Dominique McElligott: Hell On Wheels corset too tight to breathe

Dominique McElligott: Hell On Wheels corset too tight to breathe

The actress plays “tough survivor” Lily â€" an English widow who strives to make it in a man’s world in 1860s post-Civil War America during the building of the Transcontinental Railroad.

But while she loved the filming, Dominique struggled with the restrictive costumes.

She told TV Biz on set in Calgary, Canada: “The other actresses on the show love the corsets.

“I was told to take a deep breath in while you’re put into the corset. So I did.

“But then when we were doing a scene I started to hyperventilate.

“They had to unstrap me from it and that was the end of the corset for me.

And she complained her petticoats left her exhausted because they were so heavy.

She said: “The clothes weigh so much, especially if you’ve got rain and mud on them.”

Hell On Wheels starts tomorrow on TCM at 9pm.