One of the last links to Hollywood’s golden age, @Joancollinsdbe is about to publish her withering and witty diaries. @thesundaytimes meets her at home in Belgravia. thetimes.co.uk/article/joan-c…
A mood killer in this interview is The Mail on Sunday, writes @joshglancy, which has just printed a story about Collins supposedly having an affair with the patrician Tory MP Alan Clark that is “an absolute, 100% lie”.
The offending anecdote is taken from documentary maker Michael Cockerell’s new memoir.
Collins was “appalled” by the story and is trying to put her lawyer on it. “I’ve never heard of this Cockerell chap,” she says dismissively.
Collins was “appalled” by the story and is trying to put her lawyer on it. “I’ve never heard of this Cockerell chap,” she says dismissively.
But Collins is a pro. Suddenly she breaks out into a Hollywood smile. “I’m always happy because I’m a very happy person,” she says, those famous mint green eyes twinkling.
It’s no exaggeration to describe Collins as one of the last remaining links to Hollywood’s golden age. Her book is peppered with references to Jack Lemmon (“adorable”), Gregory Peck (“dull but adorable”) and Tony Curtis (“exuberant”). 
But, “I don’t live with nostalgia, I live in the present,” she says.
She never loved LA the way she does London, often finding Tinseltown a place of emptiness, insecurity and insomnia.
She never loved LA the way she does London, often finding Tinseltown a place of emptiness, insecurity and insomnia.
Casting-couch culture was also rife at the time.
She has recalled how big-time producers like Darryl Zanuck (who kept a gold statue of his penis on his desk) pursued her relentlessly, but says she rebuffed their advances — at some cost — “I lost a few roles because [of it].”
She has recalled how big-time producers like Darryl Zanuck (who kept a gold statue of his penis on his desk) pursued her relentlessly, but says she rebuffed their advances — at some cost — “I lost a few roles because [of it].”
Not least, she says, the part of Cleopatra in the 1963 blockbuster, which eventually went to her friend and rival Elizabeth Taylor.
Her best defence against pervy moguls was a right knee to the groin of whichever lech was on her case. “I felt I was an early feminist, before it became a dirty word,” she says. “I believed in living my life as freely as a man.”
Her husband, the jovial Percy Gibson, pokes his head round the door to say hello at one point. Collins lights up — “Hello meeee,” she trills.
“He’s the best, I can’t imagine life without him. Thank God I married somebody 30 years younger than me. I couldn’t bear to be married to someone my own age.”
Read the full interview: thetimes.co.uk/article/joan-c…
Read the full interview: thetimes.co.uk/article/joan-c…
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