Emily Blunt - 'Mary Poppins Is Weird & Magical!'

The Actress Opens Up About Her New Flying Nanny For The Modern Generation And Her Take On The Character

- Georgina Bearns/Feats

There’s no feeding the birds, no spoonfuls of sugar or chim chim cherees, but Emily Blunt insists her Mary Poppins is just as super-califragilisticexpialidocious as the original. More than half a century after the character first enchanted audiences, Emily is daring to follow in the flightpath of Julie Andrews by bringing Mary Poppins to a whole new generation.

Mary Poppins Returns is very much a sequel and not a remake, with Emily especially intent on paying homage to her fellow Brit actress – who at 83 is still best known for playing the flying nanny.

Set in 1930s London, the time period of the original novels by PL Travers, the Disney movie sees Mary reunited with a now-adult Michael Banks who, after the tragic loss of his wife, is struggling to help his children cope and move on. Joining Mary is lamplighter Jack, played by Hamilton star Lin-Manuel Miranda, and Topsy, an eccentric cousin played by Meryl Streep.

Julie Andrews won an Oscar for her magical performance in the original 1964 musical, while Emily would just be happy to win favour for her interpretation of a much-loved character. With Hollywood legend Julie having given the 35-year-old actress her blessing, all that’s left now is to impress those passionate Poppins followers, a new generation of fans, and her daughters with husband John Krasinski, four-year-old Hazel and two-year-old Violet.

Here, Emily talks about her role, daring to take on a classic, her cheeky film family and how in movies and life, as Mary Poppins says, anything can happen if you let it…

How excited are you for your daughters to see this movie?

I’m very excited because they can’t exactly see Girl on the Train, and Sicario is maybe not quite appropriate. It’s about time I did something that is kid-friendly for them.

They must be proud to have a movie star as a mother!