*Says I won’t let anyone touch my boobs for now

By Damilola Sholola

Vivacious and voluptuous Shirley Oke Ofou, half-Isoko, half-Urobho, has seen her own good share of successful moments in Nollywood. With flicks like  Coming to Lagos,  Family and Friends,  Wanted Girls,  Chess Players, to name a few, to her credit, the exquisitely refreshing beau can hold her own with the best in the industry. In this chat with  Showtime Celebrity, she lets us into her secret world:

“I’ve been in the industry since 1999 but somewhere along the line I had to put my career on hold to further my education,” she explains her break in the industry here in Nigeria that certainly was for her own good. But she was not entirely out of it.

Shirley Oke Ofou

“From Ekpoma I moved to London to continue my education. While schooling, I was working as well. I was working with a record label where I met many people from the entertainment industry in Nigeria. So, while I was in London I never really lost contact with most of my colleagues back here and when I got back it was rather easy for me to reconnect and establish myself.”

She recalls the movies that made her popular and picks one because of a respected colleague and the character she played.

“Coming to Lagos  was something else because Funke Akindele also starred in that movie. My husband in the movie used my character for rituals so I think that’s the one because when I got back home people started saying “I watched you, Where they killed you and used you for rituals”

Some have talked about boolies in the industry or even those who harass actresses for different reasons. Some fall to this. Is it different with her?

“Normally, they would want to but because of the way I got into Nollywood, the people I’ve met and the movies I’ve done, I’ve not really faced any harassment. But there was a guy someone introduced to me that tried pulling a fast one on me. One day, he just called me out of the blues and made out like he wanted to offer me a movie role. He called to tell me that I should meet him at a hotel with some office clothes and I said okay. I smelled a rat when he called me five minutes later to tell me he was missing me. I was taken aback and wondered how ‘missing you’ came into the picture.

Then I called him to ask him what he meant by that and he stammered and said he just wanted me to come and chill with him in the hotel. I said I was sorry, that, I could not do that. They come for you in all sorts of manner but it is up to you accept or reject.”

The roles stars play distinguish them when they play it well. It was so for Shirley with Coming to Lagos.

‘Coming to Lagos was a daring role because we shot it in a proper forest in Badagry. I was so scared because I kept thinking there could be big snakes in the forest. It was a really big forest. After the film came out, my younger brother who saw it pinged me that I should be careful the kind of roles I take. I had to assure him that it was only a make-believe, that, I was never really alone at any point in time during the shooting of the film. Even though it was scary, I had a really good time. I am even looking forward to more challenging roles”

And would she take a sexual role in a movie?
“I can do a little bit of kissing and romance but I’m not going to go nude. I’m not going to let someone touch my boobs for now. Of course, there are hugs and kisses when you’re playing the role of a wife or a girlfriend but I’m not going to go to the extremes, not for any reason

I can wear lingerie but I’m not going to be naked. I’m not going to wear pant and bra because we’re Africans whether we like it or not; there are some things we Africans cannot do
Shirley knows that people would always talk about stars. There are those who commend them and those who criticise them.
‘People will always talk whether you do good or bad, anyways, it’s just me, it’s just who I am and I don’t think I can actually go totally nude. I can wear a dress, maybe show a bit of my cleavage or wear something sexy and crazy without being naked and having my boobs out

Who is Shirley’s role model? And has she had crush on any actor?
She laughs and says ‘Yeah, a couple of them; there was a time that I had a terrible crush on Uncle Mofe Damijo, to the extent that I always saw him in my dreams. I am not kidding, I was so obsessed with him there was no night I slept without seeing him in my dream. Each morning when I woke up I asked myself why I kept dreaming about him but the same thing kept happening night after night until I grew out of it. Apart from him, I also I had a crush on Van Vicker.”
Shirley looks forward to working with Majid, Genevieve, Uche Jumbo and loves a man who has the fear of God in him.
Shirley is beautiful and appreciated it when the compliments were passed. She said this of how she maintains her beauty:
‘Thank you for telling me that. I just try to get some rest and eat right but I don’t go to the gym, though I want to start. So far, I just manage to eat right, eat lots of fruits and I just rest and I don’t go into the sun unless I have an important thing to do.”

And her views on Nollywood?
‘Nollywood has come a long way. I’ve been around since 1999; then we used to go to Winis in Surulere, so comparing then to now, they’ve really grown.  So many people complain and say they don’t watch Nigerian movies; I always try to make them understand if we don’t appreciate our thing it can never grow. This is your home, these are your people, support them, not criticize them’. Yeah, they have some bad movies, no doubts, but they also have some brilliant ones.