Marisa Abela - ‘You never expect to be told you have cancer at 23’
How To Fail With Elizabeth Day
Drama school rejection and Fiji gap year
Marisa recounts failing RADA initially, choosing to clean coral in Fiji, then reauditioning and getting in.
You’ll know Marisa Abela from HBO’s critically acclaimed hit Industry, where her portrayal of Yasmin - a brilliant, volatile young woman with ambition to burn, earned her a BAFTA. She also starred as Amy Winehouse in Sam Taylor-Johnson’s Back to Black and now returns for the hotly anticipated fourth season of Industry.
In this conversation, Marisa spills the beans on her first audition for Industry, why her acting is inspired by The Real Housewives (yes, really) and what we can expect from the new season. We also reflect on her troubled teenage years - and how she was ‘a terror’ to live with, as well as her shock diagnosis with thyroid cancer at the age of 23. Through the subsequent intensive surgery and recovery process, Marisa learned the importance of women advocating for themselves and their own bodies in a culture where women’s health is often overlooked and under-researched.
Still just 29, Marisa is remarkably self-aware and wise beyond her years. As an Industry superfan myself, I adored chatting to her and I hope you love the episode too. If you do, please rate, review and hit the follow button!
✨ IN THIS EPISODE:
00:00 Intro
03:15 Drama School and Early Failures
04:23 Navigating Pressure
07:33 Teenage Struggles
27:13 Health Crisis in 2020
29:30 Diagnosis
30:30 Surgery and Recovery During the Pandemic
32:01 The Impact on Body Image
35:36 Advocating for Women's Health
38:45 Support and Love
40:32 Getting Married!
💬 QUOTES TO REMEMBER:
At a certain point, the regret of not doing a thing is worse than the fear of rejection.
I really do believe that your body has a way of telling you that something's actually wrong and we should listen to it.
All of the good things and all of the bad things are what make you, you - and without all of the bad things, I wouldn’t be who I am
🔗 LINKS + MENTIONS:
Industry airs on BBC One on 12 January and will be on iPlayer. In the US it airs on HBO on 11 January.
Join the How To Fail community: https://howtofail.supportingcast.fm/#content
Elizabeth’s Substack: https://theelizabethday.substack.com/
📚 WANT MORE?
Jessie Ware - reflects on motherhood, ambition and how losing control ultimately taught her to redefine success swap.fm/l/8cUuwGs4vc7tAXiPcDab
Letitia Wright - on bullying, rejection and the power of faith on her journey from self-doubt to global success swap.fm/l/orHGF9VMU6s1FOH3bupc
Ella Purnell - on growing up in the industry, perfectionism and anxiety. Plus: learning to let go of self-criticism in order to survive and thrive swap.fm/l/8w1oCcVmNutX8qv83MbN
💌 LOVE THIS EPISODE?
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👋 Follow How To Fail & Elizabeth:
Instagram: @elizabday
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Podcast Instagram: @howtofailpod
Website: www.elizabethday.org
Elizabeth and Marisa answer live audience questions in our subscriber series, Failing with Friends. Join our community of subscribers here: https://howtofail.supportingcast.fm/#content
Have a failure you’re trying to work through for Elizabeth to discuss? Click here to get in touch: howtofailpod.com
Production & Post Production Coordinator: Eric Ryan
Engineer: Matias Torres
Assistant Producer: Suhaar Ali
Senior Producer: Hannah Talbot
Executive Producer: Alex Lawless
How to Fail is an Elizabeth Day and Sony Music Entertainment Production.
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