🔗 Share this article

Through a thoughtful interview, the acclaimed performer delves on topics ranging from her newest character as a regal sea creature to the profound lessons learned through onstage mishaps and fan interactions.

If You Could Be a Sea Creature for a Day

The most recent role is Queen of the Cuttlefish in The Pout-Pout Fish; supposing you had the opportunity to be a fish for a day, which one would it be and why?

Without hesitation, the blue groper found at Clovelly beach – because it’s like an institution, and individuals visit to see it. It strikes me it’s cool that a resident aquatic creature that folks genuinely seek out and discuss – it holds a unique status.

A Cinematic Staple to Revisit

Which movie do you always return to, and why?

Ernst Lubitsch's 1942 film To Be Or Not To Be. I adore this film. When I was growing up, it used to come on television every now and again, and one time I videotaped it. I just thought it was hilarious. It’s Carole Lombard and comedian Jack Benny. Recently they were showing it at the Ritz and it turned out that it was the preferred movie of a friend of mine, and so we attended and simply chuckled repeatedly. It’s such masterful work of comedy and all the actors in it are fantastic. The director Mel Brooks did a remake in the 1980s – that wasn’t successful. But the original film is an exceptional farce, worth viewing regularly.

The Best Insight Learned From a Fellow Actor

What’s the best lesson you took away from someone a colleague?

Years ago I performed in A Doll’s House alongside Peter O’Brien – now my spouse, but at the time we were not together. We were playing as scene partners and on opening night I stumbled – I jumped ahead some dialogue in the script. I didn’t know what I’d done but I suddenly realised something wasn’t right. I remember glancing toward him, and he completely saved me, and then the scene took off again and proceeded splendidly. However, I believe the insight gained in that moment was, firstly, always trust the individuals you’re working with. When you lose where you are, if you turn around and look at the people you’re with, you will find your correct position somehow. It is a profoundly collaborative endeavor, performing live. And secondly, just to have a sense of fun about it. Occasionally when something goes wrong, things actually spark off in a wonderfully positive direction if you’re really present then. It can be a gift when things go absolutely awry.

Memorable Exchanges with Fans

Can you describe your most memorable interaction with a fan?

There isn't just one specific meeting but when I meet fans of Lord of the Rings, particularly women, I hear a lot of stories about how that character impacted them when they were younger … events that occurred in their lives and how much Eowyn meant to them and was a form of support to them during those periods.

Which questions get asked most frequently by Lord of the Rings fans?

The most detailed inquiry concerns invariably regarding the stew her character prepares for Aragorn. “Was the stew really that bad?” It has evolved into a running gag, the entire episode about the stew, and everyone wants to know what was in the pot, and how was it made, and in your opinion she’s a better cook now, or do you think she really is a poor chef? People are, I think, fascinated by the humour of that scene. And I go into lengthy descriptions describing the components that constituted the concoction – because I remember the efforts made; such as put bits of colored thread to make it look like bits of veins in the meat. The crew employed great detail to render it as bad as they could.

An Awkward Celebrity Encounter

What was your most embarrassing celebrity encounter?

I was at a fitness session and another participant on a mat doing pilates, and the instructor said to me, “Oh, Miranda, this is Miranda.” And I made a lighthearted remark inquiring, “oh, are you a journalist?” Since Miranda is an uncommon moniker and often when I meet another Miranda, they work in media. I hadn't properly identified her. And when she got up, it was Miranda Richardson. At that point, I was at a loss for words. I was obliged to stay and do my class, and I experienced intense awkwardness. I wanted to say: “Oh my gosh, I am aware of who you are!” I think her talent is immense and I was simply too awestruck to say anything.

The Origin of a Moniker

Articles have confidently claimed that you were given your name from Prospero’s daughter in Shakespeare’s The Tempest, and yet I’ve read stating otherwise – can you settle the matter once and for all?

Yes – I was christened for the Sydney suburb. My mother heard on the radio that they were inaugurating a mall at Miranda, and she thought seemed a pleasant choice.

Pandemonium on Location

What was the chaotic thing that’s ever happened on set?

When I was working in Brazil on Reaching for the Moon that was the least organized set of my career, and yet the final product turned out brilliantly. But the local crew operated in a distinct manner. Their concept of time there is really different. In Australia, you receive a call sheet and must arrive on set by a certain time. But this was sort of flexible – one would appear at one's convenience. It was a novel approach for me. The elements were being assembled at the final moment, and sometimes the plan was unclear where they were shooting the next day the methodology. And then I would be in during a scene and be like, “What was that noise that disturbed the scene? Oh, it’s a crew member opening a bottle during filming, because he’s making a party.” The result was excellent, but wow, it’s a distinct style of film-making.

A Secret Skill

What are you secretly good at?

I naturally possess good with numbers. I retain numbers more readily than I memorise words a lot of the time, I simply have that kind of a brain. So I think if I hadn’t ended up in acting, I probably would have entered a field involving numbers, like math or accounting.

The Finest Piece of Advice Ever Received

What’s the best piece of advice you have ever received?

When I was in secondary school, someone addressed us as we were graduating and they said, “have no fear to fail” … which I think is supremely valuable counsel, because you learn far more from setbacks than is gained from triumph. Success, you never really comprehends exactly how it happened. With failure, the lessons are abundant.