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In a candid conversation, the acclaimed performer opens up on topics ranging from her newest character as a regal sea creature to the invaluable wisdom learned through onstage mishaps and fan interactions.

If You Could Be a Fish for a Day

Your latest 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, the blue groper found at Clovelly beach – since it is like an institution, and people go there specifically to spot it. I just think as remarkable that a resident aquatic creature that people actually go and see and discuss – it holds a unique status.

A Film Favorite to Revisit

What film do you always return to, and why?

The 1942 comedy To Be Or Not To Be. I adore this picture. During my growing up, it used to come on the ABC every now and again, and once I recorded it. I just thought it was so funny. It’s Carole Lombard and Jack Benny. Not long ago they were playing it at the Ritz and it turned out that it was the preferred movie of a friend of mine, and so we attended and just laughed repeatedly. It is a masterful work of humor 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 often.

A Priceless Lesson Learned From a Co-Star

What is the most valuable lesson you learned from someone a colleague?

Years ago I performed in A Doll’s House with Pete – my husband now, but at the time we were not a couple. We were playing opposite each other and during the premiere I tripped up – I skipped forward a few lines in the script. I was unaware of my error but I suddenly realised something wasn’t right. I recall looking at him, and he completely saved me, and then our performance took off again and proceeded splendidly. But I think the insight gained then was, first, always trust the people in your scene. When you lose your place, by looking and look at the actors you’re with, you will find where you’re meant to be in some way. It is a profoundly collaborative endeavor, performing live. And secondly, just to have a lighthearted attitude about it. Sometimes when a mistake occurs, things actually spark off in a wonderfully positive way provided you are fully engaged then. It can be a gift when things go absolutely awry.

Memorable Exchanges with Admirers

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

It’s not a single specific meeting but when I encounter devotees of Lord of the Rings, especially female fans, I hear a lot of 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 during those periods.

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

The most specific inquiry concerns always about the stew that Eowyn serves Aragorn. “Did that stew taste really that bad?” It has evolved into such a joke, the entire episode involving that dish, and everyone wants to know what was in the pot, and its preparation method, and do you think she’s a better cook now, or do you believe she really is a bad cook? Fans seem, I think, fascinated by the comedy of that situation. And I provide lengthy descriptions listing the components that constituted the concoction – because I remember the efforts made; such as put bits of colored thread to simulate the appearance like bits of veins in the meat. The crew employed extreme measures to render it as unappetizing as they could.

An Awkward Celebrity Meeting

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

I attended a fitness session and there was a woman on a mat doing pilates, and the teacher remarked, “Hello Miranda, meet Miranda.” And I attempted some joke inquiring, “might you be a journalist?” Because it’s an unusual name and often when someone’s a Miranda, they’re a journalist. I hadn't properly seeing who it was. And as she rose, it was the actress Miranda Richardson. Then I didn’t know what to say. I still had to stay and do my class, and I experienced so embarrassed. I wished to explain: “Goodness, I am aware of your work!” I think her talent is immense and I was simply too awestruck to say anything.

The Origin of a Name

Articles have repeatedly stated 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 clarify this definitively?

Indeed, I was christened for a district in Sydney. My mother heard on the radio that they were opening a mall at Miranda, and she thought seemed a nice name.

Pandemonium on Location

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

While working in Brazil on Reaching for the Moon I experienced the least organized set of my career, and yet the final product emerged brilliantly. But they just work in such a different way. Their concept of time there is unique. In Australia, you receive a call sheet and must arrive on set punctually. But this was sort of open ended – one would appear whenever you happen to be ready. It was a novel way of working for me. The elements were being assembled at the very last minute, and at times the plan was unclear where they were shooting or how we were going to do it. And then you’d be in the middle of a scene and wondering, “What was that noise that disturbed the scene? Ah, it was a crew member opening a bottle on set, because he’s making a party.” The result was excellent, but goodness, it’s a really different style of film-making.

A Hidden Talent

Do you have a secretly good at?

I naturally possess good with numbers. I memorise numbers easier than I learn dialogue often, I’ve just got that kind of a brain. So I think had I not pursued acting, I likely might have worked in something to do with numbers, like mathematics or accounting.

The Finest Piece of Advice Ever Received

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

When I was in high school, a speaker came to speak as we were graduating and they said, “have no fear to fail” … an idea I consider is supremely valuable counsel, because you learn far more from setbacks than you learn from success. Success, one rarely comprehends exactly how it happened. Failure, the lessons are so much more.