Billie Piper doesn’t feel special for working through her pregnancy.
The 36-year-old actress – who has sons Winston, nine, and six-year-old Eugene with ex-husband Laurence Fox – is currently expecting her first child with her rocker boyfriend Johnny Lloyd but she has continued to film for her directional debut ‘Rare Beasts’, in which she portrays career-driven single mother Mandy.
And she doesn’t want to be praised for acting whilst she is carrying her tot because she’s just in the same position as lots of other women.
She told The Times newspaper: "You’d be surprised how many people work through their pregnancies. It’s pretty standard. I haven’t ever sat down and made those decisions. It’s generally because I’ve been contracted to something.
"I was always going to film ‘Rare Beasts’ at this time, so you just sort of make space for everything. Most women tend to."
It’s certainly nothing new for Billie, who was shooting scenes for ‘Secret Diary of a Call Girl’ during her first pregnancy – which required a body double for some of the sex scenes – and starring on stage in ‘Reasons to be Pretty’ during her second.
On her newest project, Billie’s team have had to rethink certain shots to hide her bump.
She said: "We have to be quite creative with shots, but we did a great deal of prep and we’ve been pretty loyal to our shot list.
"It might be a different story in a week, but at the moment we’re sort of moving through with most of our plans intact."
Billie compared her energy and "sharp mentality" at present to Keanu Reeves’ alter-ego Neo – who could process data at hyper-speed – in sci-fi franchise ‘The Matrix’.
She laughed: "I’m in the ‘Matrix’ zone where you’re actually very sharp mentally and you have extraordinary energy. That’s what I’ve found throughout my pregnancies. Much further along it would be a very different story."
Billie – who started dating former Tribes frontman Johnny in 2016 – has also reflected on lessons learned in the past, including her previous relationships with 5ive singer Ritchie Neville, as well as her Las Vegas wedding with radio star Chris Evans when she was just 18.
Despite growing up fast, the star feels her wild past has helped her later in life as she credits being focused as a mother and actress now to getting "quite a lot" of things "out of her system" at a young age.
She admitted: "I got quite a lot of things out of my system at quite a young age, which meant that I was able to focus when I became an actor.
"There’s a lot to be grateful for. I’m not sure I’d choose it for my own kids, but it taught me a great deal and it helped me to focus on what it is I actually want to achieve and not get seduced by the fame that comes with it."
Billie Piper happy to work through pregnancy
