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Through a thoughtful interview, the acclaimed performer opens up on topics ranging from her newest character as a regal sea creature to the profound lessons gleaned from onstage mishaps and meeting admirers.

Given the Chance to Become a Sea Creature for a Day

Your latest role is the monarch of the cuttlefish in The Pout-Pout Fish; if you could be a fish for a day, which one would you choose and why?

Straight away, that particular fish residing near Clovelly beach – because it’s a local landmark, and people go there specifically to spot it. I just think it’s cool that there’s a local fish that people actually seek out and talk about – it holds a unique status.

A Film Staple to Revisit

What film do you repeatedly watch, and why?

Ernst Lubitsch's 1942 comedy To Be Or Not To Be. I love this film. When I was childhood, it used to come on the ABC occasionally, and once I recorded it. I found it was hilarious. It’s Carole Lombard and comedian Jack Benny. Recently they were showing it at a cinema and I discovered that it was the preferred movie of an acquaintance, and so we attended and simply chuckled and laughed. It’s such great piece of humor and all the actors in it are superb. The director Mel Brooks did a remake in the 1980s – that wasn’t successful. But the original film is an exceptional farce, to be watched regularly.

A Priceless Lesson Learned From a Co-Star

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 a couple. We were playing as scene partners and during the premiere I stumbled – I skipped forward a few lines in the script. I didn’t know of my error but I abruptly sensed things were off. I remember looking at him, and he expertly rescued the moment, and then our performance took off again and proceeded splendidly. However, I believe what I learned then was, first, consistently rely on the individuals in your scene. If you don’t know your place, if you turn around and toward the people you’re with, you can rediscover where you’re meant to be somehow. It is a profoundly collaborative endeavor, acting on stage. And next, to maintain a sense of fun regarding it. Sometimes when a mistake occurs, things actually spark off in a really great way if you’re fully engaged then. It may become an unexpected boon when things go completely the wrong way.

Memorable Exchanges with Admirers

What’s been your most memorable interaction with a fan?

It’s not a single specific meeting but when I meet fans of Lord of the Rings, especially female fans, I hear a lot of accounts about what Eowyn impacted them when they were younger … things that had happened in their lives and how much that character meant to them and was a form of support to them in those times.

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

The most detailed inquiry concerns invariably regarding the stew that Eowyn serves Aragorn. “Was the stew as terrible as it looked?” It has evolved into a running gag, the whole thing involving that dish, and everyone wants to know what was in the stew, and its preparation method, and do you think her skills improved now, or do you think she really is a bad cook? Fans seem, I think, obsessed with the humour of that situation. And I go into lengthy descriptions listing the ingredients that constituted the stew – as I recall the efforts made; such as put bits of red cotton to make it look like blood vessels in the meat. They went to great detail to make it look as bad as they could.

A Cringeworthy Star Encounter

What’s been your most embarrassing run-in with a famous person?

I was at a pilates class and there was a woman lying down doing pilates, and the teacher said to me, “Oh, Miranda, this is Miranda.” And I made a lighthearted remark inquiring, “might you be a journalist?” Because it’s an unusual name and often when someone’s a Miranda, they’re a journalist. I wasn’t really seeing who it was. And as she rose, it was Miranda Richardson. At that point, I was at a loss for what to say. I still had to complete my class, and I experienced so embarrassed. I wished to explain: “Oh my gosh, I am aware of your work!” I think her talent is immense and I was just too starstruck to utter a syllable.

The Source of a Moniker

Articles have repeatedly stated that you were given your name from Prospero’s daughter in Shakespeare’s The Tempest, and yet I’ve read you saying otherwise – can you clarify this definitively?

Indeed, I was christened for a district in Sydney. My mother learned via broadcast that they were opening a shopping centre at that location, and the name seemed a pleasant choice.

Chaos on Location

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

While working in Brazil on Reaching for the Moon that was the most chaotic set I’ve ever worked on, and yet the film turned out brilliantly. But they just work in such a different way. The sense of time there is unique. Typically, you receive a schedule and must arrive on set by a certain time. But this was sort of flexible – one would appear whenever you happen to be ready. It was a really different approach for me. The elements were all coming together at the final moment, and at times the plan was unclear where they were shooting the next day the methodology. And then I would be in the middle of a scene and wondering, “What was that noise that just interrupted the scene? Ah, it was a crew member popping open some champagne during filming, because he’s making a party.” It turned out excellent, but wow, it’s a distinct style of film-making.

A Secret Talent

Do you have a secretly good at?

I naturally possess good with numbers. I memorise numbers easier than I memorise words a lot of the time, I simply have a numerically-oriented mind. So I think if I hadn’t pursued acting, I likely might have worked in involving numbers, like math or accounting.

The Best Piece of Advice Given

What is the greatest piece of advice you have ever received?

During my time in high school, someone addressed us when we were graduating and they said, “don’t be afraid to fail” … which I think is supremely valuable counsel, because you learn so much more from setbacks than you learn from triumph. With success, you never really understand precisely why it happened. With failure, you learn abundant.