Latest news with #AbsolutelyFabulous'
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Joanna Lumley reveals plan to celebrate her 80th birthday
Dame Joanna Lumley will not host a big birthday party to celebrate turning 80. The former 'Absolutely Fabulous' star reaches the milestone age on May 1, 2026, but Lumley doesn't enjoy a huge fuss on her birthday and will instead hope she will be working when her big day comes around. Speaking to the new issue of Closer magazine, she said: "When I was growing up, I was always at school for birthdays. Always at school. So, we never did stuff. The idea of birthday parties repels me. Not because of anything, I just don't know why you would ever do it. "I love having birthdays, but the idea of doing a big party to say, 'Me, I'm 112.' Why would you do that? Or, 'Me, because I'm 57.' Why have that, why have a party? So, on my big special day, fingers crossed I'll be working. It's always good to be working on your birthday." Luckily for Lumley she has plenty of acting roles and TV jobs. The British screen icon has earned critical acclaim for her performance as Felicity Sanderson, the mother of Lucy Punch's character Amanda Hughes in BBC sitcom 'Amandaland' - which is a spin-off of the successful comedy series 'Motherland'. Lumley admits it is a role she is very proud of. She said: "I love 'Amandaland'. I love Lucy's character - I love them all, actually. It's beautifully cast." Lumley and Lucy previously worked together on 2004 film 'Ella Enchanted' and she has fond memories of that shoot. Jonna added: "She played my daughter before. We did a film together in Ireland with Anne Hathaway playing the Cinderella figure. Lucy was playing one of the bad stepsisters and I was the evil stepmother. This is how life goes on - I'm now her evil mother! Not evil, Felicity is not evil." Lumley has also become a prominent travel documentary maker in recent years and in her latest ITV travel series 'Joanna Lumley's Danube', she travels 1,770 miles along the River Danube. visiting Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania and taking a detour to the Ukrainian border before reaching her final destination the Black Sea. Whilst she was in Romania the former 'Absolutely Fabulous' star spent time with a group of white witches and after taking part in the ceremony Lumley was presented with an amulet which she was told would keep her safe on her trip. In a previous interview with the Daily Express Saturday magazine, she said: "They work with the elements - earth, air, water, fire - to bring peace and ward off negativity. "They were so glamorous. They used masses of candles for their ceremony. The camera boys nearly died from the heat. Then they gave me an amulet to take me safely on the rest of my journey."
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Joanna Lumley took part in a spell ceremony with a coven of white witches in Romania during travel series
Dame Joanna Lumley participated in a spell ceremony with a coven of white witches to "bring peace and ward off negativity". The 79-year-old actress travels 1,770 miles along the River Danube for her new ITV travel series 'Joanna Lumley's Danube', visiting Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania and taking a detour to the Ukrainian border before reaching her final destination the Black Sea. Whilst she was in Romania the former 'Absolutely Fabulous' star spent time with a group of white witches and after taking part in the ceremony Lumley was presented with an amulet which she was told would keep her safe on her trip. In an interview with the Daily Express Saturday magazine, she shared: "They work with the elements - earth, air, water, fire - to bring peace and ward off negativity. "They were so glamorous. They used masses of candles for their ceremony. The camera boys nearly died from the heat. Then they gave me an amulet to take me safely on the rest of my journey." Whilst in Austria, Lumley met with with former Eurovision Song Contest winner Conchita Wurst - who won as Austria's entrant in 2014 with the song 'Rise Like a Phoenix' - and she also witnessed a performance by a troupe of homosexual lederhosen dancers which she was amazed by. She said: "The lederhosen dancers were so unbelievably touching. It was a group made completely of middle-aged gay men, it was out of this world. They were amazing. Their kindness and inclusivity touched me very much. "Thinking back to Austria and Germany's darkest times, where people were persecuted and sent to camps for being gay, suddenly here they are in the heart of Austria doing this fabulous dancing." Joanna - who is married to composer Stephen Barlow - admits the journey left her amazed by how much beauty and wonder there is in the world. She said: "It was a delight to see this magnificent river coming out of the ground at the source, a tiny little trickle, and then travelling her length. It was awesome. "I did so much thinking and reflecting on how we neglect geography at our peril. The world is so full of marvels. Everything about this trip was eye-opening. It was terribly touching, very funny and extreme."
