I don’t generally get to play the stronger characters…I get very lovely parts, but they’re quite quiet and thoughtful and watchful — and that’s all well and good, but I’ve been enjoying getting my teeth into something else.

- Kelly Macdonald on her role as Margaret Thompson, the innocent young Irish widow who becomes the capable, self-possessed wife of a corrupt politician in HBO’s Boardwalk Empire

On today’s Fresh Air, actor Michael Shannon: “I think inside of Van Alden is a child — that arrested child — that never really got to develop its own identity. I think as much as he believes that he’s operating from these deeply held beliefs, he’s actually in a way very hollow.”

Our guest Monday: Michael Shannon

Down On The 'Boardwalk' With Terence Winter

Boardwalk Empire’s creator Terence Winter explains why he fell in love with Steve Buscemi’s character Nucky Thompson — and why he continually returns to New Jersey’s gangsters for inspiration. (He also wrote/co-wrote 25 episodes of The Sopranos)

Fresh Air TV Critic David Bianculli’s take on the new HBO series Boardwalk Empire: Boardwalk Empire,without question, is better than any new series the broadcast networks are serving up this fall. It’s the only new show worth adding to your weekly must-see list — and with its visual majesty and period music, it’s like nothing else on TV this year. Unlike most things in Atlantic City, Boardwalk Empire is a very good bet. (Photo: HBO)