Charlene McKenna has told RTÉ Radio 1's The Ray D'Arcy Show that her lockdown wedding to Ripper Street co-star Adam Rothenberg "only took 35 different attempts", and that she hasn't seen him "since the wedding" because he is in the US filming Ozark.
The Monaghan actress joined Ray D'Arcy on the line on Thursday after sharing photos of her big day on Instagram earlier this week. The couple had originally planned to marry last July.
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"It only took 35 different attempts, but we got there!" she laughed. "This is only a dress rehearsal - the big party is to come!"
"All those attempts were with the same man, were they?" asked the host.
"There was a few stand-ins, just in case!" McKenna replied. "I like the subs bench, just in case! You've to keep your options open. Yes, they were [with the same man]!"
McKenna met American actor Rothenberg while filming Ripper Street in Dublin in 2012. They announced their engagement in 2019.
"Can you remember the first time you set eyes on him?" D'Arcy enquired.
"Do you know? I really can," said McKenna.
"As two actors, we had to meet up to talk about our upcoming scenes that week because it was the first week of shoot and blah, blah, blah. The director was like, 'Maybe you two should have a coffee and chat it out'.
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"We went to Bewley's and we had a coffee - I can even remember where we were sitting. And I've very fond memories of Bewley's because of it.
"I'd just never met anyone like him... And then we just worked together for a few months - nothing at all happened. And then we sort of started gently dating. It was long distance, it was awkward. But sure, look, here we are. Still awkward!"
"I haven't seen him since the wedding," laughed McKenna. "He's on Ozark filming so he's in Atlanta and I'm on Peaky [Blinders]. So, it's like, 'Well, that was fun. I'll see you in August! Goodbye!' It's the secret: don't look at them! Don't see them! I think a lot of people can attest to that now after a year of lockdown!"
When D'Arcy said McKenna looked stunning in her wedding photos, she replied: "That was an at-home hair dye job and an at-home fringe!
"I mean, the whole thing... My niece Rebecca did my hair and make-up and my other niece Laura... It was a very all at-home, in-house job, but we pulled something together, thankfully.
"Castle Leslie very kindly let us have all six of us in there. It was really special because we had the whole place to ourselves, obviously. I was going about the place for 20 minutes like I owned it. I had a nice fantasy 20 minutes where I went, 'And this is my living room'. It was really special."
McKenna and Rothenberg spent some of last year's first lockdown working on their home in Co Monaghan.
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"We converted an outhouse during lockdown," she recounted. "Me and my brothers and Adam and mammy and daddy. Talk about an in-house job! It's just a dream. We have it now for when we're in Ireland and it's just a wee haven, thanks to all the hands on deck together. It was really special, actually."
McKenna's new Belfast-set thriller Bloodlands begins on BBC One this Sunday and sees her starring opposite James Nesbitt.
"We're Zig & Zag," she said. "I'm his Detective Sergeant, he's my superior - but I don't mind too much and I don't listen to him that much! Jed Mercurio [Line of Duty creator] is behind it and Chris Brandon is the writer... It had all the bones to be good, so just hopefully everybody enjoys it now... There's a lot of cliffhangers."
As for her return as Captain Swing in the sixth and final season of Peaky Blinders, McKenna said: "I was only ever meant to be introduced in season five because they wanted to 'pepper her in' for you'll see why when it gets to be released.
"Obviously, it was meant to be done, shot and out by now. It wasn't meant to be as big of a build-up to me coming back into it! We're back filming now, having a ball. It's great; everyone's delighted to be back at work and grateful. The atmosphere's fantastic. I'm not sure when it'll air, probably later in the year."
Bloodlands begins on BBC One on Sunday, 21 February at 9:00pm.
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