Portrait of the artist: Susannah York, actor

'I can't relax until I understand a character's motivations - I'm like a dog with a bone'
Susannah York
Frustrated wild child ... Susannah York. Photograph: Linda Nylind Linda Nylind/Guardian

What got you started?

Getting a laugh from the audience while playing an ugly sister in Cinderella at school, aged nine. It felt fantastic.

What was your big breakthrough?

Playing Nora in Ibsen's A Doll's House in my last term at Rada. The agent Al Parker saw me in it and decided to represent me. He wrote long letters about me to all the Hollywood studios, and everything went from there.

Who or what have you sacrificed for your art?

Nothing and no one. Acting has given me so much: personal development, travel, relationships. There's no way I've been short-changed.

Have you done anything cultural lately?

I saw Carson McCullers' The Member of the Wedding at London's Young Vic recently. It got to the core of what acting's all about: what goes on in the human heart, head and mind.

Are you fashionable?

No. Sometimes, it dawns on me that everyone is wearing miniskirts or ankle boots, but I don't keep up with fashion.

Do you suffer for your art?

Yes, hugely. I bore myself and other actors because I'm such a perfectionist. I can't relax until I understand a character's motivations; I'm like a dog with a bone.

What's your favourite film?

Midnight Run. The relationship between Robert De Niro and Charles Grodin is wonderful.


Wild child.

What's your favourite museum or art gallery?

Tate Modern. It's a liberating space, and it feels very democratic: it's open to all ages and nationalities.

What's the greatest threat to theatre today?

Lack of money. Theatre is expensive to mount, so the risk factor is high. The effect is that actors don't get enough chances to practise, and young people don't become familiar enough with the art form.

What advice would you give a young actor just starting out?

Don't do it unless you absolutely have to. And if you do have to, go all the way.


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What work of art would you most like to own?

A piece of Zimbabwean sculpture. During a trip to the country, I visited a farm where beautiful, abstract sculptures carved out of strange, dark stone lay among the chickens and the dust. I bought one, but I'd like to go back for another.

What's the best advice anyone ever gave you?

From an early age, I was told to do as I would be done by. The more you give as an actor, the more will come back to you.

Born: London, 1941

Career: Has appeared in more than 70 films, including Tom Jones (1963), A Man for All Seasons (1966) and Superman (1978). She is currently performing in The Final Shot at Theatre503, London (020-7978 7040), until October 27.

High point: "I've had too many high and low points to name. They've given my career huge variety and diversity."