Wales Online
07-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Wales Online
Dame Joanna Lumley says she doesn't have 'much time left'
Dame Joanna Lumley says she doesn't have 'much time left' The star says she has 'started to live day to day' Dame Joanna Lumley attends the Sands: International Film Festival Dame Joanna Lumley says she has "started to live day to day" after saying she fears she doesn't have much time left. The 79-year-old actress says she is determined to not waste one minute "of being on this beautiful planet". The 'Absolutely Fabulous' star said on BBC Radio 2: "As you nearly the top of the hill, you suddenly think, 'Gosh, there's not all that much time left.' My time must be coming quite soon, and I don't want to have wasted a minute of being on this beautiful planet. I used to panic when I was young, but as I've got older, I've started to live day to day." Despite this, Joanna believes that "growing old is good". The actress - who was honoured with the BAFTA Fellowship award back in 2017 - said: "With age, you work out what matters. I always knew that good stuff would come along when I was older. "When I was 18, I longed to be 30. When I was 30, I longed to be 50. We mustn't be led into thinking getting old is bad. Growing old is good." Joanna has enjoyed a hugely successful career, starring in a host of well-known films and TV shows. And although she celebrated her 79th birthday earlier this month, Joanna recently insisted that she has no intention to retire. The actress said at the SANDS International Film Festival in Scotland: "When I was 16 and told the careers officer at my convent school that I wanted to go into acting, he told me that the only jobs open to me in film would be as a continuity or make-up girl." Article continues below Joanna also acknowledged that attitudes within the entertainment industry have changed in recent times. The TV star - who worked as a model before focusing her efforts on acting - said: "In the past women like me would have been sidelined at 38 - but now there are lead parts for people in their 50s and big parts for those in their 70s."
New York Post
01-05-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Post
‘Wolf of Wall Street' star Joanna Lumley, 78, admits her ‘time must be coming quite soon'
Joanna Lumley is reflecting on her life and sharing some sound advice while doing it. The British actress, who turned 79 on Thursday, recently revealed in a bold statement that she expects her 'time must be coming quite soon.' The 'Absolutely Fabulous' star said 'beloved friends are beginning to leave' in an interview with My Weekly. 8 Joanna Lumley in 2025. Getty Images for University of St Andrews 8 Joanna Lumley and Leonardo Dicaprio in 'The Wolf Of Wall Street.' Appian Way/Paramount/Kobal / Shutterstock 'As you near the top of the hill, you suddenly think: 'Gosh, there's not all that amount of time left,'' she continued. 'My time must be coming quite soon and I don't want to have wasted a minute of being on this beautiful planet.' 'The Wolf of Wall Street' actress explained she 'used to panic when I was young, but as I've got older, I've started literally to live day to day.' Getting older has only been a gift for Lumley. 8 Jennifer Saunders, Joanna Lumley in 'Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie.' Fox Searchlight / Everett Collection 8 'Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie.' ©Fox Searchlight/Courtesy Everett Collection 'With age, you work out what matters. I always knew that good stuff would come along when I was older,' she confessed. 'When I was 18, I longed to be 30. When I was 30, longed to be 50. We mustn't be led into thinking getting old is bad. Growing old is good.' Lumley admitted that while she is able to be present and live in the moment, she isn't sure the younger generation is able to do the same with the consumption of social media. 'You need time in your head,' the BAFTA winner shared. 'I'm so afraid we're going to breed a generation who don't know the world and don't know how to talk.' 8 English actress Joanna Lumley, circa 1970. Getty Images And even in Lumley's later years, her career hasn't slowed down one bit. She portrays Felicity Sanderson in the British sitcom 'Amandaland' and starred in Harlen Coben's 'Fool Me Once' on Netflix in 2024. Now, Lumley is set to play Grandmama Hester Frump in Season 2 of 'Wednesday' on the streaming platform. 'It's wonderful. I get to wear many, many huge wigs, one on top of the other – and lots of quite constraining clothes, so I love it,' Lumley gushed over the role on the horror show. 8 Leonardo DiCaprio and Joanna Lumley in the movie 'The Wolf of Wall Street.' Splash News In 'The Wolf of Wall Street,' which starred Leonardo DiCaprio as stockbroker Jordan Belfort, Lumley played Aunt Emma, the aunt to Margot Robbie's Naomi Lapaglia. There was even a scene in the film where Lumley kisses DiCaprio, 50, although it wasn't all it was cracked up to be. 'I did kiss Leonardo DiCaprio, about 15 times in fact,' the actress said in 2023 at a dinner for the Elizabeth's Legacy of Hope charity, per LadBible. 'There are so many takes and you both have to chew so much chewing gum.' Lumley added, 'It's like kissing someone in a dentist's waiting room.' 8 Joanna Lumley in 1965. Getty Images The actress was a model before getting her start in Hollywood as Purdey in the ITV action series 'The New Avengers' at age 30 in 1976. 'It was a proper big part in a series,' Lumley told The Guardian in 2023, 'made over the course of two years, so you have a real chance to get into a character and work all the time.' The star went on to play Patsy Stone in the British sitcom 'Absolutely Fabulous' in 1992 opposite creator Jennifer Saunders. Looking back at playing unapologetic women, Lumley told the outlet: 'They are women without brakes.' 8 Joanna Lumley attends The RHS Chelsea Flower Show. Getty Images 'It doesn't matter what they do, they don't care,' she expressed. 'I think people found that refreshing because women were usually anxious about things.' 'It was back to clowning again,' she recalled of the role, 'back to making people laugh.' In 2016, the women reunited for 'Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie.' 'It's fantastic,' she told 'Good Morning America.' 'And to have had a character for 25 years and still be there is brilliant, because I know exactly what she's going to do. So although I am not like her, she is mine!'
