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During a revealing conversation, the acclaimed performer reflects on subjects as varied as her newest character as a regal sea creature to the profound lessons learned through theatrical mistakes and fan interactions.

If You Could Be a Fish 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 you choose and why?

Without hesitation, that particular fish found at Clovelly beach – 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 people actually seek out and discuss – it’s a special fish.

A Film Staple to Return To

What film do you repeatedly watch, and why?

Ernst Lubitsch's 1942 comedy To Be Or Not To Be. I adore this picture. When I was growing up, it would air on the ABC every now and again, and one time I videotaped it. I found it was hilarious. It stars Carole Lombard and comedian Jack Benny. Recently they were playing it at the Ritz and I discovered that it was the preferred movie of a friend of mine, and so we attended and just laughed repeatedly. It’s such great piece of comedy and the entire cast in it are fantastic. Mel Brooks remade it in the 1980s – which was not successful. But Lubitsch's version is a brilliant comedy, worth viewing regularly.

A Priceless Lesson Learned From a Fellow Actor

What’s the best lesson you learned from someone you’ve worked with?

I was doing A Doll’s House with Pete – now my spouse, but at the time we were not a couple. We portrayed characters opposite each other and during the premiere I tripped up – I jumped ahead some dialogue in the script. I didn’t know what I’d done but I abruptly sensed things were off. I recall looking at him, and he completely saved me, and then our performance regained momentum and proceeded splendidly. But I think the insight gained then was, first, always trust the individuals in your scene. When you lose your place, if you turn around and toward the actors you’re with, you can rediscover your correct position somehow. It’s such collaborative endeavor, acting on stage. And next, just to have a sense of fun regarding it. Sometimes when a mistake occurs, things actually spark off in a really great direction provided you are really present then. It can be a gift when things go absolutely awry.

Heartening Exchanges with Admirers

What’s been your most touching encounter with a fan?

There isn't just one particular interaction but when I meet fans of Lord of the Rings, particularly women, I hear a lot of accounts about what Eowyn impacted them when they were growing up … events that occurred in their lives and how much that character meant to them and was some kind of help to them in those times.

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

The most detailed inquiry concerns invariably regarding the stew that Eowyn serves Aragorn. “Did that stew taste as terrible as it looked?” It has evolved into a running gag, the whole thing involving that dish, and everyone wants to know the contents of the stew, and its preparation method, and do you think her skills improved now, or do you believe she really is a poor chef? Fans seem, I think, obsessed with the humour of that scene. And I go into great detail listing the ingredients that constituted the concoction – as I recall the efforts made; like they even put bits of colored thread to simulate the appearance like blood vessels in the meat. They went to great detail to make it look as unappetizing as they could.

An Awkward Star Encounter

What was your most cringeworthy run-in with a famous person?

I attended a pilates class and there was a woman lying down exercising, and the teacher said to me, “Hello Miranda, meet Miranda.” And I attempted a lighthearted remark about, “oh, are you a journalist?” Since Miranda is an uncommon moniker and often when someone’s a Miranda, they’re a journalist. I wasn’t really seeing who it was. 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 am aware of your work!” I consider her talent is immense and I was simply too awestruck to utter a syllable.

The Source of a Moniker

It’s been confidently claimed that you were given your name from Prospero’s daughter in Shakespeare’s The Tempest, and yet you've mentioned you saying otherwise – can you settle the matter definitively?

Yes – I was christened for a district in Sydney. Mum heard on the radio that they were inaugurating a mall at Miranda, and she thought sounded like a nice name.

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 of my career, and yet the final product emerged brilliantly. But the local crew operated in such a different way. The sense of time there is unique. Typically, you receive a schedule and you have to be on set punctually. But this was sort of flexible – one would appear at one's convenience. It was a really different approach for me. The elements were being assembled at the final moment, and sometimes they wouldn’t know where they were shooting or the methodology. And then I would be in the middle of a scene and wondering, “What caused that sound that just interrupted the scene? Oh, it’s a crew member opening some champagne on set, because he’s making a party.” The result was great, but wow, it’s a really different style of film-making.

A Hidden Talent

What are you secretly good at?

I naturally possess an aptitude for numbers. I retain numbers easier than I memorise words often, I simply have a numerically-oriented mind. So I believe if I hadn’t ended up in acting, I likely might have entered a field something to do with numbers, like math or finance.

The Best Piece of Advice Ever Received

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

When I was in secondary school, a speaker addressed us when we were graduating and they said, “have no fear to fail” … an idea I consider is the best piece of advice, since one gains so much more from failure than is gained from success. With success, you never really understand precisely why it happened. With failure, you learn abundant.