Happy 88th Birthday to Siân Phillips!

She’s in a new short film directed by Morgane Polanski.

I want to be a goddess

She was married to Peter O'Toole for 20 years and then left him for a younger guy.

Has anyone seen her "Tales Of The Unexpected" - Home For Christmas?

This woman IS a Goddess (sorry Livia). Serendipity: just recently I saw her in an episode of Midsomer Murders (this show is a bonanza of co- and guest stars who went on to be famous). She was, of course, the murderer but you ended up rooting for her. Trivia: Sian is Welsh for Jane; that's my name and I almost changed it legally to Sian because, face it, "Jane" is kind of lame, whereas "Sian" ROCKS!!

Darling, I revel in early English perpendicular!

R5, I wonder if her murderer character in 'Midsomer Murders' was based on Livia? She plays a character that murders multiple people, as Livia did.

I hope that vain and foolish mortal woman learned her lesson for insulting Thetis.

OP, Love the "Don't touch the figs"!

R5, Your name does rock!

Did you see the "MM" with Orlando Bloom?

R3-,She left O'Toole because he was a HOMO

R10 that's where a young, hot Orlando shows her arse!

R12, here's the video clip where twink Orlando Bloom shows his bum:

He's fucking some old woman who pays him. Maybe it's Joyce.

She's admitting to love the I Claudius cult. People recognize her just through her voice and will ask her to say a line from it, and she always obliges.

I got to see her on Broadway as Marlene and in An Inspector Calls (replacing Rosemary Harris, another class act), and I watch my own personal copy of I Claudius once a year from beginning to end. While she's only in half of it, the second half seems to be missing the zest but is still excellent, stronger because of the male characters. Only Sheila White as Messalina livens it up although Margaret Tzyack does give it some class, but she's not a villain.

She bewitches, bothers and bewilders me!

She does a spoken-word segment at the end of this Rufus Wainwright song:

Sian plays Rod Taylor's sister in "Young Cassidy". Unfortunately she doesn't share any scenes with Maggie Smith, but in the first quarter of the film, she has quite a few scenes and is a major part of the story.

[quote] I watch my own personal copy of I Claudius once a year from beginning to end. While she's only in half of it, the second half seems to be missing the zest but is still excellent, stronger because of the male characters.

I watch it once a year too! John Hurt's Nero is annoying to me.

R19 Have you ever watched Caligula after watching I Claudius or either The Robe or Demetrius and the Gladiators? John Hurt and Jay Robinson are both in the horrible "Partners". The scene where Hurt feels up the aged Livia is both creepy and fascinating. "You're going to stew in hell, forever and ever and ever". Livia's tears in that scene always get to me, like it's an attempt to a tone but she knows that she would do it again if she could.

My favorite Vera ever in Pal Joey.

I also adored her in Dune. Guaranteed her character won’t be nearly as vivid if memorable in the remake.

[quote]John Hurt's Nero

Oh, dear.

[R7] - if I remember correctly, all of the killings she did could have been deemed 'self-defense' in a court of law. She was an ex-CID, or something like that. As opposed to Livia killing to grab power.

[R10] - thank you, you're very sweet. (and deep down, I think my name IS pretty great; not a lot of us around!}

[quote]She left O'Toole because he was a HOMO

That's no excuse.

R24 It depends on the circumstances.

I like Livia's scene with granddaughter Livilla. Too bad she didn't tell her that she looks great in magenta.

[quote] John Hurt's Nero

Oops, I meant Caligula. I get them confused.

R5, if you weren't so piscine we would respond to your post with a

MARY JANE!!!!

[R28] - thank you (I think...). What's 'piscine' ???? Inquiring, piscine minds want to know...

R15, yeah, if there's one weakness to I, Claudius it's that the later episodes are perhaps not quite as strong due to the absence of Sian Phillips, Brian Blessed, George Baker and some of the other strong characters. It's still excellent drama, but you feel the absence of Livia, Augustus et al. Sian won both the BAFTA and the Royal Television Society award for playing Livia, and it was well-deserved.