Q&A: Penelope Wilton

Born in Scarborough, Wilton, 68, has appeared in the films The French Lieutenant’s Woman, Calendar Girls and The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. She starred in the TV sitcom Ever Decreasing Circles and is in Downton Abbey. From 15 January, she appears in Taken At Midnight at the Theatre Royal Haymarket. She is twice divorced and lives in London.

What is your earliest memory?
Being taken to see my mother and new baby sister, Linda. I was rather annoyed.

Which living person do you most admire, and why?
Doreen Lawrence, for bringing her son’s murderers to justice and for fighting the establishment.

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
My impatience.

What is the trait you most deplore in others?
Exclusivity.

Property aside, what’s the most expensive thing you’ve bought?
A painting by Philip Sutton RA.

What do you most dislike about your appearance?
My hair. It used to be nice and now it’s horrible because I’ve got older..

Who would play you in the film of your life?
Diane Keaton.

What is your most unappealing habit?
Being exactly on time or far too early. It seems like you’re terribly keen.

What is your favourite word?
Delicious.

Which book changed your life?
Renoir My Father, by Jean Renoir. It taught me a lot about painting.

What is the worst job you’ve done?
When I was 21, I played somebody’s legs in a BBC show. I was supposed to have varicose veins and they put spaghetti on the back of my legs.

What is the worst thing anyone’s said to you?
A critic once said to me, “You’re not as good as you think you are.” As I had never felt good about myself, it underlined what I was feeling.

What is top of your bucket list?
I am doing all the things I want to do.

To whom would you most like to say sorry, and why?
My daughter. When she was 10, I had to go to school to see her work. I was rehearsing so I was late, and she was the only one whose mother wasn’t there. There were these terrible quiet sobs, because she couldn’t show she was crying. I’ve never got over it.

Who would you invite to your dream dinner party?
Lino Ventura, the Italian film star. He’s the most attractive man I’ve ever seen, and I would do a lot more than eat dinner with him if I could.

If you could go back in time, where would you go?
I wouldn’t go back in time – it was horrible for women.

When did you last cry, and why?
Last night, out of joy, when I heard Brahms’ first Piano Concerto.

What is the closest you’ve come to death?
When I was 24, my car was caught in a crosswind on the M4 and turned over. Miraculously, I survived my car being split in two.

What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Keeping going.

What song would you like played at your funeral?
Sunny, by Bobby Hebb.

How would you like to be remembered?
Fondly.

What is the most important lesson life has taught you?
Most of us are just doing our best.