Roger Michell

Most recently, she starred in Star City.

She was married to the writer-director Roger Mitchell, best known for Notting Hill, until his death in 2021.

She is a fantastic actress.

And the only reason she is not Village Star this week is because Arabella is kind of a know-nothing role.

I mean, I've got lots of mates who are film directors.

Stephen Frears, my late friend, Roger Michel, people who've made movies all their lives.

And they love being on a movie set.

You know, they're in charge.

So by the time he got Casino Royale, he wasn't a star, but he'd worked with some good directors before.

I'll tell you two films that I still think are great, both by Roger Michel, which he did not long before Bond, was The Mother, where he has an affair with Anne Reid's older woman.

That's a really good film, that.

It's a very May-December, quite a romance.

I think that's the one, really.

But great performances.

And it's interesting that a couple of the directors there, like Matthew Vaughan was one of the directors that was considered for Casino Royale, as was Roger Michel.

Roger Michel was offered it, and he said no.