Ellie's homecoming 'I'M BACK IN THE LOOP!'

The talented Kiwi shares the special project that's pulling her away from London

- By Ellie Smith

From an early age, I knew I wanted to be an actor.

When I was about nine, I said to Mum, ‘Don’t plan a 21st for me because I’ll be London.’ I only did my first play because a friend needed someone to audition with her. It was a school production, an adaptation of Great Expectations. The teacher, Judy Treloar, was also an actor, and she became my speech and drama teacher. I adored Judy and I studied with her until she left for London. I also did lots of amateur stuff and theatre became my absolute joy.

My parents didn’t think I should be an actor because they thought I’d never make any money.

But I did a million jobs when school finished to save for London. I sold encyclopaedias, and worked in a bank and a library. In 1971, I entered a Shakespeare speech and drama competition, and I won. The prize was $200 – a small fortune back then – and that’s how I paid the last of my fare.

London was incredible. I found a bedsit in Hampstead and I read The Stage to find out about auditions. A schools’ tour led to the lead role in The Rupert Bear Show. That was a wonderful break because back then, touring shows were huge. We played to 1800 screaming children in the biggest theatres from Liverpool to Newcastle and Aberdeen. Fortnightly repertory up in Yorkshire followed, which was the best training because I never went to drama school. Instead, I learned on the job from wonderful older actors who’d been in the business their whole lives.

I was Elizabeth Taylor's double in a film called The Mirror Cracked, but if you blink, you miss me.