Exclusive – Motherland’s Paul Ready says his real-life wife could play Kevin’s partner Jill in future series

While there are now three series of Motherland – with the latest premiering on BBC Two tonight – viewers have never met Jill, the wife of hapless stay-at-home dad Kevin (Ready), though she's frequently mentioned throughout the show.

When asked who he'd ideally like to play Jill if she were to appear in series four, Paul Ready told RadioTimes.com in an exclusive interview: "Ooh, that's a good question. I do think it's a great thing we never meet Jill because I think the whole thing about Jill is that she lives in the audience's imagination, you can imagine, who is she?

"She could be very glamorous in a way, or she could kind of be the entire opposite.

"I was saying this to someone the other day, each time a series airs and I'm walking down the road with my wife, she's always saying, 'They think I'm Jill.' So maybe my wife could play Jill."

Ready's wife Michelle Terry is an Olivier Award-winning actor, best known for her performances in theatre shows such as Tribes, Macbeth, Hamlet and As You Like It.

Terry has appeared in shows such as Law & Order: UK, Marcella and The Café, which she co-wrote with Ralf Little.

The third series of Motherland, starring Anna Maxwell Martin, Dianne Morgan, Lucy Punch and Tanya Moodie among others, starts tonight, with the London-based parents facing a nit epidemic, catchment area worries, unsuccessful school trips and PTA fundraisers while Kevin deals with marital troubles of his own.

Motherland returns on Monday 10th May at 9pm on BBC Two. Check out our five-star Motherland review of series three or if you’re looking for something to watch tonight, check out our TV Guide.