "I walked to his office, rang the bell and saidL 'Is Cameron Mackintosh here? Thank you, but I won't be taking that job'."

    Jessie went on to book plenty of theatre work and later moved into TV and movies making her film debut in 2017 thriller Beast.

    © 2026 Bang Showbiz, NZCity

     Other Entertainment News
     12 Jan: Hilary Duff and Mandy Moore reportedly feel "blindsided" by Ashley Tisdale's controversial essay
     12 Jan: Sophie Turner has admitted the Game of Thrones theme song has given her "PTSD"
     12 Jan: Alan Cumming accidentally injured Pedro Pascal during the making of Avengers: Doomsday
     12 Jan: Mark Hamill's biggest regret is missing the chance to work with Harrison Ford in the Star Wars sequel trilogy
     12 Jan: Sarah Michelle Gellar "sometimes" struggles with feeling confident in herself
     12 Jan: LaKeith Stanfield has been appointed an ambassador for Dior
     12 Jan: Ethan Slater "tries not to tell stories" about his son
     Top Stories

    RUGBY RUGBY
    All Black halfback-in-waiting Dylan Pledger will miss 12 months of rugby after rupturing an ACL during pre-season training with the Highlanders More...


    BUSINESS BUSINESS
    US-based manufacturing firm's presented Auckland tech firm Rakon a 356 million dollar takeover bid More...



     Today's News

    Politics:
    Iran claims mass protests 'under total control' as death toll climbs to 544 22:07

    Christchurch:
    Three people are seriously injured and another has moderate injuries after two vehicles collided on Canterbury's Rakaia Highway, just before six this evening 21:57

    Entertainment:
    Hilary Duff and Mandy Moore reportedly feel "blindsided" by Ashley Tisdale's controversial essay 21:53

    Entertainment:
    Sophie Turner has admitted the Game of Thrones theme song has given her "PTSD" 21:23

    Law and Order:
    Christchurch Police are seeking a man believed to be linked to a Sydenham arson before Christmas 21:17

    Entertainment:
    Alan Cumming accidentally injured Pedro Pascal during the making of Avengers: Doomsday 20:53

    Entertainment:
    Mark Hamill's biggest regret is missing the chance to work with Harrison Ford in the Star Wars sequel trilogy 20:23

    Entertainment:
    Sarah Michelle Gellar "sometimes" struggles with feeling confident in herself 19:53

    Politics:
    Why are people protesting in Iran? Mass anti-government demonstrations continue 19:37

    Entertainment:
    LaKeith Stanfield has been appointed an ambassador for Dior 19:23


     News Search






    Power Search


    © 2026 New Zealand City Ltd