Ruth Madeley, the 38-year-old actor known for Doctor Who and Years and Years, discusses her latest lead role in The Rapture, a BBC adaptation of Liz Jensen's 2009 novel, in which she plays a paralysed clinical psychologist drawn into the visions of a young offender. The interview highlights Madeley's growing influence in the industry, both as a performer redefining disability representation on screen and as a first-time executive producer, at a time when questions remain about the lack of disabled people in senior TV production roles.

Madeley, who has spina bifida and has used a wheelchair full-time for most of her life, draws on her own experience of changing mobility to portray Gabs, a character newly disabled after a car accident that killed her husband. She reflects on the eerie parallels between the show's climate-driven, apocalyptic tone and real-world events, noting that her earlier role in Years and Years also preceded a real crisis, the Covid pandemic. Despite her success, she says she remains a self-described "grafter" who prefers not to watch her own rushes, and she calls for greater representation of disabled people in behind-the-camera roles.