The Author
Stage, film and television actress Siân Phillips is probably best known for her role in I, Claudius, and for her marriage to the late actor Peter O’Toole.
The Book
In this first volume of her autobiography, Siân Phillips talks about growing up in a remote Welsh village, her longing to be an actress, her early acting career, her failed first marriage, and meeting her future husband Peter O’Toole.
Review
Private Faces is a wonderful revelation about Miss Phillips. Her evocative description of her early life in Wales shows, not only a vivid picture of the land and people, but also her extraordinary intelligence. This might sound like an over-the-top view, but reading (or listening to the audiobook* in my case) the book reveals someone who is bursting to see the world, in a home where reading is encouraged, and imagination is ripe for the picking.
As we are taken along her journey, the young, precocious Siân talks of the Welsh-speaking village where she grew up, the strong women in her family, and the beginnings of her ambition to be an actress. She brings to life the Welsh countryside and the characters of the people around her in wonderful detail. Her sheltered upbringing (and it really was sheltered) gave her a naïve view of life, which is both comically and charmingly delivered.
Siân’s intelligence and gifts started from a young age, although going unnoticed by those around her. Encouraged by her parents, she was an avid reader from a young age. Her parents were not opposed to education, but were influenced by the tight-knit community in which they lived, so Siân’s ambitions were dampened time and again. Despite this, she won a scholarship to a grammar school at the tender age of 9, and went to university aged 17.
She had her first acting experience aged 11, and later went on to work for the BBC in Cardiff. Her later enrolment to RADA led to her meeting Peter O’Toole.
Siân’s love of Wales shines through her autobiography, with a thread of humour running through it. I just loved the wonderous detail she gives, and it certainly made the the book enjoyable and a treat. Listening to her reading certainly gave me an excuse to not try and pronounce the Welsh place names, and she lives the words as though she were still in that village, aged 8.
*Link not affiliated.
This articles was originally published on Medium.
Charlotte Clark 