TV career is off to a flying start

Jul 10 2009 by John Woods, Irvine Herald

DAREDEVIL drama student Evelyn Caputa has been plucked from obscurity to star in a new television advert for the National Lottery.

The phrase “It Could Be You” took on a whole new meaning for the former Greenwood Academy pupil when she was chosen to appear in the ad which shows her whizzing through a Stirlingshire forest on a 426m long zip wire – the longest in the UK.

Evelyn, from Broomlands Road, Dreghorn, was among a group of students who were showcasing their talents at the University of the West of Scotland when she was approached by a lady from a casting agency.

“I didn’t think too much about it at the time but the following day I got a call from the agency, did a quick video audition and the next thing I knew I was flying through the trees with a camera strapped to me so they could film my face,” said the 36-year-old.

“I took off from a launch platform 40m up in the trees at Go Ape in Aberfoyle and at times I was more than 150m above the ground. It all happened so fast that I didn’t have time to feel scared and it was just a fantastic experience. I went down six or seven times in all and it just got better every time.”

A National Lottery spokesman said Evelyn was ideal for the part.

“She was prepared to give it a go and her reactions were amazing,” he added.

“The ad is great for reminding players that whatever they are doing – or wherever they are left dangling – they can ensure they get their Lotto tickets by playing online at National-Lottery.co.uk”

And now Evelyn is hoping that appearing in the ad will be the equivalent of a Lottery win as she embarks on her acting career.

“After school I tried lots of things including working with horses, working in electronics factories in Irvine and doing sales for a business newspaper,” she said.

“But then I got involved with the Borderline Theatre Company and, after doing everything from behind the scenes stuff to actually appearing on stage I knew I’d found what I really wanted in life so I applied for university and was accepted for the five-year course.

“But I never thought I’d be chosen for something like this so quickly and hopefully the exposure will kick-start my career.”

Filming took place earlier this year and the Zip Wire ad, which is one of three, will appear on commercial stations like ITV 1, ITV 2, Channel 4, Five and Sky.

It was first shown last Thursday – the day after Evelyn graduated with a BA (Hons) First Class from the university.