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In a candid interview, the acclaimed performer delves on subjects as varied as her newest character as Queen of the Cuttlefish to the invaluable wisdom gleaned from theatrical mistakes and meeting admirers.

Given the Chance to Become a Sea Creature for a Day

The most recent character portrays the monarch of the cuttlefish in The Pout-Pout Fish; if you could be a fish for a day, which one would it be and why?

Straight away, that particular fish found at a specific shoreline – because it’s like an institution, and individuals visit specifically to spot it. I just think it’s cool that there’s a local fish that folks genuinely go and see and discuss – it’s a special fish.

A Cinematic Favorite to Return To

Which movie do you repeatedly watch, and why?

Ernst Lubitsch's 1942 comedy To Be Or Not To Be. I love this film. During my growing up, it used to come on television every now and again, and once I recorded it. I found it was hilarious. It stars the legendary Carole Lombard and Jack Benny. Not long ago they were playing it at a cinema and I discovered that it was also the favourite film of an acquaintance, and so we attended and just laughed and laughed. It is a great piece of comedy and all the actors in it are fantastic. Mel Brooks remade it in the 1980s – which was not as effective. But Lubitsch's version is a brilliant comedy, worth viewing regularly.

A Priceless Insight Gained Through a Co-Star

What is the most valuable lesson you learned from someone you’ve worked with?

I was doing A Doll’s House alongside Peter O’Brien – my husband now, but back then we were not a couple. We portrayed characters opposite each other and on opening night I stumbled – I jumped ahead a few lines in the script. I didn’t know what I’d done but I abruptly sensed something wasn’t right. I remember looking at him, and he expertly rescued the moment, and then the scene regained momentum and went really, really well. However, I believe the insight gained in that moment was, first, always trust the people you’re working with. If you don’t know your place, by looking and look at the people sharing the stage with, you can rediscover where you’re meant to be somehow. It is a profoundly communal thing, performing live. And secondly, to maintain a sense of fun about it. Occasionally when something goes wrong, things can ignite in a really great way provided you are fully engaged in that moment. It may become an unexpected boon when things go completely awry.

Memorable Interactions with Fans

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

It’s not just one specific meeting but when I meet fans of Lord of the Rings, especially female fans, I am told numerous accounts about how that character meant to them when they were growing up … events that occurred in their lives and the extent to which Eowyn meant to them and was some kind of help to them in those times.

What do you get asked most frequently by Lord of the Rings fans?

The most detailed inquiry concerns always about the stew her character prepares for Aragorn. “Did that stew taste as terrible as it looked?” It’s become a running gag, the entire episode involving that dish, and everyone wants to know what was in the stew, and how was it made, and in your opinion her skills improved now, or do you think she really is a bad cook? People are, in my view, obsessed with the comedy of that scene. And I provide lengthy descriptions listing the components that made up the stew – as I recall the efforts made; such as adding pieces of colored thread to simulate the appearance like blood vessels in the meat. The crew employed extreme measures to make it look as unappetizing as possible.

A Cringeworthy Celebrity Meeting

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

I attended a fitness session and another participant on a mat exercising, and the teacher said to me, “Oh, Miranda, this is Miranda.” And I made a lighthearted remark about, “might you be a journalist?” Because it’s an unusual name and most of the time when I meet another Miranda, they’re a journalist. I hadn't properly identified her. And when she got up, it was the actress Miranda Richardson. At that point, I didn’t know words. I was obliged to stay and do my class, and I felt so embarrassed. I wanted to say: “Goodness, I do know who you are!” I think her talent is immense and I was just too starstruck to utter a syllable.

The Source of a Name

It’s been repeatedly stated that you were given your name from Prospero’s daughter in Shakespeare’s The Tempest, and yet you've mentioned stating otherwise – can you clarify this definitively?

Yes – I was named after the Sydney suburb. My mother learned via broadcast that they were inaugurating a mall at that location, and the name seemed a pleasant choice.

Chaos on Set

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

While working in Brazil for the film Reaching for the Moon I experienced the least organized set I’ve ever worked on, and yet the film emerged brilliantly. But they just work in a distinct manner. The sense of time there is unique. In Australia, you receive a call sheet and must arrive on set by a certain time. But this was rather open ended – one would appear whenever you happen to be ready. It was a novel approach for me. The elements were being assembled at the final moment, and at times the plan was unclear the next location the next day the methodology. And then you’d be in during a scene and be like, “What was that noise that just interrupted the scene? Ah, it was the producer opening some champagne on set, because he’s making a party.” The result was excellent, but goodness, it’s a really different approach to film-making.

A Hidden Talent

What are you secretly good at?

I naturally possess good with numbers. I retain numbers easier than I memorise words a lot of the time, I’ve just got that kind of a brain. So I believe if I hadn’t ended up in acting, I likely might have worked in something to do with numbers, like math or finance.

The Best Piece of Advice Given

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

When I was in high school, someone came to speak when we were graduating and stated, “have no fear to fail” … an idea I consider is the best piece of advice, because you learn far more from failure than you learn from success. Success, you never really comprehends precisely why it happened. With failure, the lessons are so much more.