Jamaican-born, UK-based actress Julene Robinson may be a little down at this time due to the precautionary shut-down of the production Get Up Stand Up! The Bob Marley Musical at the Lyric Theatre in London’s West End, due to the Omicron variant of the novel coronavirus, but she still has reason to celebrate.

Robinson is thrilled with the recent release of season two of the series The Witcher which airs on the global streaming platform Netflix.

“This has been a long time in the making. I did the auditions back in 2020, around the same time I was auditioning for Get Up Stand Up! It came about while I was meeting casting directors here in London and I was meeting this particular one and just telling her my life story that I came to London to do my master’s and decided to stay on and see what was possible before returning to Jamaica. She then said: ‘I think I may have something for you’,” she recalled, in an interview with the Jamaica Observer.

That “something” turned out to be a role in The Witcher, a fantasy drama series created by Lauren Schmidt Hissrich, based on the books of the same name by Polish writer Andrzej Sapkowski. Set on a fictional, medieval-inspired landmass known as the Continent, The Witcher explores the legend of Geralt of Rivia and Princess Ciri, who are linked to each other by destiny. The Netflix adaptation stars Henry Cavill, Freya Allan and Anya Chalotra.

“I was actually in Jamaica on Christmas holiday in December 2020 when I got the call so I had to rush back to London for the start of filming which lasted for several days in January of this year,” she said.

Robinson plays a barmaid, who must defend her space against a busker who wants to take over. She is particularly proud of her performance, however brief, which marks her foray into international television, and added that the response to her performance from fellow Jamaicans has been nothing short of heart-warming.

“I felt to speak in my Jamaican accent and this is the first time in the series that another accent appears, so that is very special to me. After my appearance, we go on to meet another character, a woman who speaks with an African accent but my Jamaican accent was the first other accent you hear in a sea of English, Scottish and Irish actors,” said Robinson.

As for the possibility of a recurring role in the series, Robinson is unsure, but added that would be a good move.

“Of course that is not my call, so I can’t really say. It would be really great, lovely, and would certainly help to open more doors for me. Season two has just been released and we don’t know what’s in store for season three so I will just stand ready to leap and take it if it does come to me,” she noted.

Meanwhile, Robinson is having some down time with the closure of the Marley musical on stage where she plays Marley’s mother Cedella Booker.

“Omicron is making its way through us and a number of other productions, so in a bid to be cautious and to help the authorities contain the spread we are taking some time off so we can all be safe. We just want to make this wave pass, so the stage is dark right now, but we’ll be back,” said Robinson.