With 10 appearances under her belt, there’s no denying that Miriam Margolyes has become a staple of Graham Norton’s talk show thanks to her quick wit, scene-stealing anecdotes and unlikely connections she makes with fellow guests.
However, in a new interview with the Australian news website News.com.au, Graham admitted that he does “feel bad” that Miriam is now arguably more well-known for her talk show appearances than her acting work.
“It has given her this weird third act, having been a really exceptional actress. And that’s the thing that I feel bad about for Miriam,” he explained.
“She doesn’t care, by the way – she’s delighted with this third act. But I feel bad because I feel like now she’s just a kind of a comedy turn, whereas she is a brilliant actor.
“And I feel bad that she’s not famous for that, because it’s like people have forgotten she was ever in anything. She’s a wonderful actor, but now she’s just, ‘I’m the woman who tells terrible stories on your show’.”
Back in February, Graham was asked about his many past interviews with Miriam, insisting the Bafta winner actually “looks wilder than she is” in reality.
“She’s actually very canny,” the comedian claimed. “She sort of self-produces.
“Going into [an interview], we’ll know that there’s kind of a wild story we want from her – but often, during the show, she’ll change her mind and say, ‘no, that’s not the story I’m going to tell’, and she’ll drop a bombshell on us.
“But it’s always timed very well, and she allows the other guests to have their moment. She’s clever, is Miriam.”
Last year, Miriam told Graham that the second instalment of her memoir, titled Oh Miriam!, was deliberately less racy than its predecessor, to avoid playing up to her reputation.
“I wanted to talk about the more serious part of my life,” she claimed. “So people don’t just think I am a maniac. I am a real person.”