Occupations: Actress and writer.
Birthday: July 1, 1934.
Birthplace: Islington, England.
Current home: Oxfordshire, England.
Marital status: Divorced.
Children: None.
Working on: ”The House of Elliot,” a 12-part series on Arts and Entertainment that I wrote and star in. It begins July 12.
The last good movie I saw was: ”The Commitments.”
I stay home to watch: I haven`t got a television set.
The book I`ve been reading is: I usually have five books going at once. Right now I`m reading about France in the 18th Century.
Favorite performer: The conductor Ricardo Muti.
Favorite childhood memory: When I was 13, my father gave me a pair of black leather gloves lined with yellow wool. We were very poor, and they were a very big deal.
Prized possession: My walking shoes.
Personal heroes: I don`t have any. My family was very cynical.
I`m better than anyone else when it comes to: Cooking eggs-things like omelettes, souffles, fritattas.
I`d give anything to meet: I don`t want to meet anybody that I like because I`m so shy.
I hope I never have to: Take my clothes off in a play or film.
A really great evening to me is: Have a glass of Champagne, listen to Bach and prepare dinner. Then I put up a little lectern and read while I eat. My fantasy is: I`m living in Paris, and I`m married to a Frenchman who owns a vineyard but is also something like a philosopher or a painter. I like having guides who can introduce me to things.
The worst advice my father ever gave me was: ”Do anything you want but don`t get caught.” He was rather immoral.
My most irrational act: Leaving my husband and going to Paris in 1956. I worked as a model for Christian Dior and lived in a 7th-floor walkup. One night I would eat a very grand dinner and then the next five nights I`d eat in my room.
The best time of my life: My 30s. I had a late adolescence.
My most humbling experience: I overheard the woman who ran the theater school I was attending say, ”You can`t send Jean Marsh to that audition, she`s too plain.”
Three words that best describe me: Thin, acute and ingenuous.
